Fund tied to Casey Cagle hit up special interests before 2017 session

An "advocacy" fund set up by campaign staffers of Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle got busy after July 1, collecting millions of dollars in contributions from special-interest donors in a relatively short amount of time, according to an Atlanta Journal-Constitution review of IRS records.

The timing? The 2017 General Assembly session was only a few months away, and it was time to strike while the money was available. It didn't hurt that everybody at the Capitol knew that Cagle was going to run for governor in 2018.

Over the next six months, the fund received money from casino interests lobbying for gaming legislation and beer distributors in a long-running legislative turf battle with craft brewers.

It took checks from new-car dealers seeking to cut taxes on vehicles they lease, as well as a company wanting a tax break so owners of giant yachts might be enticed to use Georgia repair services.

Ethics watchdogs said it appeared that companies the fund was soliciting money from were trying to influence Cagle's decisions as Senate president. Cagle formally announced plans to run for governor on Sunday.

To read more about the Georgia Conservatives Fund and its pre-session fund-raising push, check out our story at myajc.com.

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