3rd Congressional District candidate Kent tied to firm not named by campaign

A deeper dive into Republican 3rd Congressional District candidate Joe Kent’s 2021 wage and tax statement shows ties to another company not previously named by the campaign.

Last week, Kent released two W-2 forms from 2020 and 2021 amid calls from the public for greater transparency surrounding his employment. The 2021 form identifying Advanced Enterprises Solutions LLC as Kent’s employer had its federal employer ID number redacted, whereas the 2020 document listing Advanced Enterprise Solutions as his employer did not — making cross-checking the companies impossible.

At least until a watchdog blogger with extensive knowledge of tax law provided some insight.

Portland-based blogger Jack Bogdanski pointed out Friday that the company with a redacted ID number could be traced because the W-2 form contained a classification for a 401(k) plan. Companies that sponsor such plans must file an annual report with the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor.

There is no filing for Advanced Enterprises Solutions LLC, but there is for Advanced Enterprise Solutions LLC — note that one has an “s” and the other does not.

Continuity Global Solutions LLC describes itself as a defense and government services contractor that focuses on global cybersecurity, information technology and project management, according to its website. Its online presence includes recent postings showing contract renewals in Central America and Haiti.

Kent’s campaign did not return The Columbian’s multiple requests for a comment to clarify his employment. His campaign previously said the firm he works for “collects research/intelligence throughout the world on cellular infrastructure which is then sent to telecommunications firms who are pursuing contracts to upgrades (sic) that infrastructure, most recently involving the transition to 5G technology.”

Within the company, Kent’s role is to “hire and oversee contractors around the world who conduct the research on the ground and then to validate that research with AES engineers and turn it into a marketable product,” according to his campaign.

Tax returns released

Questions about Kent’s employment surfaced following an Oct. 23 report from The Daily Beast, a left-wing online news site, which claimed it couldn’t find Kent’s stated employer, American Enterprise Solutions, in various databases. The candidate had identified this company as his employer in federal filings and public comments.

Kent’s campaign issued a statement calling The Daily Beast’s initial story “fraudulent,” but in the same statement explained the discrepancy away as a filing error on their part after the company’s name was changed, though no record of the original company could be found in corporate record databases.