The following list of names and contribution amounts was released by Citizens for the Future of Jefferson County Inc. and published in the July 9 Birmingham News. I have added brief descriptions and hyperlinks.
[Donors to the MAPS campaign]
Alabama Power Co..........................$100,000 public utility
Alabama Limousine..............................100 service
Alabama Business Furnishings.................1,000 retailer
American Cadastre Inc..........................500 land development
AmSouth Bank...............................100,000 bank corporation
Balch & Bingham LLP..........................5,000 law firm
Bayer Properties.............................5,000 developer
BE&K........................................55,000 engineering corp.
BellSouth..................................100,000 telecom corp.
Berkowitz, Lefkovits, Isom & Kushner.........3,500 law firm
The Bodine Co................................1,000 lighting manufacturer
Brasfield & Gorrie..........................60,000 contractor
Bruno Event Team............................10,000 golf tournament organizers
Buffalo Rock.................................2,000 vendor service
Timothy A. Callahan.............................25
Cater Reddington Staub Inc. (Jackson MS).......200 engineering corp.
Coca-Cola Bottling Co. United...............25,000 vendor service
Compass Bank................................25,000 bank corporation
Donald Hess.................................10,000 MAPS Victory Committee
Drummond Companies..........................10,000 mining
Dudley C. Jackson..............................500
Energen Corp................................10,000 owner of Alagasco
Fi-Center Associates.........................3,500
Hall Thompson...............................25,000
Harbert Corp................................50,000 building contractor
Hatcher Design Associates....................1,000 interior design
HealthSouth Corp...........................100,000 healthcare corporation
Hoar Construction...........................15,000 construction
John H. Lanier Co..............................100
William C. Knight..............................200
Lane Bishop York Delahay Inc.................1,000 engineering
Marlin, Bridges & Associates, Inc............1,500 engineering
Mayer Electric..............................10,000
Maynard, Cooper & Gale PC....................2,000 law firm
McWane Inc..................................50,000 industrial equipment
Moody & Associates.............................200 architects
Nimrod Long Associates.........................500 architects
Proffitt's..................................25,000 retailer
Protective Life Insurance Co................10,000 insurance
Raymond James & Associates...................5,000 financial services
Regions Financial Corp......................10,000 bank corporation
Rite Way Service Inc...........................250 janitorial service
Robbins & Morten Group......................50,000
Royal Cup....................................1,000 vendor service
Sonat.......................................25,000 natural gas distributor
SouthTrust Bank............................100,000 bank corporation
Thrifty Car Rental...........................1,000 vehicle rental service
Torchmark Corp..............................10,000 owner of Liberty Nat'l Life Insurance
The donors include contractors, developers, equipment providers, beverage suppliers and others who might have an interest in bidding on MAPS project contracts. Donald Hess, chairman of the MAPS Victory Committee, assured the press that "there will be no preferences in bids for the companies contributing."
Hess is the former president of Parisian Inc. and a director of Proffitt's Inc., the parent company of Parisian and McRae's. Hess gave $10,000 to the MAPS campaign, and Proffitt's gave $25,000.
Citizens for the Future of Jefferson County Inc. initially declined to release donor information. But after a request by Birmingham City Council member Dan McDermott, and a broadcast report on TV station NBC-13, MAPS was faced with the fact that state law requires any organization that raises $1,000 or more for a political campaign to report the contributions.
As the Birmingham Weekly reported in its July 16 edition, any group that has raised or spent more than $1,000 toward a campaign in Alabama must register as a political action committee (PAC) within 10 days. A PAC is required to report campaign contributions and expenditures. Citizens for the Future of Jefferson County (CFJC) received its first $10,000 contribution in December, but did not file as a PAC until the afternoon of July 10.
CFJC organizers said they were relying on advice from their attorney, who said that their status as a non-profit corporation kept them from having to file. The state attorney general disagreed, and Birmingham media began to report on the issue. The CFJC gave in.
The Birmingham Weekly reported on the MAPS campaign's expenditures through July 7, the day a MAPS infomercial was aired on four Birmingham TV stations:
The Alabama Sports Foundation paid $100,000 in March for "MAPS study and media kits."
Not all of the donors listed at the top of this page have paid their pledges in full. The MAPS campaign was low on funds at one point and secured a $300,000 loan from SouthTrust Bank.
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Edited by Rob Collins
