Jim Justice will take more time to disclose his finances to the U.S. Senate.
Financial disclosures with the Senate are mandatory for members and candidates. Justice has now had 121 days since he first announced running for Senate — or 103 days since his Senate financial report was first due.
His campaign, on Friday evening, said he’ll need more time because his finances are complicated.
“Governor Justice is not a career politician. He has started over 100 businesses and his family’s businesses employ thousands of West Virginians,” stated Roman Stauffer, campaign manager for Jim Justice for U.S. Senate in response to a MetroNews query about the status of the filing.
“The nature of those business structures is broad and very complex and to ensure his personal financial disclosure report is accurate it will require additional time, which is allowed for during a grace period after the filing deadline. The report will be accurate and filed within that period.”
Justice, a two-term governor, announced his run for Senate on April 27.
Normally, the financial disclosure report would be due within 30 days of becoming a candidate or by May 15, although extension requests are not uncommon. Justice’s campaign asked for an extension on May 25.
That extension request was granted, and so Justice’s financial report was then due August 24, which was this past Thursday.
In June, weeks before the due date, Stauffer said: “Governor Justice will file his personal financial disclosure form in a timely manner when that report is due in August and it will include the personal financial disclosure information required on that report.”
Justice’s top competitors for the congressional race have already filed similar financial disclosures because they are current federal officeholders.
Congressman Alex Mooney, the highest-profile competitor in the Republican primary for the Senate, already submits required financial disclosures for his position in the House. The most recent one was submitted May 25.
Incumbent Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat, submits annual filings. The most recent one filed May 15 is for the 2022 financial year.
The reports include information like earned income, investment assets, gifts and debts.
These are separate from filings with the Federal Elections Commission. The penalty for late filing to the Senate is $200. The Senate’s guidelines indicate that fine would apply to campaigns that file more than 30 days after the last day of an extension period. Penalties may be waived for “extraordinary circumstances” following a waiver request and a detailed explanation.
The civil penalty for failing to file at all is much higher, up to $50,000.
Late in the West Virginia Senate primary of 2018, the filings were the subject of bad blood between two Republican candidates. Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, two days before the primary, ripped into former coal executive Don Blankenship for not filing his financial report.
Blankenship, a dark horse candidate who had built up momentum, had served a year in jail on a misdemeanor conviction for conspiracy to violate mine safety laws, an allegation related to the Upper Big Branch Mine explosion. Morrisey said he should be disqualified from the race and threatened to notify his parole officer over violating the Senate’s financial disclosure requirements.
Later in the political cycle, after Morrisey had secured the Republican primary win, the state Democratic Party blasted him for requesting a second extension on his own finances.
Justice’s finances have long been the subject of interest and scrutiny.
Justice has campaigned on his business acumen and once was considered the only billionaire in West Virginia. Forbes downgraded him after 2021 debt disputes., and his family-owned companies continue to face financial conflicts amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.
Justice has dozens of business holdings listed on his annual state ethics disclosures. The governor has not placed most of his family’s holdings in a blind trust but has repeatedly said the responsibility of running the businesses has been passed on to son Jay and daughter Jill Justice.
Justice was recruited to run for U.S. Senate by members of the current leadership and has said he does not intend to self-fund the campaign.