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Foundation contributor uncovered
By TIM NICKENS Times Political Editor © St. Petersburg Times, published October 22, 1998 The largest contributor to the Foundation for Florida's Future has been identified through newly disclosed tax forms as Odebrecht Contractors of Florida. The company gave $70,000 to the non-profit in 1995, $20,000 more than anyone else has ever given and far above the $5,000 commonly contributed by top donors. Odebrecht has won state and local contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years, from Miami International Airport's renovation to a new Miami arena to bridges throughout Florida. Its multinational parent company, based in Brazil, was implicated but never charged in a bribery scandal in that country several years ago. Bush, the Republican candidate for governor who created the foundation after he lost the 1994 race, has repeatedly refused to say who gave how much to it. Campaigning in South Florida on Wednesday, he would not confirm the accuracy of foundation tax returns identifying Odebrecht as the $70,000 contributor. "I'm not going to tell you," Bush told a St. Petersburg Times reporter. Asked if he knew whether the information was accurate, he replied: "Yes, I know. You know I know." That is a different answer than the one Bush gave in a July interview with the Times. On that occasion, he said he could not remember who gave the foundation $70,000. "I could probably find out," Bush said then. An Odebrecht official confirmed Wednesday that the company gave the Foundation for Florida's Future $70,000. David Peeples, director of business development, said the money was given for a specific purpose: paying for the 284-page book that Bush co-wrote, Profiles in Character. "We consider it a contribution to civic dialogue," Peeples said. "We gave this when he wasn't a candidate for anything." Bush is a candidate now, and his refusal to reveal who gave how much to the Foundation for Florida's Future has been a significant campaign issue. Non-profits are not required to disclose donations or their sources. The foundation lists donors in its annual reports, but Bush has declined to reveal how much they gave. His Democratic opponent, Lt. Gov. Buddy MacKay, says that the foundation allowed Bush to campaign since the last election and that voters deserve to know who gave him what. Established in January 1995, the foundation enabled Bush to stay in the public eye, remain engaged in public issues and keep his key campaign staff in place until he kicked off his second campaign for governor. In September, the Times reported the $70,000 contribution and traced the rapid evolution of the foundation into a powerful political force. The Foundation for Florida's Future raised more than $1.7-million in 1995 and 1996. From the contributors who gave at least $5,000 each to the foundation in 1996, Bush's campaign collected more than $119,000 between January 1997 and June 30, 1998. The same group of foundation contributors gave more than $1.6-million to the Florida Republican Party. Using 1995 tax returns for the foundation, the Orlando Weekly this week identified Odebrecht as the $70,000 contributor. The newspaper obtained the tax returns from the state Division of Consumer Services in March 1997 but did not realize their significance until recently. The list of contributors next to the amounts apparently was released in error. The Times received tax returns with the names deleted when it requested the same information from the same state agency in February 1997 and again in July 1998. Foundation tax returns obtained directly from the Internal Revenue Service deleted the same information. While the 1995 tax returns indicate Odebrecht was the top contributor to the Foundation for Florida's Future that year, it still is not known who contributed how much in 1996. Tax returns indicate someone gave the foundation $50,000 that year -- 100 times the maximum $500 contribution limit to Bush's campaign. Contributions to non-profits are not limited. "A political figure connected to a foundation should want to be open about this and remove any questions," said Paul Hendrie, spokesman for the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan research organization in Washington. "The problem is, should he be elected and this company is vying for new contracts or running into problems on existing contracts, people are going to wonder whether his decisions are influenced by this money." Odebrecht won more than $135-million in contracts from the Florida Department of Transportation between August 1992 and August 1998, according to state records. It still is working on three new bridges in North Florida. The company's stake in Miami-Dade, Bush's home, is far larger. It has won more than $400-million in contracts there in recent years. Until it recently pulled out of the project, Odebrecht also was a member of the consortium hoping to build a futuristic bullet train in Florida that would require billions in state and federal dollars. Odebrecht has given contributions totalling $8,000 to both state Democrats and Republicans since 1997, including $5,000 to the Florida Democratic Party last month. The Foundation's 1995 tax returns also identify seven other contributors who gave more than $5,000 that year: George and Barbara Bush, the former president and first lady, $30,000. Jeb and Columba Bush, $17,075. Daniel M. Doyle, Danka Business Systems chief executive and founder, Clearwater, $15,000. He contributed $500 to the Bush campaign. Al Hoffman, developer and Bush campaign finance chairman, Fort Myers, $30,000. He and his companies have given at least $98,000 to the Bush campaign and the state Republican Party. Steven Scott, chief executive officer of Coastal Physician Group, whose health maintenance organization won a new state contact this month and serves 33,000 state workers, Boca Raton, $25,000. He contributed $500 to the MacKay campaign in 1996 and $50,000 to the Florida Republican Party in June. Lawrence Kadish, real estate investor, Ojus, $10,000. He gave $25,000 to the state Republican Party. Allied International Holdings, an insurance holding company, Treasure Island, $10,000. The company and its executives have contributed more than $102,000 to the Florida Republican Party and Republican candidates since 1997. Neither Odebrecht's Peeples nor Sally Harrell, Bush's campaign manager and the former executive director of the Foundation for Florida's Future, could recall who initiated the conversations that led to Odebrecht's $70,000 contribution. "I think it was, what do you call it?" Peeples asked. "Synchronicity."
Evolving responseJeb Bush's answers about who gave the Foundation for Florida's Future $70,000 in 1995 have evolved in recent months. The contributor was identified Wednesday through newly disclosed tax returns as Odebrecht Contractors of Florida, a subsidiary of a multinational Brazilian firm July 25: Bush said he could not remember who contributed the $70,000. "I could probably find out." Oct. 21: Bush said he knew the answer. "I'm not going to tell you. I know. You know I know."
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ne of the biggest mysteries surrounding Jeb Bush's non-profit foundation has been solved.
