A former charter school administrator in Salinas has been issued proposed conflict of interest violations stemming from more than $132,000 in payments she is accused of directing to her husband's maintenance and handyman services.

Juanita Perea, the former executive director of Oasis Charter Public School, has a pending $12,000 fine from the state Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) for three violations, according to a stipulation released Monday.

The penalty's final approval is expected later this month.

Perea allegedly signed off on more than 40 payments from at least April 2015 to August 2017 to Jimenez Gardening, a gardening and maintenance services business owned by her husband Paulino Jimenez.

A Los Angeles-based attorney representing Perea in the FPPC decision declined to comment.

As Oasis' top administrator from 2011 to 2018, Perea saw the charter elementary school threatened with closure by the end of her tenure. The school is chartered through Alisal Union School District, which increased oversight of the school last summer.

The Monterey County Weekly first broke the story in a tweet Monday.

More:Oasis Charter School's executive director to step down, won't surrender charter

Oasis' gardening services from Jimenez Gardening, from 2012 to 2017, didn't have board approval or a formal written contract, the FPPC stipulation alleged.

Perea contended Jimenez's services were for fair market value, officials said.

In each of the three years Perea allegedly violated conflict of interest law, total annual payments rose — from $39,840 in 2015 to $45,434 the next year, ending with $46,795 in 2017.

Per state law, public officials cannot make, participate in or attempt to use their official position to influence a government decision in which they know they have a financial interest.

However, Perea "directly and unilaterally hired and approved the payments to Jimenez Gardening," FPPC officials wrote. She received more than $500 in spousal income interest during each year before the date of each paid invoice, violating state law.

An additional $35,400 in payments to Jimenez Gardening were made between 2012 and 2014, but the FPPC declined to charge Perea for those years citing interest in settlement and the statute of limitations expiring.

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For each of the years Oasis contracted with her husband's company, officials say Perea filed statements of economic interests disclosing benefits from Jimenez Gardening.

The last payment for Jimenez's services was Aug. 11, 2017, the stipulation read. Oasis had no conflict of interest code until November 2017.

This new policy came into effect about a month after a sworn complaint against Perea was submitted to the FPPC by Jose "Andrew" Sandoval, an Oasis parent who was critical of Perea's administration.

In his complaint, Sandoval suspected conflict of interest for Perea "granting a contract to her husband for gardening or building maintenance" in the 2016-17 school year as well as from 2012 to 2014.

The FPPC could fine Perea a total of $15,000 on the three conflicts of interest violations. However, officials advised against it, lowering the proposed penalty to $12,000.

According to the stipulation, officials found no evidence Perea intended to hide wrongdoing from the public. They pointed toward her previous economic interest filings while Oasis had no regulations in place.

"As a result, the violations appeared to be the result of negligence, at most," officials wrote. "Further, (Perea) does not have a prior history of violations."

Officials said Perea was fully cooperative during the investigation and when she discovered she was violating state law, took corrective action prior to the FPPC complaint.

'Not surprising'

A district investigation — released in July 2018 — revealed the school did not properly administer state exams during the 2015-16 school year, uncredentialed teachers employed at Oasis for extended periods of time, and hiring employees who posed a conflict of interest.

Among the findings, the district alleged Oasis violated its charter by contracting Perea's husband, Jimenez, for services. Hiring Perea's sister may have also violated conflict of interest laws, the Alisal Union investigation said.

Perea stepped down prior to last school year and now works as a Natividad Elementary School teacher in Salinas.

She was replaced by Lucy Zepeda, a former teacher, academic coach and assistant director at the school. A call to Zepeda was not immediately returned Monday afternoon.

Still, Sandoval questioned whether Perea cooperated fully in the most recent conflict of interest investigation. The investigation took almost two years to complete and Sandoval said he disagrees that payments for Jimenez's services were made at market rate.

Sandoval also alleged there are ongoing violations with the school that need to be addressed, including compliance with the Brown Act, a state law governing meetings for local government bodies.

"There's still work to be done," he said of accountability at Oasis. "I admire the new executive director Lucy. She's always open to communication and she seems to be getting the school on the right path."

Berkley Brannon, chief assistant district attorney for Monterey County, said over email his office initiated and concluded a Brown Act investigation. County prosecutors determined a first-time violation occurred and chose to educate rather than prosecute, in part because criminal Brown Act violations require proof violators knew they were violating the law, he wrote.

After writing a letter to Oasis outlining findings, prosecutors met with members of Oasis' governing board, Perea and the chair of Alisal Union's board of trustees to advise how to avoid further violations, according to Brannon. Since then, his office has not received other Brown Act complaints.

County prosecutors did not, however, investigate conflict of interest since they normally defer to the FPPC on such matters, Brannon added.

In a prepared statement, Alisal Union's interim superintendent, Jim Koenig, said as a result of their 2018 investigation, the district took steps to ensure Oasis' compliance with its charter and the law.

This included appointing a district administrator to serve on the Oasis governing board, as reported by The Californian.

"The actions taken by the FPPC are not surprising, in light of the events that took place at Oasis as discovered by the District's investigation," Koenig said.

FPPC's final decision is scheduled to be made by the California commissioners at the July 18 meeting.

An FPPC spokesperson said penalty fines are already paid pending the commission's final vote, whereby fines are deposited into the state general fund.

There are no other investigations on Oasis, the spokesperson said.

This article was updated to include information from the Monterey County District Attorney's Office.

Contact reporter Eduardo Cuevas at ecuevas@thecalifornian.com or 831-269-9363. To support this kind of work, please subscribe.