The Orange County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday to remove Supervisor Andrew Do from all his committee assignments, including his role as a board member for the Orange County Transportation Authority.
When the board meets next, the supervisors are set to vote on censuring Do, which is a statement of formal condemnation.
Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas.
Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas.
And, we found the nonprofit missed a deadline set by county officials to provide proof about how funding for meals were spent.
Six days later, LAist reported Orange County officials had expanded demands for refunds of millions in tax dollars from the nonprofits and threatened legal action.
The lawsuit alleges that county money was illegally used to purchase five homes and was converted into cash through ATM transactions.
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Supervisor Andrew Do was unanimously voted out of all committee assignments by the Orange County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, including his position as a board member of the Orange County Transportation Authority. Do did not show up for the meeting.
In the meeting, Supervisor Katrina Foley stated, “We’re having to do this because he will not resign and we hope that he will resign because he should not continue to be publicly enriched off of the taxpayers when he, one, isn’t doing his job and, two, is embroiled in a terrible corruption scandal.”.
Why it matters how they move.
An alternate supervisor is usually assigned while one supervisor represents the county in various organizations. Do was also eliminated from all assignments as a backup.
The supervisors will vote on formal condemnation, or censuring Do, at the next board meeting.
The Board of Supervisors will “strongly and publicly” denounce Do if the censure motion is approved because of “the reckless judgment and favoritism he has demonstrated in directing millions of dollars” in federal coronavirus funds and discretionary funds to nonprofit organizations—”organizations with no proven track record”—while keeping his familial ties a secret.
Introduced the item of censure was Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, who had earlier demanded that Do resign.
He stated during Tuesday’s meeting, “We know that the residents in District One also don’t have a representative that is available, so it’s important that we do this together and as a unified board.”.
current state of affairs.
After FBI and IRS agents searched the family home that Do and his wife, O, own, this is the second meeting that Do has missed. D. Cheri Pham is the Assistant Presiding Judge of the Superior Court. Rhiannon Do, his daughter, had her house searched as well. In a lawsuit that O filed, Rhiannon Do was named. C. . claims made by officials that she and other individuals “brazenly plundered” millions of public monies. Supervisor Do has stood up for his family.
Following a months-long LAist investigation, the lawsuits surfaced, revealing that Do had directed over $13 million in public funds to the little-known nonprofit Viet America Society, which was reportedly intermittently run by his now 23-year-old daughter, according to public records.
The majority of that money was given to the group by Supervisor Do behind closed doors and never on the agendas of public meetings. It’s not against the law for him to have kept his family connections private.
During the meeting, Foley stated that the board’s only option was to take this action because they “are not allowed to remove him from office [because] that requires a(n) attorney general action or for him to resign.”. “.
Three bills influenced by LAist’s reporting are currently pending governor approval. Gavin Newsom’s autograph.
A nonprofit organization’s connections to a family member will need to be disclosed by elected officials in order for them to abstain from voting on government contracts. One of the bills also calls for increased openness regarding Orange County nonprofits’ use of tax payer funds.
Recap the investigation conducted by LAist.
November 2023 marked the start of LAist’s investigation into the use of millions of public funds. Over $13 million in public funds were approved to a little-known nonprofit that records show was intermittently run by Rhiannon Do, Supervisor Do’s 23-year-old daughter. This information has been unearthed by LAist. Supervisor Do directed the majority of that money to the group out of the public eye and without ever being listed on the agenda for a public meeting. His family connections were kept a secret.
Federal funds designated for coronavirus relief accounted for a large portion of the known funding.
Read this story to find out what sparked the investigation.
We have also discovered that the group was two years behind schedule in finishing the mandatory audit to determine whether the meal funds were used properly since we began reporting.
Furthermore, we discovered that the amount of public funds given to the nonprofit was far higher than previously thought. According to government documents that LAist was able to obtain and publish, the county funding totals at least $135 million.
Following our reporting, O. C. Declaring that millions in funding were missing, officials sent demand letters to the nonprofit. It might have to return the money, they said.
We also discovered that the nonprofit had missed a deadline set by county authorities to submit documentation regarding the use of funds for meals.
In August. 2. O was reported by LAist. C. . Authorities were requesting a return of over $3 million in public funds that Do had given to Hand to Hand, another nonprofit, and VAS.
Six days later, the LAist revealed Orange County officials had increased their demands and threatened legal action against the nonprofits, demanding refunds of millions of dollars in taxes.
In August. 15, as reported by LAist. B. Authorities filed a lawsuit against VAS, its principal executives, and related companies, which included Rhiannon Do. Five houses were purportedly bought with unlawful county funds, which were later turned into cash through ATM transactions, according to the lawsuit.
And then, in August. 19, O was reported by LAist. C. In an effort to recoup millions of taxpayer funds that Supervisor Do ordered, officials had announced the filing of a second lawsuit against Hand to Hand and its CEO.
On August, LAist broke the news. 22 that federal agents were looking through Rhiannon Do’s Tustin residence. Supervisor Do’s house as well as other properties were raided later that day.
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