Atlanta Councilwoman Keisha Lance Bottoms recently mailed out thousands of glossy annual reports extolling the successes of District 11. But her decision to send the document to households across the city is raising questions about whether she used district funds to raise her political profile ahead of the 2017 mayor’s race.
Bottoms, a second-term council member closely linked to Mayor Kasim Reed, appears on the cover of the report, as well as 23 of its 30 pages. In the report, she discusses her work on school and health initiatives, property improvements and participation in international trade missions.
That’s not the only piece of mail bearing Bottoms’ face these days. She also appears on a flyer sent to residents near Turner Field last week because of her work as the executive director of the Atlanta Fulton County Recreation Authority.
Though rumored have an eye on the mayor’s seat or the job of council president, Bottoms hasn’t publicly declared interest in citywide office.
Still, Bryan Long, executive director of the left-leaning advocacy group Better Georgia, said the pair of mailings raise questions about intent. “Every single person on the city council is a politician at heart, so it’s wise to question their next moves,” he said.
That her photo appears so often in the report gives “at least an appearance that she’s using her office to advance her profile in advance of a city-wide election, at a minimum,” he said.
Bottoms said the annual report mailing was appropriate and part of an “Invest in Southwest” economic development campaign. Indeed, the cover promotes a “special centerfold section” that contains “11 reasons to invest” in Southwest. The annual report was mailed to about 19,000 households and cost about $21,000, according to invoices Bottoms provided.
“I obviously can’t just get people to invest in Southwest who live in Southwest; I need a cross-section of people,” she said, adding the mailer is “a good way to get people’s interest and to give them a picture of what Southwest Atlanta is about.”
The Turner Field flyer was intended to give residents there an overview of the authority’s role and what to expect as the city and county prepare to market the ballpark for sale, she said. The mailing went out to about 11,000 homes and cost $7,300, including the cost of printing and postage.
Bottoms, whose hiring at the authority was slammed by some as problematic because of her role on the council, said she included a letter from her office and her photo because "to the extent you can humanize the messaging is important."
Atlanta Ethics Officer Nina Hickson said her office hasn’t received complaints about Bottoms’ mailing.
Council members may not use district funds for citywide mailings while campaigning for office, Hickson said. However, there's nothing in the ethics code that specifically addresses a council person using district funds for citywide mailings outside of election season, she said.
