Before Miguel Arias filed a request for documents from Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp regarding her Prop. 47 activities, he filed an ethics complaint with the state.

And, in the words of Smittcamp, the Fair Political Practices Commission told Arias to “pound sand.”

Three days after Arias filed the complaint, the FPPC — the state agency charged with enforcing campaign finance law — rejected the Fresno city councilmember’s claim that Smittcamp broke rules about using her office’s time to advocate for reforming a state law.

In an April 12 letter, Arias — writing on his city council letterhead — argued that Smittcamp used the public’s time and resources to advocate for revising Proposition 47. Voters approved the law in 2014, and the law’s critics contend that it increased homelessness, drug abuse, and retail theft.

“I am referring to you, Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp, who has been for months, using public tax dollars to fund her anti-Proposition 47 ballot initiatives in violation of (state law),” Arias wrote.

Smittcamp hosted petition-signing events to change the law. Supporters say they have gathered enough signatures of registered voters to place the measure on the November ballot.

State law generally prohibits the use of public resources for political activities.

In a response letter sent to Arias and Smittcamp, the FPPC said those claims were not within its jurisdiction.

“The actions by the public official listed in your complaint are not governed by the (Political Reform) Act. The complaint failed to establish any violations of the Act; therefore, we will not pursue the matter further,” James Lindsey, chief of the FPPC enforcement agency wrote on April 22.

In an interview with KMJ last week, Smittcamp called Arias’ complaint “quite funny and ironic.”

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Arias Alleges Smittcamp Broke Law

Arias and Smittcamp have had a nearly 10-year public battle, each publicly criticizing the other.

Recently, Arias and fellow city councilmember Garry Bredefeld called out Smittcamp for serving on the Valley Children’s Hospital board, and doing nothing about what they called excessive salaries for its top executives. Smittcamp said her board did not set compensation rates.

In his FPPC letter, Arias accused Smittcamp of using public resources.

“Smittcamp has used her office and position to fund these political activities. She has appeared on local radio stations utilizing Fresno County employee staff time and while she was on-the-clock as a Fresno County employee … Moreover, District Attorney Smittcamp has collected and solicited ballot signatures while in her official capacity,” Arias wrote.

Included in the complaint letter was a local news story about Smittcamp holding a signature drive, and a post on the Fresno County District Attorney Facebook page about the March 1 event.

Smittcamp, in her KMJ interviews, said any elected official works 24 hours a day, and the law allows her to advocate for such public safety issues. She denied that she used any public resources or her staff worked on the clock.

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After Rejection, Arias Used City Attorney to Seek Records

One day after the FPPC complaint, Arias, through Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz, sent a Public Records Act request to Smittcamp’s office for documents related to Smittcamp and her staff’s involvement in Prop 47 activities. Among the documents Arias is seeking is timecards of some of Smittcamp’s top staffers and attorneys.

“I suggest that your office do the same before any public records are altered or destroyed,” Arias wrote to the FPPC.

Arias mentioned he would instruct Janz to request documents in the April 12 FPPC letter.

Smittcamp and a Fresno city councilmember criticized Arias for using the City Attorney’s Office to request the PRA — a method to request public records available to anyone.

Fresno City Councilmember Mike Karbassi said “it is very unfortunate that the Office of City Attorney is being weaponized.”

Janz’s request on the city attorney letterhead went out April 23.

“I suppose Mr. Janz’s letter was his second attempt to swing at me after the Fair Political Practices Commission told him to pound sand,” Smittcamp said on KMJ.