RECALL BIDS A BATTLE FOR FUND RAISING.

Byline: Sonia Giordani Daily News Staff Writer

The committee to recall Councilwoman Elois Zeanah has $140,705 in its coffers, including more than $120,000 from Thousand Oaks businesswoman Jill Lederer, campaign finance statements show.

Lederer, the owner of several Domino's pizza stores, had loaned $120,700 to Yes! Remove Elois Zeanah. She later indicated that $100,000 need not be repaid, and her contribution made up most of the $107,970 received by the committee from April 1 to June 30, according to finance statements released Thursday.

The recall group has $175,123 since starting the campaign last year.

Lederer did not return phone calls Friday. But Peter Turpel, a recall organizer, said the campaign is so expensive because of legal costs incurred in legal battles with Zeanah supporters.

Reports also showed that the Yes Slow Growth, Yes Elois Zeanah committee raised $8,891 from April 1 to June 30, with $7,797 from the councilwoman. Since its founding, the group has spent a total of $11,683, of which $10,589 comes from Zeanah, reports show.

Zeanah did not return phone calls.

Another committee supporting Zeanah, Residents for Slow Growth/Stop the Recall of Elois Zeanah, raised $8,241 and spent a total of $4,379 this year.

A fourth committee filed contribution disclosure reports this period in its campaign to recall Mayor Judy Lazar and Councilman Andy Fox. The group raised a total of $6,905 since its founding in January and has spent $1,375. In the period between April and June, the group spent $139.

Since April, Residents to Recall Fox and Lazar has collected signatures for a petition to place the recall issue on the November ballot, said Kitty Radler, spokeswoman for the group.

This week's disclosure of the recall committee's expenditures and Lederer's contribution in particular prompted criticism from residents working on recall campaigns of their own.

``We are all strictly volunteers who have stood out in front of supermarkets, libraries, post offices since April,'' Radler said of her recall effort, adding that she took issue with Lederer's contribution to recall Zeanah.

Radler said Lederer's contribution exemplified a loophole in the campaign finance laws that cap campaign expenditures.

Under California law, recall attempts and any funds raised are not considered part of campaign fund-raising but rather support for ballot measures.