WASHPO: Peaceoholics' Moten, a Fenty ally, emerges as a force in D.C. mayoral race

The Peaceoholics and Ron Moten once again make the news. The Advoc8te asks readers, "Do you think it is inappropriate for the heads of non-profits to be so involved in political campaigns?"

Go HERE to read the full article.

Excerpt:

Peaceoholics has received city funds from numerous agencies over the years, including the police and Human Services departments, but it's unclear exactly how much money the organization has drawn because not all city records are available and the group has not filed its 2009 990 form with the Internal Revenue Service.


However, District financial records show that Peaceoholics, generally well respected by many youth advocates, received at least $277,000 from city agencies in fiscal 2006, when Fenty was running for mayor. By 2008, that tally had risen to at least $1.5 million in payments for services or contracts, some of which were not competitively bid, according to the records.

Last year, Peaceoholics received at least $5.1 million from the city, including $4.4 million to build a group home for at-risk youths in Southeast Washington. In addition, the Children and Youth Investment Trust Corp., largely funded with city money distributed by a board appointed by the mayor, has given the nonprofit group $3.6 million in contracts since 2005, including $1.5 million last year, records show. The Justice Grants Administration, another quasi-city agency, awarded it $500,000 in October to help run prisoner reentry programs.

And as more money flowed to Peaceoholics from the city, Moten received pay raises. His salary increased from $43,930 in 2005 to $99,330 in 2008, according to public tax filings. Peaceoholics co-founder Jauhar Abraham made $111,000 in 2008. Moten and Abraham said they made less than the heads of other local nonprofits.