Pro-Hillary Clinton super PAC returns $250K in illegal donations

A super PAC supporting Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton accepted $250,000 worth of contributions from a charity — donations that are illegal under election law.

The charity, called Suffolk Cares Inc., donated $250,000 to Correct the Record, a political action committee focused on helping elect Clinton, according to a report by the Center for Public Integrity.

Nonprofit charities are prohibited from making political contributions under federal law.

When CPI pointed out the illegal donation, Correct the Record spokeswoman Elizabeth Shappell said that the super PAC planned to give the money back to Suffolk Cares immediately.

"When we learned this donation came from a 501(c)(3), we returned it,” Shappell said.

A construction company tied to the charity had already gotten in trouble for some donations it made this cycle.

More from CPI's report:

Suffolk Cares Inc. is funded by Suffolk Construction Company Inc. and company chairman and CEO John Fish, according to the charity’s tax return for fiscal year 2015, its most recent. Fish is a major political donor who’s personally spread hundreds of thousands of dollars among various political candidates and groups, mostly Democratic. Fish also serves as chairman and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, having been appointed by the Federal Reserve last year.

Suffolk Construction had contributed $200,000 to a different pro-Clinton super PAC, Priorities USA Action, but the group returned the money in July.

The Washington, D.C.-based Correct the Record was launched in 2015 and connected to David Brock, a former Clinton critic who has now become an advocate for her campaign, CPI reported:

Although federal law prohibits super PACs from coordinating paid messaging with the candidates they support, Correct the Record is working intimately with Clinton’s own campaign operation. For example, the Clinton campaign has paid Correct the Record nearly $300,000 for “research” work.

The group has made a number of videos criticizing Republican nominee Donald Trump's record and personal failings, including: