Click to watch video

A Houston-area state representative is under investigation for possible campaign finance violations.

Texas House of Representatives

Rep. John Davis

Republican state Rep. John Davis has represented the Clear Lake area for eight years, but there are questions about what happened to nearly $100,000 in campaign donations.

Like every member of the Texas House of Representatives, Rep. Davis collects campaign donations and is required to report them to the Texas Ethics Commission.

11 News tracked Rep. Davis’s campaign finance reports for the last six years and found that unlike most members of the Texas House, Rep. Davis is unusually vague about what happens to much of that money.

Most of his reports are specific and follow the rules: $50 for the electric bill in his Austin apartment; $300 for a sponsorship of the NASA area little league team.

But there were also entries such as, $5,490 for “miscellaneous expenses,” paying of an American Express bill. In fact, credit card charges that contained no explanation as to what the card actually purchased total $48,734 in the last six years.

After receiving a citizen complaint about that, the Texas Ethics Commission sent Rep. Davis a letter announcing an investigation and asking him to provide copies of the American Express bills.

Rep. Davis says he is complying.

More entries included John Davis paying John Davis with campaign donations. He lists them as reimbursements for “out of pocket expenses,” but the ethics commission rules are clear on that: Politicians need to specifically say what they’re purchasing, and why they need to be reimbursed with campaign donations. And Rep. Davis never does. In six years, those out of pocket reimbursements add up to $50,135.

Rep. Davis told 11 News by phone, “I made a mistake, and we’ll get it corrected. It’s incumbent on me to know what the rules are.”

He said all the expenses were for legitimate campaign or legislative purposes.

Democrat Sherrie Matula is running against Rep. Davis in the November election.

“It’s about representing the people who you live with, who you’re neighbors with and making sure that all their concerns and their issues are being represented up there, and it shouldn’t be done by a career politician or anyone else,” Matula said. “It should be done by someone in the community.”

An attorney for the ethics commission wouldn’t comment specifically on the case but said candidates can be fined for failing to properly report campaign finance information.

Under the statute of limitations, the state can only investigate the last two years of financial reports.