Former Fresno Unified School District trustee Terry Slatic faces $18,000 in fines for not reporting gifts, including a steak dinner in San Diego.
The Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) hit Slatic with three fines for not reporting the gifts during his tenure on the board, which was first reported by GV Wire.
The backstory: Former Fresno Unified Superintendent Bob Nelson paid for an expensive steak dinner for Slatic when they were in San Diego in 2021 for the California School Board Association conference in 2021.
- Nelson, Slatic and the other board members went to Fogo De Chao Brazilian Steakhouse, where Slatic racked up a bill that cost Nelson over $1,200.
- Nelson, who would routinely pay for dinner at the annual event for the trustees, attempted to set up a group rate with a fixed price at the steakhouse. But he reported to the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office that Slatic arrived at the restaurant before everyone else and had the restaurant staff put any alcohol orders on Nelson’s food tab.
- Slatic and his guest ordered two $145 wagyu tomahawk steaks, going over the $95 per person rate that Nelson set. They also ordered multiple bottles of wines and other alcoholic drinks, including two bottles of Opus One Meritage, which were sold at $435 per bottle.
The big picture: Per the GV Wire report, the FPPC hit Slatic with three violations for the dinner: failure to timely report a gift, failure to accurately report a gift and accepting a gift over the limit.
- The FPPC also found that Slatic did not timely report gifts in 2018 and 2019.
- He was fined $5,000 for each count from the 2021 dinner, totaling $15,000, and $1,500 for each of the other two violations.
What we’re watching: The FPPC will make the fines official at its meeting on June 19.
