OC Supervisors remove Andrew Do from his board committee assignments

The Orange County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday to remove Supervisor Andrew Do from all his committee assignments, including his role as a board member for the Orange County Transportation Authority. Do was not present at the meeting.

“We're having to do this because he will not resign and we hope that he will resign because he should not continue to be publicly enriched off of the taxpayers when he, one, isn't doing his job, and two, is embroiled in a terrible corruption scandal,” said Supervisor Katrina Foley during the meeting.

Why the moves matter

Typically, while one supervisor serves as the county’s representative on various organizations, another supervisor is assigned as an alternate. Do was also removed as an alternate from all assignments.

When the board meets next, the supervisors are set to vote on censuring Do, which is a statement of formal condemnation.

If the censure motion passes, the Board of Supervisors will “strongly and publicly” condemn Do for “the reckless judgment and favoritism he has demonstrated in directing millions of dollars” in federal coronavirus dollars and discretionary funds to the nonprofit groups, “organizations with no proven track record” while not disclosing his familial ties.

Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, who has previously called for Do’s resignation, introduced the censure item.

“It's important that we do this together and as a unified board because we know that the residents in District One also don't have a representative that's available,” he said during Tuesday’s meeting.

Where things stand

This is the second meeting Do has missed since FBI and IRS agents searched his family home he owns with his wife, O.C. Superior Court Assistant Presiding Judge Cheri Pham. A home owned by his daughter, Rhiannon Do, was also searched. Rhiannon Do was named in a lawsuit filed by O.C. officials that alleges she, and others, "brazenly plundered" millions in public funds. Supervisor Do has defended his family.

The lawsuits came after a months-long LAist investigation which uncovered over $13 million in public money that Do directed to a little-known nonprofit, Viet America Society, that public records state was led on and off by his now 23-year-old daughter.

Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas. He did not publicly disclose his family ties, which is not illegal.

Foley said during the meeting that this was the only action that the board could take as they “are not allowed to remove him from office [because] that requires a(n) attorney general action or for him to resign.”

LAist’s reporting has inspired three bills that are now awaiting Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signature.

The bills will require elected officials to disclose and avoid voting on government contracts if a nonprofit organization has ties to a family member. One of the bills also demands greater transparency in how taxpayer dollars are spent by nonprofit organizations in Orange County.

Catch up on LAist's investigation

In November 2023, LAist began investigating how millions in public taxpayer dollars were spent. In total, LAist has uncovered over $13 million in public money was approved to a little-known nonprofit that records state was led on and off by Rhiannon Do, the now 23-year-old daughter of Supervisor Do. Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas. He did not publicly disclose his family ties.

Much of the known funding came from federal coronavirus relief money.

• Read the story that launched the investigation here.
• Since we started reporting, we’ve also uncovered the group was two years overdue in completing a required audit into whether the meal funds were spent appropriately.
• And we found the amount of taxpayer money directed to the nonprofit was much larger than initially known. It totals at least $13.5 million in county funding — tallied from government records obtained and published by LAist. 
• After our reporting, O.C. officials wrote demand letters to the nonprofit saying millions in funding were unaccounted for. They warned it could be forced to repay the funds.
• And, we found the nonprofit missed a deadline set by county officials to provide proof about how funding for meals were spent.
• On Aug. 2, LAist reported O.C. officials were demanding the refund of more than $3 million in public funds awarded by Do to VAS and another nonprofit, Hand to Hand.
• Six days later, LAist reported Orange County officials had expanded demands for refunds of millions in tax dollars from the nonprofits and threatened legal action.
• On Aug. 15, LAist reported O.C. officials sued VAS and its key officers and associated businesses, including Rhiannon Do. The lawsuit alleges that county money was illegally used to purchase five homes and was converted into cash through ATM transactions. 
• Then, on Aug. 19, LAist reported O.C. officials had announced a second lawsuit against Hand to Hand and its CEO to recover millions of taxpayer dollars that were directed by Supervisor Do.
• LAist broke the news on Aug. 22 that federal agents were searching Rhiannon Do's home in Tustin. Later that day, Supervisor Do's home, and other properties, were also raided.

How to watchdog local government

One of the best things you can do to hold officials accountable is pay attention.

Your city council, board of supervisors, school board and more all hold public meetings that anybody can attend. These are times you can talk to your elected officials directly and hear about the policies they’re voting on that affect your community.

• Read tips on how to get involved.
• The next regular meeting of the board is Tuesday, Aug. 27. You can check out the O.C. Board of Supervisors full calendar here.
• Learn how to submit a public comment to the O.C. Board of Supervisors.