Jackson Jambalaya

The Secretary of State cracked down on a Derrick Johnson charity.  It seems our head of the Mississippi NAACP is paid $120,000 a year to operate One Voice, a non-profit with the same address as the state NAACP.   Although One Voice is considered to be a charity or non-profit, in reality it is a slush fund as most of the money is spent on consultants, travel, and salaries.  Employees could sign checks made payable to themselves.  Debit cards were issued to officers.  $1.78 million a year makes for a nice little slush fund.

One Voice states its purpose is to "enhance civic engagement in the formation of public policy through leadership development, research support, training, and technical assistance for advocacy groups, associations, and community-based organizations with the purpose of improving the quality of life for African-Americans and other disenfranchised communities."

The state said One Voice did not submit audited financial statements nor was it registered with the state as required by law.  The state also said One Voice tried to avoid submitting all records when they were requested. The state said One Voice paid for individuals to attend NAACP events in Los Angeles. It paid overdraft fees of $1,650.  It allowed officers to use ATM cards to withdraw cash from the company's bank account. One Voice even chipped in on a trip to Paris, France for an unnamed person.  Officers, directors, employees were allowed to sign checks made payable to themselves.

What is interesting is the state said "One Voice should not be soliciting funds, including submitting grant applications, to Mississippi based individuals and organizations." One Voice agreed these facts were true and waived a hearing on the matter.   One Voice cannot solicit in Mississippi unless it submits a complete renewal registration and is approved by the state.

The 2012 Form 990 states Derrick Johnson earned $120,000 as the Executive Director for One Voice.  One Voice received $1.78 million in revenue. One Voice operated at a loss of $122,581.  It spent:

$548,684 on salaries
$164,500 on travel
$128,547 on conferences
$539,733 on consultants

Check out these grants

Kingfish note: Let's call One Voice what it is: a slush fund.  A slush fund for Derrick Johnson and his merry band of cronies.  Writing checks to themselves.  Debit cards. Trips to LA and Paris.  The question that should be asked is why the Secretary of State is satisfied with a Consent Order instead of issuing fines more than $500.  There is no point in referring the case to the Attorney General for criminal prosecution, as the AG does not prosecute SOS referrals in criminal court.