Sacramento councilman again investigated by California for failing to disclose finances
A state agency is investigating Sacramento City Councilman Sean Loloee again.
The state Fair Political Practices Commission opened an investigation of the embattled councilman earlier this week after learning information about commercial properties he owns from a Sacramento Bee story, according to FPPC documents.
FPPC fined Loloee $200 in June for filing his 2021 financial disclosure documents six months late. Loloee paid the fine and the case was closed. He filed the form on time the next two years.
The complaint did not include details about the focus of the investigation. The Bee’s June story about the fine, which was the entirety of the complaint, included information about Loloee’s commercial properties.
Rent from commercial buildings, if the building is in the city the person represents, is also required to be disclosed, according to state law. The story included information about several commercial buildings Loloee owns.
Loloee under an LLC bought an apartment complex in August 2022 at 830 and 838 Lampasas Ave. He included the property in his form covering 2022, and checked a box to indicate he received between $1,001 and $10,000 in rental income annually. Whether Loloee collected more rental income than that amount is unclear. Loloee evicted all eight units of the complex, a property manager told The Bee, but not until late 2022 or early 2023.
The form also did not include rental income from a large Natomas office building on Duckhorn Drive that Loloee owns under a different LLC. It’s unclear if any businesses lease office space is there other than his grocery store chain.
“We are in receipt of the letter from FPPC and are confident that this can be easily resolved,” said Nicholas Sanders, an attorney for Loloee.
The FPPC requires all elected officials in the state to submit the forms in part so the public can know what properties and businesses they own, and can see if they are voting on items that would help them financially. That would be a conflict of interest.
While the previous FPPC investigation was the result of a complaint by a citizen, the new investigation was initiated by the FPPC.
The new investigation comes about three weeks after federal agents raided Loloee’s three Sacramento area Viva Supermarket stores and two houses. The raid occurred amid an active U.S. Department of Labor case, which alleges Loloee has threatened to deport workers for complying with a federal investigation, has not paid overtime, has employed minors, and failed to give breaks.
The Democratic Party of Sacramento County, Fabrizio Sasso, executive director of the Sacramento Central Labor Council, and several
Latino activists have called on Loloee to resign.
Loloee has said he will not resign ahead of the end of his term in December 2024, but will not seek re-election next year.
After similar raids, federal agencies typically file criminal charges three to six months later, longtime former federal public defender Mark Reichel has said.
If a council member is arrested, however, it does not have any effect on their council seat, City Clerk Mindy Cuppy has said.
This story was originally published November 20, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
