Once a State Representative or Senator is done serving in the Texas legislature, it doesn't mean they are done working in the pink dome.
Texans for Public Justice has looked at 10 formerly elected officials including 8 Republicans and 2 Democrats. All 10 of these former State Representatives were serving in the House just this last session and now have gone through the revolving door to get huge payouts to lobby.
Texans for Public Justice looked at the 68 lobby contracts held by Mike Krusee, Fred Hill, Kyle Janek, Pat Haggerty, Corbin Van Arsdale, Dianne Delisi, Kevin Bailey, Robby Cook, Tony Goolsby and James Murphy currently have. Because of reporting laws, lobbyist are only required to disclose whether they fall within a range and not the specific amount the actual revenue from each lobby contract.
Lobbyist are only required to specify if they make less than $10,000, $10,001 to $24,999.99, $25,000 to $49,999.99, $50,000 to $99,999.99, $100,000 to $149,999.99, $150,000 to $199,999.99, $200,000 to $249,999.99, etc.
This makes it difficult to determine how much these 10 formerly elected officials are actually making.
Needless to say, these 10 men have 68 contracts and are currently getting paid anywhere from $2,025,000 to $3,890,000. Mike Krusee and Fred Hill appear to be the two highest paid former elected with Tony Goolsby and James Murphy rounding out the bottom.
In case any one is concerned how former lobbyist Todd Hunter is doing after taking a pay cut to work at the capitol again, don't worry too much. In 2007, Hunter had 4 lobby contracts that could have made him as much as $225,000. He should be okay for a little bit.
The more I find out about Juan Garcia, the more I don't believe him. If I don't believe a man, then I certainly vote won't for him."
That's how Todd Hunter's ad closes as he attacks House District 32 incumbent Juan Garcia.
Interesting since Todd Hunter's desperate ad deceives voters. Hunter must know what he's doing since he won't even step up to the plate and approve the message or be in the ad.
At one point in the new Hunter ad, he refers to the Republican led revolt against Tom "I am the decider" Craddick. Saying, ""When he didn't get his way in the Legislature, he walked off the floor of the Texas House."
We all know the reality of that claim. The uprising was started by then Representatives Republican Pat Haggerty of El Paso and Republican Mike Krusee of Round Rock.
The poignant moment was when Haggerty forced a roll call vote the only way he knew how. He took a list of names from his pocket and began asking every member of the Texas House if they still supported Tom Craddick. After reading a modest amount of names and getting some answers, Haggerty was gaveled to be quiet. A motion to vacate the horrid speaker Haggerty led the charge and asked every member, regardless of party, to join him and breaking quorum.
Todd Hunter clearly doesn't get it. He is so out of touch. In fact, he had to hire an actor to attack Rep. Garcia because he couldn't find a voter to do his bidding.
That's why the Garcia campaign is asking an important question about Hunter's deception.
We want Todd Hunter to tell us, who is his new-found friend with the backwards cowboy hat and store-bought clean gloves. What kind of cattle does he run, if any at all? Does this "around here" rancher have a ranch around here?
These are the tactics of a desperate campaign. Hunter is a horrid candidate. He is bad on policy and he is bad on the campaign trail. His latest attack ad proves the point.
Maybe the cowboy actor will honor his pledge. Voters can't believe anything Todd Hunter says, and they certainly shouldn't vote for him.
The retiring Republican state representative from Williamson County was arrested and charged late Wednesday night, the Statesman reports.
Krusee was booked into the Williamson County Jail at 11:15 p.m. Wednesday and was released at 8:55 a.m. today, officials said. His bail was set at $1,000.
DPS spokeswoman Tela Mange said a trooper spotted a vehicle in the 1300 block of Briar Hollow Drive near U.S. 183 and RM 620 with an expired registration and being driven erratically. Mange said the trooper noticed a strong smell of alcohol and administered a field sobriety test, which she said Krusee failed.
Mike Krusee will not seek re-election. This is different from resigning because he will, supposedly, finish this term and be unable to accept political appointments.
Krusee, 48, is set to announce his retirement, effective at the end of his term in January of 2009, in a written statement released later today.
Krusee, who had served in the House since 1993, had been rumored to be in line for a gubernatorial appointment, possibly to the Texas Transportation Commission, because of his legislative work on toll roads. But a source close to the situation says state law forbids the appointment of a legislator to any job requiring Senate confirmation during his term in office.
That would mean Krusee would not be eligible for most state appointments until the end of his term.
Austin Political Report (among others) report that Mike Krusee will be taking a plush appointment instead of facing Diane Maldonado in the general election.
House District 52 is being called the new 7th legislative seat in Travis County because the Williamson County district has trended so rapidly Democratic. In 2006, Krusee barely broke the 50% mark to underfunded, two time candidate Karen Felthauser. Maldonado is an Annie's List candidate with institutional, community, and financial support.
This represents one of the Democrats single best pick up opportunities. We will be watching with curiosity.
