Vargas Found Guilty by FPPC

May 18, 2021

The California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) found City Council Member Veronica Vargas guilty of violating the state’s ethics rules for failure “…to timely report a source of income on her 2015 and 2016 Annual Statements of Economic Interest, in violation of Government Code Section 87207.” 



Vargas didn’t even argue or deny the charges and instead signed the following statement, “I acknowledge that the violation(s) of the Political Reform Act described above have occurred…(and I)…voluntarily waive any and all procedural rights to contest this matter in an administrative hearing.”


Vargas’ guilty verdict by the FPPC is only a small bit of justice but justice none-the-less. 

Embattled Council Member Veronica Vargas

The FPPC investigation dates back to December of 2018 when Tracy Attorney Steve Nicolauo filed a complaint over Vargas’ allegations that she used her role on City Council to benefit her former employer Trumark Homes. Transparent Tracy reported about this previously in our March “Vargas’ FPPC Investigation Rolls On” post (read here).


The fact that Vargas chose not to contest the accusations in any manner speaks volumes about her lack of ethics as an elected official. She knew that she was guilty and chose to acknowledge it only after it was brought to light by Nicolauo. She took an oath and violated the public trust in the process. Remember, this is the same council member who rejected a proposed ethics policy (that she proposed ironically), because she thought it went too far in its reach.


What else has Vargas failed to report?


The FPPC verdict validates our claims that Veronica Vargas is using her position as a city council member to push forward the agendas of her professional affiliations. Vargas’ blatant pandering to the wealthy private developer Mike Sandhu and her close friends in real estate Mary and Pete Mitrocas is without debate. One only has to look at the major development items and political Measures she has pushed and backed over the last several years. (We welcome you to review our previous posts if you don’t know what we’re referencing.) Only recently has Vargas recused herself on an item for a conflict of interest she has with Patterson Petroleum (more on that here).


The FPPC verdict also begs the question as to what else Vargas has failed to report? Her source of income and her W-2 form were from Trumark Homes! How did she “forget” who she worked for? By omitting Trumark Homes from here statement of economic interest she could serve as a council person and advocate with City staff for Trumark’s development interests. This type of conniving lead her to make certain to help get Jenny Haruyama hired as City Manager. That is why she positioned herself on the Valley Link Board of Directors. She forgot she worked for Trumark and now forgets she works for us. 

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