SAN BERNARDINO >> Councilman Rikke Van Johnson has said several times as he campaigns for mayor that voters should support him because he’s demonstrated his independence by never taking money from the police or fire unions.

“I have never taken any money from public safety in my tenure,” Johnson said at a candidate forum Sept. 25, as he argued for pension reform.

But twice since he was first elected in 2003, he has taken the money — $500 from the police union in 2004 and $1,000 from the fire union in 2005 — according to campaign finance statements he filed at the time.

He must have forgotten that over the multiple elections since then, Johnson said Monday, but the point is he’s continued to act independently.

“It’s been eight years since I received that money, and I did forget about it, but once the public safety saw my vote wasn’t for sale, they did not give me any more funds,” he said. “It was only a one-time receipt from each.”

The discrepancy was first noticed by Matt Korner, a rival candidate for mayor who has criticized the role of police and fire unions.

“He’s definitely demonstrated his independence after that point,” Korner said. “…I think the bigger issue is no one is able to get started without the support of these groups. We really are in a situation where everybody has gotten money in some measure from those interests, and it makes it very difficult for anybody to even bring the subject of pension reform up.”

Furthermore, that creates an advantage for the three council members running for mayor — Johnson, Chas Kelley and Wendy McCammack — who can use money they received in their previous campaigns, Korner said.

All of the sitting members of the City Council have at one time received money from the police or fire union — sometimes tens of thousands of dollars in a single election. But that’s no guarantee of continued support — earlier this year the police union paid for flyers and a billboard criticizing Mayor Pat Morris and council members including Johnson and McCammack for making San Bernardino “the worst-run city in America.”

For the two six-month reporting periods in which Johnson received the $1,500 from public safety, Johnson reported a total of 22 monetary contributions totaling $11,407.