‘Absolutely none.’ Gavin Newsom denies conflicts of interest in donations to wife’s nonprofit
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday he sees no conflicts of interest in companies donating to his wife’s nonprofit as they lobby his administration on policy.
A Sacramento Bee investigation published online Thursday found more than $800,000 in donations to the nonprofit Representation Project from companies that have lobbied the governor, including PG&E, AT&T and Kaiser Permanente. Those donations have helped fund Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s six-figure salary at The Representation Project, which she founded to finance her documentary films and promote feminism.
Newsom said his wife has received global recognition for her work and that he sees no conflict related to the donations and his role as governor.
“None whatsoever,” he said during a press conference in Sacramento where he announced the first winners of California’s vaccine lottery. “There’s no correlation, period, full stop. Absolutely none.”
Ethics experts told The Bee the nonprofit’s fundraising raises red flags, however.
Donors may give to the spouse’s nonprofit because they hope to win favorable treatment from the official, or because they fear they will be politically “disadvantaged” if they refuse, said Kathleen Clark, law professor at Washington University in St. Louis.
When the official’s spouse is getting paid from the donations, “that raises the possibility of personal enrichment,” Clark said.
Since he became governor, Newsom has implemented a number of policies to minimize his potential conflicts of interest, including placing his businesses in a blind trust and forbidding his political advisers from lobbying his administration.
Asked why he hasn’t taken steps to insulate himself from potential conflicts of interest related to the nonprofit donations, he said he thinks his wife is adequately transparent about them, beyond even what is required by law.
The Representation Project isn’t required to disclose its donors, but the organization’s executive director, Caroline Heldman, says it lists all donors who give more than $5,000. The organization’s website currently lists 28 donors who gave between December 2019 and November 2020, but does not give exact donation amounts.
Jennifer Siebel Newsom declined multiple requests to be interviewed by Bee reporters about the donations and her work for the nonprofit.
Siebel Newsom founded The Representation Project in 2011, around the time her husband became lieutenant governor. The Representation Project has financed Siebel Newsom’s three documentary films and works to combat harmful gender stereotypes. Siebel Newsom is currently working on a fourth film.
“She’s done, I think, three or four documentaries that have had a profound impact in terms of the debate around gender equality masculinity, and I hope she continues to do that for decades to come,” Newsom said. “I don’t want my professional work to get in the way of her extraordinary contributions broadly to society, particularly women and girls.”
This story was originally published June 4, 2021 at 3:50 PM.