David G. Valadao

A dairy worker (Daniel Padilla) sued in March 2017 alleging Triple V Dairy violated California labor laws on wages, breaks, and wage statements. In March 2018 the business, through Jose Valadao, agreed to pay $325,000 to settle, while denying wrongdoing. The matter is against a business entity that David Valadao was a general partner of (is_business_entity=true). The settlement was not paid after the related dairy/cattle businesses filed for bankruptcy, and the $325,000 was listed in the 2019 bankruptcy filing.

In November 2017 lender Rabobank sued Triple V Dairy in Fresno County Superior Court over default on about $8.3-8.4 million in loans, naming David Valadao (a general partner), his wife Terra, and other family members and entities. The court led to appointment of receiver John Van Curen, who took control of the dairy on March 28, 2018; the family farm was seized in June 2018. This is a civil financial matter against a dairy business Valadao owned/ran (is_business_entity=true). The Valadaos' dairy and cattle businesses later filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in March 2019 (U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of California, Fresno), listing roughly $13.64 million in liabilities against $208,500 in assets.

Rabobank sued Triple V Dairy and its partners, including David Valadao, in Fresno County Superior Court in late 2017 for defaulting on approximately $8.4 million in agricultural loans. A court-appointed receiver took control of the farm in March 2018, and Rabobank seized and sold the dairy in June 2018 to recover the debt. Valadao had personally guaranteed the loans. The matter was resolved through the receivership and asset sale rather than a contested trial.

Land O'Lakes sued Triple V Dairy (of which David Valadao was a general partner and personal guarantor) in federal court for approximately $688,825 in unpaid invoices for milk replacer products. Valadao and co-defendants did not file any opposition to the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment. The court granted the motion and entered a civil money judgment against the dairy and against Valadao personally as a guarantor in September 2018. Valadao was not in Congress at this time (having lost his 2018 re-election race).

In February 2019, David Valadao and his wife filed a joint Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition in federal bankruptcy court citing more than $13 million in business debts owed primarily to agricultural lenders including Rabobank and Land O'Lakes. The filing listed outstanding civil settlements including the $325,000 farmworker settlement as liabilities. This was a personal (not solely business-entity) bankruptcy filing.

End Citizens United filed a complaint with the FEC in October 2020 alleging that David Valadao used his leadership PAC (Vitoria PAC) to supplement the salary of his campaign manager Andrew Renteria, thereby making an unreported in-kind excessive contribution to his authorized campaign committee in violation of FEC regulations. The FEC closed the matter (MUR 7837) by a unanimous 6-0 vote in May 2022, invoking prosecutorial discretion and not making any finding of violation on the merits.