• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Valley Citizen

Pursuing truth toward justice

The Valley Citizen

Pursuing truth toward justice
  • Arts
  • Education
  • Environment
  • History
  • Nature
  • Politics
  • Wit
  • About

Did “Plastic” Jeff Denham Fail to Disclose Loans from JP Morgan?

March 30, 2018 By Steve Ringhoff Leave a Comment

Steve Ringhoff

Steve Ringhoff’s careers as a journalist and attorney led him to a love of investigation and publication. His “Modesto Explained” website features detailed analysis of how our government does, and, more often, does not, serve the people. We hope to be publishing more of Steve’s fine work soon.

Would it be important to know a congressman’s relationship with the country’s largest bank, especially with banking regulation legislation pending?

Well, two businesses partially owned by Congressman Jeff Denham have received loans totaling more than $2,500,000 from JPMorgan Chase Bank, but Mr. Denham has never publicly disclosed those transactions.

Information and documents related to these loans have been submitted to the Office of Congressional Ethics of the US House of Representatives.  The OCE will not confirm the existence of an investigation until it makes a formal accusation, which has not been done to date.

The submission claims that Mr. Denham either signed personal guarantees for the loans or received more favorable treatment than the public would have.  In either case, disclosure should have been made.

The loans were made to purchase commercial real estate in Salinas through Limited Liability Corporations (LLCs), incorporation papers which show Mr. Denham as one of the owners. The notes and deeds of trust were signed by Mr. Denham, along with the other owners of the LLC.

Mr. Denham’s primary asset and primary source of income has been Denham Plastics, LLC. In 2012 Denham Plastics was leasing a warehouse in Salinas. During the summer of that year, the warehouse was destroyed by a fire of undetermined origin and cause. The firm moved to nearby commercial warehouse property almost immediately after the fire.

That warehouse was purchased in early 2013 by MTJ Properties LLC, in which Mr. Denham had a one-third interest, according to the incorporation papers which were filed shortly before the purchase. The loan was for $1,820,411.

If disclosure was required, this loan should have appeared on the 2014, 2015, and 2016 Form A annual disclosures filed with the Clerk of the House. It does not.

In late 2013, Kanaha Properties LLC was incorporated showing Mr. Denham as a 50 percent owner. In early 2014, Kanaha purchased a commercial property next door to the property owned by MTJ Properties. The loan was for $740,000.

If disclosure was required, this loan should have appeared on the 2015 and 2016 Form A annual disclosures. It does not. (The Form A disclosures are usually filed by Mr. Denham in August following the close of the calendar year. So, the 2016 filing is the latest on file.)

In making loans to LLCs, bankers normally require more than the note and deed of trust as security in the event of a default. This is especially true in commercial properties where the use of the property could imperil the security, for example as a result of liens, or for clean-up costs stemming from the use. The usual format for this is a personal guarantee by which the LLC owner agrees to be personally responsible where the existence of the LLC might otherwise provide a shield from liability.

Sources: The LLC information comes from the California Secretary of State. Documents regarding the loans, notes and deeds of trust came from the Monterey County Recorder. Requirements for disclosure are found in the guidebook issued by the Clerk of the House and on the page of the disclosure Form A which contains the “obligations” category.

 

Filed Under: Featured, Politics Tagged With: Congressman Jeff Denham, Jeff Denham CA-10, Jeff Denham Plastics

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Note: Some comments may be held for moderation.

Primary Sidebar

Off The Wire

California faces catastrophic flood dangers ? and a need to invest billions in protection
California faces catastrophic flood dangers and a need to invest billions in protection
A new state plan for the Central Valley calls for spending as much as $30 billion over 30 years to prepare for the dangers.
www.latimes.com
Oakland will get millions for the ?inhumane? crisis at one huge homeless encampment. Officials say it?s not enough
Oakland will get millions for the “inhumane” crisis at one huge homeless encampment. Officials say it’s not enough
Gavin Newsom’s administration has awarded Oakland a $4.7 million grant to come up with…
www.sfchronicle.com
Alaska?s Fisheries Are Collapsing. This Congresswoman Is Taking on the Industry She Says Is to Blame.
Alaska’s Fisheries Are Collapsing. This Congresswoman Is Taking on the Industry She Says Is to Blame.
Mary Peltola won her election by campaigning on a platform to save the state’s prized fisheries. A powerful fishing lobby is standing in her way.
www.politico.com
Jimmy Carter's final foe: A parasitic worm that preyed on millions in Africa and Asia
Jimmy Carter’s final foe: A parasitic worm that preyed on millions in Africa and Asia
One of former President Carter’s biggest hopes is wiping out an infectious parasitic disease that’s plagued humans for millennia. How close is he?
www.latimes.com
Climate Extremes Threaten California?s Central Valley Songbirds - Eos
Climate Extremes Threaten California’s Central Valley Songbirds – Eos
A “nestbox highway” in California’s Central Valley is guiding songbirds to safe nesting sites and giving scientists a peek at fledgling success in a changing climate.
eos.org
Alaska Republican touts benefits of children being abused to death
Alaska Republican touts benefits of children being abused to death
Republican David Eastman suggested the death of child abuse victims could be a “cost savings” to wider society.
www.newsweek.com
Editorial: Newsom's drought order amid wet winter threatens iconic California species
Editorial: Newsom’s drought order amid wet winter threatens iconic California species
Gov. Gavin Newsom has effectively ended environmental regulations protecting California rivers and migratory fish by extending drought-year waivers.
www.latimes.com
Two-thirds of McPherson Square homeless remain on street, D.C. says
Two-thirds of McPherson Square homeless remain on street, D.C. says
As of Thursday, just two of the more than 70 residents of McPherson Square had been placed in permanent D.C. housing.
www.washingtonpost.com
More Building Won?t Make Housing Affordable
More Building Won’t Make Housing Affordable
America’s housing crisis has reached unfathomable proportions. But new construction isn’t enough to solve it.
newrepublic.com
Why YIMBYs are about to sue the daylights out of cities across the Bay Area
Why YIMBYs are about to sue the daylights out of cities across the Bay Area
Housing advocates are about to deliver a message to the Bay Area: Comply with state…
www.sfchronicle.com
At the heart of Colorado River crisis, the mighty 'Law of the River' holds sway
At the heart of Colorado River crisis, the mighty ‘Law of the River’ holds sway
At the heart of tensions over water allotments from the Colorado River is a complex set of agreements and decrees known as the ‘Law of the River.’
www.latimes.com
Biden restores roadless protection to the Tongass, North America's largest rainforest
Biden restores roadless protection to the Tongass, North America’s largest rainforest
The Tongass National Forest in Alaska, a focus of political battles over old-growth logging and road-building in forests for decades, has received new protection from the Biden administration.
theconversation.com

Find us on Facebook

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Footer

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Subscribe for Free

* indicates required

Search

• Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 The Valley Citizen

Dedicated to the memory of John Michael Flint. Contact us at thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Editor and publisher: Eric Caine

Website customization and maintenance by Susan Henley Design