LITTLE ROCK — The state Republican Party filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the state’s seven constitutional officers and the House speaker - all Democrats - alleging that their personal use of state vehicles violates the Arkansas Constitution.
The state Democratic Party responded that the suit is “politically motivated” and meant to distract from the GOP’s “ethical lapses,” including gubernatorial nominee Jim Keet’s tardiness in paying taxes and GOP Chairman Doyle Webb’s being sanctioned by a lawyer discipline body.
Webb, a lawyer and flower-shop owner from Benton, filed the lawsuit in Pulaski County Circuit Court. He said it’s “hogwash” for anyone to think that election year politics plays any role in the party’s filing.
The general election is Nov. 2.
“The Republican Party of Arkansas has always stood for good government,” Webb said.
This is the second lawsuit that has followed a series of articles in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette detailing how some constitutional officers didn’t pay income taxes on the fringe benefit of personal use of state vehicles. The articles have noted that of the more than 8,000 vehicles in state government, about 2,000 are used for employee commutes.
The plaintiff is Johnny Rhoda of Van Buren County, a district chairman of the state GOP.
The defendants are Gov. Mike Beebe, Lt. Gov. Bill Halter, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel, Secretary of State Charlie Daniels, Treasurer Martha Shoffner, Auditor Jim Wood, Land Commissioner Mark Wilcox and House Speaker Robbie Wills.
The case was assigned to Circuit Judge Tim Fox, a candidate for state Supreme Court, Position 6.
The first lawsuit concerning state vehicles was filed in July by Little Rock attorney Eugene Sayre and is pending before Circuit Judge Ernest Sanders.
Webb said in July that the party was considering filing suit and said Sept. 17 that the party would follow through with it.
The GOP lawsuit contends the vehicle use violates the constitution’s Amendment 70, which restricts salaries for constitutional officers and states that they “shall not receive any other income from the state of Arkansas whether in the form of salaries or expenses.”
Beebe has questioned the GOP’s position by noting that constitutional officers also receive health insurance and retirement benefits which, like state vehicles, aren’t mentioned in Amendment 70. He said that if vehicles violate the constitution, health insurance and retirement benefits might also be unconstitutional.
The GOP’s lawsuit says that’s not the case.
“The personal use of these vehicles is unlike health and pension benefits which are recognized as non-taxable fringe benefits by the Internal Revenue Service and the state of Arkansas,” the suit says. “The personal use is a taxable fringe benefit, and not a justified expense reasonably connected to their official duties and is therefore supplemental income or expenses.”
The suit asks the Circuit Court to:
Declare a violation of Amendment 70.
Ban constitutional officers and the speaker from further personal use of state vehicles.
Order the officials to reimburse the state for past personal use.
In July, McDaniel gave up the use of a hybrid Chevrolet Tahoe that cost the state $50,000 and reimbursed the state $2,900, an amount he described as fair compensation for personal vehicle use over 3 1 /2 years.
At that time, McDaniel essentially adopted the position the GOP is taking now - that personal use of state vehicles by elected officials violates Amendment 70.
McDaniel spokesman Aaron Sadler said that “if requested,” the attorney general’s office plans to defend the state officials in the suit.
“We anticipate a successful defense,” Sadler said.
Beebe spokesman Matt DeCample said the governor “will let Dustin decide his proper role. We’ll support whatever decision he makes as attorney general.”
In August, Beebe asked the state Department of Finance and Administration to review state vehicle use in state government. DeCample said that analysis should be complete in a week or two.
Halter has previously rejected the idea that his personal vehicle use violated the constitution. He was the only constitutional officer who said he paid tax on the personal use of a vehicle.
Beebe has said he paid tax on a state vehicle when he was attorney general.
As governor, he is exempt from paying tax because he is driven around by state police security officers.
Webb says he agrees that vehicle use by the governor isn’t taxable and that it doesn’t violate Amendment 70. But he said he included Beebe as a defendant so a judge could issue a declaration one way or the other regarding the governor’s security detail.
Democratic Party Chairman Todd Turner of Arkadelphia issued a statement saying Keet’s recent “tax cheating schemes” included wrongly receiving an Arkansas homestead property-tax credit while living in Florida. He also accused Webb of “scamming an elderly widow.”
“Instead of clogging the dockets of Arkansas courts with baseless lawsuits, Jim Keet and Doyle Webb should concentrate on their own dealings,” said Turner, a lawyer.
In 2001, the state Supreme Court’s Committee on Professional Conduct found that Webb violated three rules hen he had another lawyer change a woman’s will to name Webb as a beneficiary. When the woman died, Webb received $321,000 from her estate.
The GOP later issued a statement accusing the Democrats of “dodging the issue” with “playground politics.”
Sayre said in July that he hoped the GOP wouldn’t sue because it would be a “politically motivated” complaint targeting only Democrats.
His suit is broader, focusing on all state employees that use vehicles for personal use. It cites Arkansas Code Annotated 19-4-903, which states that state-owned or -leased vehicles can be used only for official business.
In the latest motions filed in that case, Sayre has asked the judge to disqualify the lawyers representing 12 of the 13 defendants and strike all of the pleadings they have submitted.
Sayre claims that the defendants’ lawyers are in violation of the Arkansas Rules of Professional Conduct. He contends the lawyers work for the state and as such have a conflict of interest.
Attorneys for one defendant, University of Arkansas System President B. Alan Sugg, call the idea that they should be prevented from representing Sugg “nonsense.”
The only defendant not affected by Sayre’s motion is Wilcox, the state land commissioner, who has hired private attorneys to represent him.
Sadler, the attorney general’s spokesman, said McDaniel declined to represent Wilcox “because of the possibility that it may conflict with our responsibilities under the Arkansas Rules of Professional Conduct.” Sadler declined to elaborate.
Wilcox has acknowledged using two state vehicles, including one on his farm. McDaniel has previously declined to comment on any possible investigation involving Wilcox.
Information for this article was contributed by John Lynch of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 09/30/2010