Complaint alleges Paulding illicitly used SLO County resources for his campaign
May 22, 2026
By KAREN VELIE
Multiple complaints to county officials accuse San Luis Obispo County District 4 Supervisor Jimmy Paulding of illicitly using public resources for his reelection campaign.
California law prohibits public officials from using or permitting others to use public resources for campaign activity. Public resources consist of any property or asset owned by a government agency, including telephones, computers, internet and state-compensated time.
Even so, multiple county staffers have assisted Paulding with his campaign newsletter, according to emails and documents procured through a public records request. Paulding created his newsletter as a campaign tool before being elected to office in 2022.
On March 8, 2025, Paulding contacted Public Works Director John Diodati for help with his campaign newsletter.
“I was hoping to send the below newsletter out on Tuesday morning… Can the draft plan be uploaded to the website tomorrow?” Paulding wrote in his email to Diodati.
“Can we make this happen for Jimmy?” Diodati asked staffers on March 9, 2025.
On March 10, 2025, Diodati emailed five county staffers regarding Paulding’s newsletter, “Met with Jimmy today. Two things: 1 – there is a typo that occurs about 12 times error! See below. 2 – Can we get this posted up today ASAP on the website or can he circulate the PDF?”
The newsletters and emails show the county distributed Paulding’s letters, with included disclosures that Paulding’s campaign had paid for the newsletters.
In addition, the newsletters include buttons for recipients to donate to, or volunteer for, Paulding’s campaign.
Any person who intentionally or negligently violates California Government Code 8314 is liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each day on which a violation occurs, plus three times the value of the unlawful use of public resources.
Beginning in mid-March, several public speakers asked the SLO County Board of Supervisors to “cease the use of county staff time or resources to proofread, coordinate, or upload documents for campaign-funded newsletters.”
Concerned citizens also asked the county to conduct an independent audit of staff hours spent on Paulding’s campaign and to refer the issue to the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) for a formal investigation.
On May 19, a county resident asked the SLO County District Attorney’s Office to investigate the potential misappropriation of public funds and the failure to report these illegal expenditures as in-kind campaign contributions.
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