No rules means no accountability for Virginia campaign funds

(AP) — The businesses that lobby Virginia politicians are also subsidizing meals at fancy restaurants, stays in the finest hotels, and personal expenses like gas and cellphone bills through campaign donations, records show.

An Associated Press review of the state's finance system turned up examples like Chesapeake Democrat Del. Lionell Spruill, who hasn't faced an opponent in two decades.

Since 2011, Spruill has spent $300,000 from his campaign account on numerous luxuries: a membership in a private business club, meals at Ruth's Chris steakhouses around the country, and more than $2,000 at high-end Richmond restaurants during legislative sessions.

The AP examined tens of thousands of campaign donations and expenditures collected by the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonpartisan money-in-politics tracker; interviewed several current and past lawmakers; and compared Virginia's laws and habits to other states and the federal system.

— A handful of lawmakers, including senior members in both parties, rely almost entirely on business interests and their representatives for campaign contributions.

[...] GOP Senate President Pro Tem Steve Newman has raised more than $360,000 since 2012; 99 percent of that money came from corporations, trade groups, lobbying firms or special interest groups.

Elected prosecutors can investigate campaign finance violations, but longtime political watchers could not recall a case ever being brought.

"If we allow the industries we regulate to fund our campaign system, at the very least, you ought to have some limit on how you spend that money and not make it a personal slush fund," Simon said.