By Paul Pringle and Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — A spokesman for former U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said Monday it would be “inappropriate” for the Los Angeles County supervisorial candidate to say if she informed the president about an FBI inquiry into her involvement in a 2012 fundraiser for the Obama re-election campaign.

Steve Barkan, who is advising Solis’ county campaign, said in a statement that she had a “cordial” meeting with the FBI in November 2012 about her role in the fundraiser at the La Fonda supper club in Los Angeles. Solis believes she did nothing wrong, Barkan said.

Asked if Solis told Obama about the FBI’s inquiry, Barkan said, “It is inappropriate for a Cabinet official to (discuss) private communications with the president.”

Citing two sources familiar with the matter, the Los Angeles Times last week reported that the FBI had questioned a state lawmaker about Solis and the fundraiser, an interview that took place several months after she stepped down as Labor secretary in January 2013. Solis’ campaign acknowledged in the story that she hired a Washington law firm during her final year in the Obama Cabinet “to address legal issues” involving the fundraiser.

The federal Hatch Act forbids Cabinet members from directly raising campaign money, although they generally are allowed to attend and give speeches at fundraisers. Solis was the star attraction at the La Fonda fundraiser, which tapped Latino community donors to support the president’s re-election.

In Monday’s statement, Barkan said: “Solis knows that the Hatch Act prohibits federal employees from personally soliciting campaign donations. She believes that her participation in the (fundraiser) was proper and does not believe that she has done anything illegal or improper.”

Last spring, an FBI agent asked state Sen. Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) if Solis had solicited his support for the fundraiser, according to the two sources, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the inquiry.

A de Leon spokesman said the senator had no comment. Campaign disclosure filings show de Leon did not contribute to the Obama campaign.

Barkan said Solis has repaid most of a debt of $50,001 to $100,000 to the Washington law firm of Sidley Austin. The bill was reported on financial disclosure forms Solis filed shortly after resigning as Labor secretary. Such debts are reported only in broad amounts.

The Times also asked if Solis’ decision to leave the Obama administration had anything to do with legal issues related to the debt. Barkan said Monday “she made her decision to return to her home for two reasons: to assist her family, including her recently widowed mother, and to explore serving again at the local level.”

With big advantages in name recognition and fundraising capability, Solis is considered the clear front-runner to succeed Supervisor Gloria Molina, who is retiring because of term limits.

Molina, whose district includes downtown Los Angeles, East Los Angeles and parts of the San Gabriel Valley, has not endorsed a potential successor. She declined to comment Monday about the federal inquiry.

Labor groups that have lined up to support Solis said they remained committed to her. Unions have helped Solis raise more than $500,000 for her campaign and get a head start on any potential competitors, according to reports released Friday. Service Employees International Union Local 721, whose membership includes about 55,000 county employees, is a key backer.

“Hilda Solis has been a defender of labor rights and working people in general for her entire career,” Lowell Goodman, a Local 721 spokesman, said Monday. “We stand behind the endorsement, we stand behind Ms. Solis, and look forward to working with her when she wins the supervisor’s seat in June.”

Goodman declined to say if Solis informed SEIU officials of the FBI inquiry when the union vetted her for its endorsement.

Solis’ most prominent opponent, El Monte City Councilman Juventino “J” Gomez, is hoping news of the inquiry can boost his chances, a spokesman said.

“We’re watching the investigation with great intent,” said Gomez’s campaign consultant, Luis Alvarado. “And we’re hoping the residents of L.A. County will.”

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