"Rep. Virgil H. Goode Jr. was preparing Thursday to offer refunds of political contributions given by employees of a defense contractor that has come under federal scrutiny.

The company, Washington-based MZM Inc., has field offices in Albemarle County and Martinsville and said recently it was working to purchase a vacant building in Ruckersville. All are in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District, which is represented by Goode, a Republican.

Goode has commended the company’s work and its bringing jobs to Virginia.

In California, federal investigators are looking into the relationship between California Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, a Republican, and Mitchell Wade, MZM’s founder and at one time its president. Cunningham sold his house to Wade in 2003 and has lived part-time in Washington on a yacht owned by Wade.

Goode said Thursday that he had read in the news media that three former MZM employees alleged they were pressured to make political contributions. The former employees said Wade demanded employees to give to the company’s political action committee, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

Goode said he doesn’t want any donations that weren’t made “freely and voluntarily.” He was preparing a letter to send to donors from MZM. The letter would offer to make refunds, Goode said.

During the 2003-2004 election period, MZM-linked donations topped the list of Goode’s campaign receipts, with $48,551, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which totals contributions by political action committees, company employees and their immediate family members. Goode’s campaign raised $818,460 overall in that time.

In 2005, MZM donations remain at the top of Goode’s campaign receipts at $38,625.

Prosecutors in San Diego are investigating Cunningham’s sale of his home to Wade at what may have been an inflated $1.675 million price, according to the Associated Press. Cunningham has denied wrongdoing.

The company has faced other recent difficulties, the AP reported:

l MZM said in a statement it was exploring “strategic alternatives” to remain in business, after a federal agency confirmed it had halted new work on a contract that provided MZM with $163 million in revenue. The halt came because of new procurement rules, the Pentagon said.

l MZM overhauled its management team, with James C. King taking over as president and chief executive. Wade had earlier held that role. King succeeded a management team of Frank Bragg Jr. and Kay Coles James.

James resigned June 24 after joining the company only in May, and Bragg left that day too, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

James is former director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management under President Bush and a former Virginia Cabinet secretary.

The company’s Albemarle office, located in the University of Virginia North Fork Research Park, employs 100 people, and has recently said it is gearing up to double its staff to 200.

MZM announced it would buy the Technicolor facility in Ruckersville in May and was going to close on the property in early June.

The purchase would mean an estimated 200 to 300 jobs for Greene County.

But the Technicolor closing date was pushed back to July 5, and officials earlier this week expressed concerns about the potential economic impact of the company’s current woes.

Rep. Katherine Harris, R-Fla., another major recipient of MZM campaign contributions, was reported this week by a spokesman to be sending a letter to MZM donors offering refunds.

Goode has said he urged several people or entities, including MZM, to look at available buildings in Martinsville and Ruckersville. He also pushed for Congress to create the Foreign Supplier Assessment Center, which MZM was selected to run in Martinsville.

MZM’s selection of Martinsville for a database and information technology operation in 2003 was welcomed by several elected officials. A news release by the office of Gov. Mark R. Warner touted the expected jobs and said Goode was “instrumental in securing this project for Virginia.”" (Peter Hardin, RIchmond Times-Dispatch, July 2, 2005)