LITTLE ROCK -- Regardless of whether the preferential treatment comes from the University of Arkansas itself or from the Razorback Foundation, lawmakers can't get access to Razorback tickets unless they pay the same fees as everybody else, the Arkansas Ethics Commission ruled Friday.
University officials argued the school and its athletic booster club are separate entities and restrictions on gifts from lobbyists don't apply to the foundation.
The commission disagreed.
It's the second recent ruling regarding public officials and pigskin tickets.
Earlier this year, UA lobbyist Randy Massanelli asked the commission whether legislators and other officials could continue to get discounted tickets without running afoul of Amendment 94 last year, which bars lawmakers from accepting certain gifts from lobbyists as well as campaign contributions from unions and corporations.
In a May 15 opinion, the commission said by not paying the extra fees involved in obtaining season tickets, lawmakers would be accepting gifts from UA, which has a lobbyist, and would be in violation of law.
Season-ticket holders often have to make donations ranging from $50 to more than $20,000 on top of the face value of their individual tickets.
After the May ruling, Massanelli asked the ethics commission whether it would make any difference if the preferential treatment came from the foundation instead of the school itself. He argued the foundation, which raised $27.9 million in 2014 for UA athletics, was independent of the university, didn't have a lobbyist and asked if the restrictions in Amendment 94 applied to it, as well.
Commission members say the preferential treatment violates the rules either way.
"While the University and the Razorback Foundation might be considered separate entities in certain respects (e.g., tax purposes), it is not clear that they are, in fact, separate entities with respect to the sale of football tickets," ethics commission attorney Drew Blankenship wrote. "It seems unlikely that the Foundation would be waiving the membership level contributions in question unless there was some benefit to the University... it could be argued the two entities are acting jointly in connection with the sale of football tickets."
Blankenship then suggested by waiving $400 or more in fees any quarter of the calendar year for the elected officials, the foundation would "arguably" meet the definition of a lobbyist, and thus be barred from sharing gifts with lawmakers.
Those points aside, Blankenship said, the foundation would be in violation of other ethics laws by giving lawmakers any item worth more than $100.
There was little discussion among commissioners Friday before they voted unanimously to adopt the opinion.
"They're not giving that waiver to the members of the General Assembly ... just because they like them," Blankenship said. "They're using their official position to get that waiver."
NW News on 07/25/2015