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ETHICS COMMISSION IMPOSES FINE OF $7,500

For Immediate Release: December 15, 2021
Contact: Nancy Jackson (213) 978-1960

The Ethics Commission approved a stipulated order at its meeting today, imposing a fine of $7,500 for lobbying violations.

The case involved violations of the registration and reporting requirements in the Los Angeles Municipal Lobbying Ordinance.  Lobbyists and lobbying firms are required to register with the Ethics Commission and report their lobbying activity on a quarterly basis, to help the public identify who is attempting to influence City action.  In addition, the case involved a prohibited political contribution from a lobbying entity.

AHN & Associates, LLC (AHN) and its owner Athena Novak (Novak) admitted that they failed to register as lobbying entities in 2020 and failed to file disclosure reports for the first quarter of 2020.  Novak was also fined for making a prohibited political contribution to a City Council candidate when she was required to be registered to lobby the City Council.  AHN and Novak were fined $7,500.  They have filed the required registrations and disclosure reports.

All fines levied by the Ethics Commission are paid to the City’s general fund.  Enforcement orders can be viewed and searched through the Ethics Commission’s Public Data Portal.  Additionally, historical lobbying trends can be visualized on the Lobbying Dashboard.

To download PDF, click here.

The Ethics Commission was created by Los Angeles voters in 1990 to impartially administer and enforce the City’s governmental ethics, campaign financing, and lobbying laws.

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