TOLL ROAD LOBBYIST
VIOLATED STATE LAW AND
MUST PAY FINE, SAYS COMMISSION.
One of the Most Wanted Delinquent Lobbyists
in the State of Texas signs Commission Order.
AUSTIN - The Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) has determined that toll road lobbyist Melinda Wheatley violated Texas law and must pay a $10,000 civil penalty. Wheatley failed to file dozens of financial reports describing her lobbyist activities over many years, according to TEC records. The order also states that Wheatley failed to pay the Office of the Attorney General for a default judgment for delinquent reports stretching back into the 90's.
For years, Wheatley has been listed as one of the most delinquent filers in the State of Texas on the TEC website.
Melinda Wheatley is also a known associate of State Rep. Mike Krusee, the chair of the House Transportation committee. Wheatley and Krusee began working on education issues together in the late 90s. In 2003, when Krusee shifted gears to transportation and became the Chair of the House Transportation Committee, Wheatley also made the shift and began to lobby on transportation issues.
TransCore, one of Wheatley's transportation clients, landed a multi million dollar contract in 2005 to produce 500,000 TxTAG's for TxDOT toll roads. According to the Comptroller report, "A Need for a Higher Standard", Wheatley also received NO BID contracts from the local tolling authority, the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority (CTRMA).
Sal Costello, TexasTollParty.com founder, said, "It's a good day when the most wanted lobbyist in the state, who has been hiding her toll road lobbying activities, is found to have violated Texas law. But we need to be aware that there are still way too many toll road profiteers lurking in the shadows."
The TEC order was signed by Melinda Wheatley on September 10th, 2007.
THE MOST WANTED LOBBYIST IN THE STATE OF TEXAS HAS UNIQUE INFLUENCE WITH THE HOUSE TRANSPORTATION CHAIR MIKE KRUSEE.
For years, the married republican State Rep. Mike Krusee, the chair of the House Transportation committee, and lobbyist Melinda Wheatley’s have had an intimate relationship.
A reliable inside source confirms today that Krusee and Wheatley are still “an item” and that Wheatley is now lobbying at one of Austin's most influential lobby firms,HillCo Partners, under the guise of a “public relations specialist” (so she can try and side-step filing more legally required lobbyist reports).
According to reports, HillCo’s J. McCartt, a former aide to Gov. Perry, has paid for many of Krusee’s travel bills. McCartt’s clients included TTC contractor Fluor Corp., Texas toll road investor Goldman Sachs(who plays all angles of tolling and selling our freeways) and the scandalous PBS&J—an engineering firm that has worked on several Texas toll road projects. McCartt flew Krusee to Washington in 2005 to address a conference on public-private partnerships. McCartt also flew Krusee to Las Vegas to deliver the keynote address at a PBS&J toll summit a week after the 2005 regular session ended.
About ten (10) months ago, I filed a formal “sworn complaint” with the Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) on Melinda Wheatley’s failure to file legally required lobbying reports for many months and years.
I fully expected Wheatley to pay off her chronically delinquent TEC fines soon after I filed the complaint. But she did not.
KRUSEE'S MISTRESS WHEATLEY IS THE MOST WANTED LOBBYIST IN TEXAS TODAY!
Shockingly, after 10 months, the brazen Wheatley has NOT paid any of the past delinquent fines with the TEC. Not only that, but according to the TEC’s own website, she is the most wanted lobbyist in the state of Texas today! Maybe that should not be a surprise.
AG’S OFFICE SUED WHEATLEY. WHEATLEY REFUSES TO PAY DEFAULT JUDGMENT AFTER 7 YEARS.
In 1999, the Attorney General’s office sued Melinda Wheatley for failing to pay yet another TEC delinquent account from the 1990’s. The Bankruptcy and Collections division of the AG’s office won a Travis County Court judgment that includes attorney’s fees and court costs. Wheatley has refused to pay the default judgment as well as the 10% annual interest that continues to mount each year. The AG’s office tells me a personal lien is also in place but Wheatley has not reported any ownership of property in the past seven years.
The formal complaint I filed 10 months ago was finally presented to the TEC on April 13th, 2007. The complaint has yet to be resolved or dismissed and a TEC attorney says the hearing could take place soon.
HISTORY OF KRUSEE AND WHEATLEY
Melinda Wheatley and Rep. Mike Krusee began working together on education issues in the late 90’s. In 2003 Krusee became the Chair of the House Transportation Committee after former chair Joe Pickett refused to go along with the unaccountable transportation legislation Gov. Perry wanted pushed. That same year, records show Wheatley began to lobby on Transportation issues.
Over the years, the Wheatley (12/6/1967) has kept many of the details of who she works for, and how much she gets paid, a secret.
WHEATLEY’S UNIQUE INFLUENCE WITH KRUSEE EQUALS MULTI MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACTS FOR HER TOLL ROAD CLIENTS.
