According to publicly available campaign finance records, Fernandes Anderson did not address the problems by that deadline, and the agency sent followup letters requesting action by Feb. 18.
When reached by the Globe Tuesday, Fernandes Anderson said she filed the requested information with OCPF Tuesday afternoon, which a spokesperson for the agency confirmed. If she had again failed to meet that deadline, the matter would have been escalated to the agency’s legal department.
Fernandes Anderson said in an interview that she did not intend to omit any necessary information, and worked to address the issues as soon as she became aware of them.
“We have a very demanding schedule,” she said, adding that one of her sons, who is also her campaign treasurer, is often busy with work or his responsibilities as a full-time student. “When he’s not available, I should take responsibility and do better at reporting it on time,” she said.
The latest back-and-forth with regulators comes after federal authorities arrested Fernandes Anderson in December and unveiled a six count federal indictment that alleges she hired a relative and paid them a bonus, and then pocketed $7,000 of it in cash as a kickback. Fernandes Anderson pleaded not guilty and is due back in court in March. She is continuing in her role as a district councilor.
It’s common for OCPF to send audit letters to candidates or elected officials to inform them of issues with their campaign finance filings, and impose a deadline by which the issues need to be addressed, according to a spokesperson. If the agency does not receive a reply or the issue is not addressed, officials send a second letter with an extended deadline, before the legal department takes over.
Out of Boston’s 13 city councilors, only four councilors — Henry Santana, Gabriela Coletta Zapata, Enrique Pepen, and Ben Weber — did not receive any OCPF audit letters in 2024 and 2025 so far. Another seven received 10 or fewer audit letters each in that same time period, mostly requesting additional information about certain expenditures, or letting the councilors know they’ve received more money from specific people than is allowed by law, which is typically rectified through refunds to the donors in question.
Fernandes Anderson stands out among her colleagues in terms of how often OCPF officials find problems with their campaign filings. In addition to the two audit letters, and corresponding follow up letters, she received in January, the agency flagged issues with her campaign filings 20 times last year, 14 of which required follow up letters.
Only Councilor Brian Worrell received more warnings from the agency than Fernandes Anderson: OCPF sent 25 audit letters to Worrell in 2024, 18 of which required follow up letters. He has not gotten any so far in 2025.
Regulators have charged Fernandes Anderson with ethics violations in the past. In 2023, she admitted to breaking ethics rules by hiring her sister and son, and then paying them raises and bonuses. She agreed to pay a $5,000 fine for the violation.
In November last year, OCPF found that Fernandes Anderson broke campaign finance laws by not disclosing required information about donations in a timely manner, receiving more than the annual contribution limit from some donors, and not providing additional clarifying information about expenses by the deadlines set by the agency.
In the letter sent to Fernandes Anderson detailing the violations in November, the agency wrote that appropriate action had been taken to fix the issues. However, the letter also stated that she “agreed to appoint a new treasurer” for her campaign, “to ensure future compliance with the campaign finance law.”
Niki Griswold can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @nikigriswold.
