Alabama Secretary of State Beth Chapman paid her company and her family out of her campaign funds in 2006. An ethics report was subsequently filed and Chapman was cleared of any ethics violations. While technically not a violation of any state law or ethics law, Chapman showed her lack of judgment and personal ethics.
Chapman was elected in 2006. Here are the payments made after the election in 2007. Essentially bonuses for winning.
1. She paid her teenage sons Taylor and Thatcher $1,000 each on February 24, 2007.
2. She paid Beth Chapman and Associates $10,000 on March 31, 2007. Not marked as a loan repayment but administrative fees of $10,000.
3. She paid Taylor $2,000 again on June 26, 2007
4. She paid Beth Chapman and Associates another $3,252.37 on July 27, 2007
5. And She Gave Beth Chapman and Associates an Early Christmas bonus on December 1, 2007 for $2,500.
I'm trying to figure out what kind of campaign work could have been performed months after the election. If the payments were for legitimate work I question why would it not have been paid and reported earlier.
The Alabama Ethics Commission is considering whether public officials need to report gifts from "close friends." An exemption for gifts from "close friends" is a loophole big enough to drive a Mercedes SUV through. From the Birmingham News:
The Ethics Commission is considering such an exemption in response to questions from Alabama Power Co., which is seeking to clarify the circumstances in which companies must report money spent on public officials. The power company referred to its employees who may have longstanding friendships with or may even be married to a public official.
To be clear, the law already specifically exempts personal gifts from spouses and other family members. It might be tempting to say the law shouldn't apply to friends, either. But the commission wisely delayed action last week. Members recognized the potential for abuse that would be possible under this exemption, and they recognized such a policy would require them in the future to determine who public officials' real friends are. Good luck with that.
Alabama public officials already have plenty of friends willing to do favors for them -- and they can accept gifts up to $250 per day, per friend already. If the Ethics Commission exempts those friends from the reporting requirement, look out for a friendship-free-for-all.
Public officials should be interested in serving the public, not in lining their pockets or getting free trips to sporting events courtesy of Alabama Power. As for gifts between friends, remember that it's the thought that counts, not the price. A handwritten note, a plant from your garden or a batch of homemade cookies is just as friendly as an invitation to your skybox, though less likely to influence public policy.
Attorney General Troy King hasn't filed criminal charges in a single public corruption case brought to his office by state ethics commissioners since he became Alabama attorney general in 2004.
[snip]
While the commission's luck with attorneys general has been poor, district attorneys have made at least six criminal cases initiated by the ethics panel since 2003. Several have resulted in convictions.
[snip]
Other cases have languished so long at the attorney general's office, both before and since King arrived, that the statute of limitations has expired, according to [Ethics Commission Director James L.] Sumner. The Ethics Commission since has received fresh complaints about a few of those officials, whom Sumner said he believes should have been prosecuted years ago.
Apparently there is bad blood between the Attorney General's office and the Ethics Commission that goes back to 1996 when the commission investigated Jeff Sessions (AG at that time) on charges of mishandling evidence in a state investigation. A recent appearance by Sumner on APT where he criticized the Attorney General's office was like pouring salt in the (11 year old) wound.
I'm amazed at how long these folks can hold a grudge in their professional capacity. At some point, they need to get over these petty disagreements and get on with doing the people's work.
Apparently the Ethics Commission knows what happens to their recommendations to the Attorney General's office (file 13) so they just referred ADEM Director Trey Glenn's case directly to the Montgomery County District Attorney, where they thought it would get some action.
T.H.E. Social Work Agency Adoption home studies & care management services in the North Alabama area.
Licensed, certified, caring social workers. blog advertising is good for you
