Grand Jury report reveals $500K in unaccounted-for funds from Visit Lompoc

According to a recent report from the Santa Barbara County Grand Jury, over the last half-decade, annual reporting from the City of Lompoc’s tourism business improvement district, Visit Lompoc LLC, shows more than $500,000 in unaccounted-for funds.

In a report released last Friday, the Grand Jury found that the City of Lompoc does not have an adequate system of checks and balances to monitor its agreement with Visit Lompoc.

The report states that since 2018, Visit Lompoc transferred $800,000 to money market accounts that may earn a higher level of interest but were not accounted for in annual reporting to the city council.

Almost a year ago, KSBY was the first to speak with local man Martin Bender who brought these allegations to light.

“My reading of the Grand Jury report essentially confirms all of the allegations I made about missing and unaccounted for funds,” Bender told reporter Jacob Dizon on Monday.

Bender says he began looking into the situation when he received word that Lompoc City Councilmember Gilda Cordova was living outside city limits. He also claimed she was personally benefiting from her position on the Visit Lompoc board.

Cordova denied all of the allegations, and according to the report, the Grand Jury could not confirm whether a specific conflict of interest exists.

However, similar to Bender’s allegations, the report states that Visit Lompoc failed to follow through on their commitment to submit an independent audit of their financial records, and from 2018 to 2023, did not submit their annual reports on time.

According to the report, the Grand Jury interviewed Visit Lompoc board members, who neither concurred nor disagreed with the jury’s findings.

During their interviews, Visit Lompoc board members also confirmed the $800,000 that was transferred to money market accounts, but they reportedly could not explain why they were not declared in their annual reports.

Bender says he, too, testified before the Grand Jury last summer.

“My interest in this is accountability,” he stated. “There has got to be accountability for one, of public funds, and two, of public officials.”

Though not legally required, in response to its findings, the Grand Jury listed a series of recommendations for the City of Lompoc, including creating a formal review process to ensure the accuracy of Visit Lompoc’s financial reporting and re-evaluating the terms of their agreement.

Per California Penal Code, the City of Lompoc must respond to the Grand Jury within 90 days.

In a statement, a representative with Visit Lompoc refuted the Grand Jury’s claims, saying all of their spending is accounted for, adding that they will be transparent if asked further about their practices.

Lompoc city officials, meanwhile, say they will be issuing their response soon.