CORRECTION: Because of a reporting error, this story incorrectly reported when Las Vegas Councilman Matthew Callister voted for the Summerlin West development. Callister was absent during a Feb. 24 final vote on the project. He voted for the development at a Jan. 27 meeting. On Feb. 7, divisions of Howard Hughes Corp. gave Callister checks totaling $10,000.

Callister ordered to explain returned campaign checks

      The Nevada Secretary of State's office said Thursday it is investigating possible campaign law violations by Las Vegas Councilman Matthew Callister.
      In a campaign contribution report Callister filed Monday, he did not disclose $10,000 in donations from The Howard Hughes Corp. State and city laws say all contributions must be reported.
      "It is the opinion of this office that the checks issued to your campaign (by the Hughes Corp.) became contributions when rendered to you," Secretary of State Dean Heller wrote in a letter to Callister Thursday.
      Callister received six checks totaling $10,000 from Hughes Corp. on Feb. 7, but because he did not cash them, he did not list the donations in a mandatory report he filed this week.
      Callister returned the money to the Hughes Corp. Wednesday evening, two days after the filing deadline for the contribution form.
      The councilman did not return repeated calls for comment Thursday, but a campaign consultant questioned whether the Hughes Corp. checks should be considered contributions.
      "I think there is some gray area there," Dan Hart said, noting that Callister did not cash the checks. "I'm amazed there is such a hullabaloo when a politician returns money to a large developer."
      The campaign donation came about three weeks before Callister voted to approve Summerlin West, an 8,300-acre project being developed by the Hughes Corp.
      Callister said he has a "history of enmity" with Hughes Corp. and was "shocked" the mega-developer gave him the money. In an interview on Wednesday, he said he felt uneasy about accepting the checks -- especially before the controversial vote on Summerlin West -- and decided not to cash them.
      But John Goolsby, the president and chief executive officer of Hughes Corp., said Callister actively solicited his company's support, adding that the councilman specifically asked that the checks be delivered to his dow ntown law office on Feb. 7.
      "We are offended," Goolsby said. "Matthew is implying that we thrust this money on him. The fact is, he sent us a letter and we responded to that letter with a contribution."
      Callister continued to seek financial help from the Hughes Corp. after the February contribution, Goolsby said. At 9:30 a.m. March 4, at a meeting requested by Callister, the councilman requested additional campaign con tributions from both the Hughes Corp. and its executives, Goolsby said.
      Goolsby added that Callister also asked him to speak at a fund-raiser, and to lobby the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce to endorse the politician's candidacy.
      Callister returned the Hughes Corp. donations at 6:39 p.m. Wednesday, according to Mark Brown, the company's senior vice president of corporate and government relations. The Review-Journal contacted Callister about the contributions about 5 p.m. Wednesday.
      "(Callister) waited almost three months to return our checks," Goolsby said. "If he had a philosophical problem with taking our money, why didn't he return it immediately? Why did he come to my office and ask for more m oney?"
      Callister said Wednesday he waited until then to return the money because he was torn over whether to use it.
      "In this business we take lots of money from lots of businesses we may not like. With this contribution I was troubled, because I had a history of enmity with (the Hughes Corp.)," he said. "The amount of revenue was sig nificant and I was tempted. But the important thing is, I returned the money."
      But according to the secretary of state, checks given to political candidates are campaign contributions, regardless of whether they are cashed, and failure to report a contribution is a breach of both state and city la ws.
      "A check is a contribution. Period," said Pamela Crowell, deputy secretary of state for elections.
      Larry Brown, an executive with the Las Vegas Valley Water District who is challenging Callister in the May 6 primary election, said he wasn't surprised by the incident.
      "This is what I've been talking about my entire campaign," Brown said. "This is the real Matt Callister. I've been asking for honesty and integrity, and now he's caught red-handed."
      The secretary of state's office, which does not rule on cases based on media reports, has asked Callister to provide it with the following information:
      --The date he received the checks.
      --Whether he deposited them.
      --Whether he returned the contributions, and if so, on what date.
      --Whether he drew a check on his campaign bank account to return the contribution.
      If the omission was intentional, Callister could be removed from office, according to the Las Vegas Municipal Code. State law calls for a fine of not more than $5,000, plus attorney fees.
      Callister said his vote on Summerlin West was "the ultimate Hobson's choice (a lack of an alternative)." An opponent of neighborhood gaming, he agreed to the project even though it will include two casinos. He opposed a third casino, which ultimately was dropped from the development.
      Brown also voted for Summerlin West as a member of the Las Vegas Planning Commission, but did not receive any donations from the Hughes Corp.