By Jim Siegel
Enquirer Columbus bureau

BIG SPENDERS

Top 10 state candidate fund donations to political campaigns by county party organizations, 2000-2004 Republican parties Summit (Akron) $940,336 Hamilton (Cincinnati) $811,933 Cuyahoga (Cleveland) $665,151 Montgomery (Dayton) $424,699 Franklin (Columbus) $350,515 Columbiana (Lisbon) $90,000 Mahoning (Youngstown) $75,538 Licking (Newark) $50,700 Fairfield (Lancaster) $48,081 Stark (Canton) $48,045 Democratic parties Montgomery (Dayton) $203,305 Cuyahoga (Cleveland) $82,351 Clark (Springfield) $59,629 Lucas (Toledo) $39,989 Summit (Akron) $37,750 Lorain (Elyria) $18,180 Lake (Painesville) $16,821 Athens (Athens) $14,622 Hamilton (Cincinnati) $10,050 Ross (Chillicothe) $9,503 Source: Records compiled from Ohio Secretary of State's office.

BIG HELP

Hamilton County GOP state candidate fund contributions since 2000: Treasurer Joe Deters $308,309 Gov. Bob Taft $117,520 Sec. of State Ken Blackwell $94,500 Attorney General Jim Petro $13,500 Auditor Betty Montgomery $7,790 Source: Records compiled from Ohio Secretary of State's office.

COLUMBUS - One year before winning the 2002 election for state treasurer, Joe Deters' campaign was propped up by more than $300,000 from the Hamilton County Republican Party.

Deters and the four Republican colleagues who went on to win statewide office took in more than $2 million from accounts administered by county political parties across the state.

But statewide candidates looking to county parties for major cash infusions in the elections of 2006 could be out of luck.

Following a year of investigations, controversies and questions about fund-raising tactics, state lawmakers are preparing to change the system.

Reforms include reining in county state-candidate funds, which political parties can use for almost anything but which are most often distributed to statewide candidates.

In the past six years, state candidates have routinely steered donors toward county political parties. Those parties can then return that money to the candidates - up to $549,000 per election cycle to those running statewide - essentially skirting state law that says donors cannot give more than $2,500 per cycle to a single candidate.

"Basically, we created a system that legalized money laundering," said Catherine Turcer, legislative director for Ohio Citizen Action, a nonprofit government watchdog.

"If you can't track the money easily, it's not meaningful, and people can get into all kind of shenanigans," she said. "The current system doesn't encourage ethical behavior."

"The folks back home know it's a pay-to-play system in Columbus," said House Minority Leader Chris Redfern, D-Port Clinton. "We need to go about the business of restoring the public's confidence in the legislature."

Sen. Randy Gardner, R-Bowling Green, is considering getting rid of the funds altogether. Fewer funds and less complexity "will go a long way toward cleaning up the process," he said.

But even if the funds stay in place, Gardner wants significant reforms.

"Basically, they are using the funds as a conduit or a bank for state candidates," he said. "That is something I think needs to be reformed."

State candidate funds are an increasingly significant funding source for candidates, particularly Republicans.

Since 2000, both parties have distributed more than $4.1 million to political campaigns and state parties through those county funds, according to an analysis of records filed with the secretary of state's office.

About 88 percent of that county money has emanated from Republican funds. Reforms could have a significant impact on the Hamilton County Republican Party, which has spent $812,000 on campaigns and donations to the state Republican Party since 2000, second only to Summit County's $940,000.

Hamilton County Republican Party Chairman Michael Barrett said he'll live with whatever system is created, but he doesn't see a need for reform, particularly if state law continues to cap donations to individual campaigns.

"State candidate funds were created to help candidates, and I don't see any problem," he said.

The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported in 2002 that bankers, brokers and others who did business with the treasurer's office gave thousands to the Hamilton County Republican party, which in turn gave Deters $300,000 in cash and in-kind contributions.

Deters has said he did nothing improper. He and the county party shared the same fund-raiser, Eric Sagun, who recently pleaded guilty to an election-law violation for directing a $50,000 contribution meant for Deters to the county party's secret operating account.

E-mail jsiegel@enquirer.com