Walsh to file House disclosure form late, pay fine

A suburban congressional candidate's failure to file a federal financial disclosure form was a campaign oversight that will be rectified this week, his spokesman said Tuesday.

Joe Walsh, the Winnetka Republican running in the 8th District, didn't submit a U.S. House financial statement after announcing his candidacy last year.

The document, filled out by candidates and incumbents alike, details sources of income such as employment and investments. A Chicago-area media report revealed Walsh, of Winnetka, did not fill out such a form.

His chief opponent, Democratic U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, of Barrington, did submit a House financial disclosure form in 2009, records indicate. It is viewable at clerk.house.gov/public disc/financial.html.

On Tuesday, Walsh spokeswoman Whitney Schlosser said the GOP candidate thought the form had been submitted by a November deadline.

"It was an oversight by the campaign, pure and simple," Schlosser told the Daily Herald in an e-mail.

Walsh will file the form by the end of this week, Schlosser said. He'll also pay a $200 late fee, she said. That's the standard penalty for anyone who files more than 30 days late, federal records indicate.

Schlosser promised to send a copy of the report to the Daily Herald for review as well.

This year's House financial disclosure forms are due May 15.

Walsh's finances have been an issue since he won the GOP primary in February.

Last month, the Daily Herald reported Walsh lost a former home to foreclosure in 2009, something the candidate didn't mention during the six-way primary battle.

Walsh later acknowledged he had "overextended" himself financially and should have disclosed the misstep during the primary campaign.

Walsh also is being sued by a former campaign manager who quit in December and then said the candidate owed him $20,000 for services. The case is pending in Cook County court.

The 8th District includes parts of Cook, Lake and McHenry counties.