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The political past has caught up with former El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce, revealing what wasn’t disclosed during the 2010 elections—namely, his campaign finances for three anti-tax ballot measures. Bruce’s nonprofit political charity, Active Citizens Together, has been fined by a judge for campaign violations, but based on what the anti-tax crusader told the Colorado Springs Gazette earlier this month, it seems the fines will never be paid. “It’s all going to go away,” Bruce said. “ACT is going out of business. ACT has no money. The bank account is about to be zeroed out by giving a couple hundred dollars in money for postage for mailing out future pocket constitutions next spring.”
Established by Bruce in 2001, ACT was behind three failed anti-tax initiatives (amendments 60 and 61 and Proposition 101) on the November 2010 ballot. ACT was fined $11,300 on Tuesday by an administrative law judge in Denver, according to a separate Gazette article, which notes that ACT broke state law by failing to file campaign-finance reports as required. Bruce, who did not appear to dispute the complaint, concedes the charity is broke and does not have the money to pay the fine.