Nunez has 7.1 million reasons to change term limits

*(Note, this article has been corrected from an earlier version)

Speaker Fabian Nunez announced his support for a new redistricting plan Thursday, a plan that Senate Leader Don Perata has expressed some serious reservations about. But Nunez and Perata both support a plan to move up the state’s presidential primary as part of a two-step process to help extend legislative term limits.

And new data from the Secretary of State’s office offers a clue as to how a hypothetical campaign to loosen term limits might be financed. In two separate accounts, Nunez has a combined $7.1 million on hand. Not bad for a politician who is barred from seeking reelection under the current term limits law.

In his Assembly account, the Speaker has $5.47 million, $4 million of which came in a “rebate check” from the state Democratic Party. Because the money was moved through the party, it’s impossible to track the original source of those funds. Other donors to the committee were barred by $6,700 contribution limits.

Nunez also controls the Committee to Protect California’s Future. That committee has $1.7 million on hand, the bulk of which has come from the California Teachers Association and State Employees International Union.

Check out the records online:

Nunez 2006
Committee to Protect California’s Future

An earlier version of this story reported that Senate Leader Don Perata had already come out opposed to the redistricting plan. While the pro tem has expressed reservations about the proposal, he says he will work with legislative leaders toward crafting a proposal, but noted that other issues are higer on his priority list.