Congressman Heck collects $224,000 in first quarter

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Joe Heck added $224,000 to his re-election fund over the past three months, including donations through a joint fundraiser he had with other military-oriented freshman Republicans, according to a newly released federal report.

Heck raised $124,400 from political action committees and another $91,300 from individuals from January through the end of March as he positions himself to campaign for a second term.

The first-term lawmaker faces no declared opponent yet in Congressional District 3, the suburban Las Vegas district that is expected to be redrawn by the state Legislature.

After spending $228,460 during the period, mostly on fundraising, strategy and management consultants, Heck showed $147,360 in his campaign account as of March 31, according to a finance report filed Friday with the Federal Election Commission.

Unlike a number of other lawmakers who won election to Congress in the near Republican sweep of 2010, Heck showed no debt heading into his next race.

Heck's haul included $6,639 he received through a joint fundraiser he held with a dozen other freshman Republicans who sit on the House Armed Services Committee.

The "Lucky 13 Joint Fundraising Committee" benefitted from a Feb. 15 dinner hosted by Armed Services Committee chairman Buck McKeon, R-Calif., and where invitations were sent to lobbyists for defense contractors and other potential donors.

According to the FEC, Heck received donations through the event from PACs including those for General Electric ($1,000); Accenture ($385); Rolls Royce ($1,000); the Parsons Corp. ($1,000).

He also received donations through the event from McKeon ($1,000) and fellow lawmakers Mike Conaway, R-Texas, and Mike Coffman, R-Colo., who gave $1,000 apiece.

The event caught the eye of the Project on Government Oversight, a watchdog group that called it "another classic intersection of the defense industry and political fundraising."

POGO spokesman Joe Newman said Monday the fundraiser was held a little more than a month after the freshman lawmakers took office.

"To start with they are freshman and they have learned the lesson real quick that with their status on this important committee it opens a lot of doors for them," Newman said. "The contractors in the defense industry will do whatever it takes to make them happy, and they are going to get courted and wined and dined within hopefully ethical boundaries."

Heck was traveling overseas and could not be reached Monday. His office did not comment on the finance report.

Contact Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760.