Limited state records show Wheatley earned between $70k and $150k in the first two months 2005. Wheatley listed TransCore, Texas Council of Engineering Companies, Outdoor Advertising Association of Texas and City of Austin as her transportation clients.
TransCore, one of Wheatley’s many transportation clients received a multimillion dollar contract with TxDOT in Sept. 2005. The contract for eGo Plus RFID tags, branded locally as TxTag, is for 2 million tags over two years.
Another transportation client of Wheatley, the Texas Council of Engineering Companies (TCEC) included URS, HNTB, PBS&J & Carter & Burgess, Inc. All of which have received numerous multimillion dollar toll contracts.
WHEATLEY GETS NO BID CONTRACT FROM TOLL AUTHORITY
Comptroller Strayhorn’s investigative report on the freeway tolling authority shows Wheatley’s Informative Efforts, LLC, now defunct, was given a NO BID contract (see app. #5) for freeway toll road work. It was Mike Krusee’s legislation that created the freeway tolling authority.
Wheatley ignored Texas law and additional conflicts of interests when she failed to list J.P. Morgan as one of her clients in 2004. The Comptroller’s Report states:
“Informative Efforts: The principals of this public relations firm are Cathy Howell and Melinda Wheatley, who are subcontractors for Nancy Ledbetter Associates, which in turn contracts with HNTB. Their relationship with the transportation industry may represent a potential conflict of interest. Informative Efforts had a consulting arrangement with JP Morgan Securities Inc., a CTRMA contractor, and was paid a retainer fee of $7,000 per month plus expenses. The Austin office of JP Morgan Securities indicated that Informative Efforts performed lobbying work and that it was a short-term contract terminated around March 2004. Melinda Wheatley was Informative Efforts’ primary contact with JP Morgan Securities.Wheatley was listed on the 2004 Texas Ethics Commission lobby list for only one client, TransCore, a sponsor of Team Texas. This company provides services and products that enable toll authorities to manage transactions using toll tags. As such, TransCore is a potential CTRMA contractor.”
How has J.P. Morgan been fairing in Krusee’s Toll Road Deals?
In 2005 the CTRMA invested $284 million in a J.P. Morgan Money Market. J.P. Morgan Securities is also part of the Cintra Trans Texas Corridor Team.
Up to $1 billion dollars of TxDOT Fund 6 bonds is controlled by J.P. Morgan Securities, which acts as the senior manager for the initial issuance. Fund 6 revenue bonds are backed by state highway revenues and anticipated federal transportation appropriations.
By refusing to file lobbyist reports, what are Wheatley (and Krusee) hiding?
What kind of partnership does Melinda Wheatley have with Mike Krusee?
Should Mike Krusee and Melinda Wheatley be investigated by the District Attorney?
Should the press ignore the fact that the House Transportation Chair’s mistress, the most wanted lobbyist in the State of Texas, has landed multi-million dollar contracts?
We have removed the Texans for Public Justice (TPJ) report because of questions pertaining to how the report was done. TPJ has amended the report twice since our post went up. Both times, newly elected Democrats like Paula Hightower Pierson, Valinda Bolton, Ellen Cohen, and Juan Garica were proven to have done nothing wrong.
The purpose of the study is admirable, to track extravagant travel by elected officials paid for by lobbyist, the primary methodology used is too faulty for us to keep the study on our main page. Sadly, the data collected appears to have been sloppy at best.
While controversy surrounds the study, some facts are irrefutable. Rep. Mike Krusee is at fault.
Rep. Mike Krusee, R-Williamson County, a "lobby favorite." Krusee, chairman of the House Committee on Transportation, took nine lobby-funded trips in the period reviewed, 2005 and 2006 through the eve of the November elections, the report said.
For instance, J. McCartt, a lobbyist whose clients include contractor Fluor Corp. and PBS&J, an engineering firm, flew Krusee to Las Vegas to deliver the keynote address at a PBS&J toll summit after the 2005 regular legislative session.
Krusee's office issued a statement Tuesday stating that he "learns from other parts of the country and innovative industries about how to get traffic moving, how to improve safety and how to build roads in cost-effective ways."
Training from groups like EMILY's List and Annie's List is not the same as PBS&J flying Krusee to Vegas or James Leininger taking Rick Perry to the Caribbean.
Sen. Kirk Watson and Rep. Mike Krusee, have submitted companion bills, HB 3719 (Krusee) and SB 1688 (Watson), that would create a tax to subsidize a toll road, for people that live near toll road 130. Watson and Krusee have figured out a new way to make folks pay for toll roads - if you live near the toll road, and you don't drive on it, you'll still pay!
The Watson and Krusee companion bills create a new taxing district that allows the City of Austin to charge sales and property taxes to people living within five miles of the 130 tollway, and regulate all development in the area, all while NOT PROVIDING ANY CITY SERVICES. In essence, these people will pay for the high cost of living in the city, and get none of the benefits (fire, police, EMS).
And get this--the governing board will consist entirely of city council members (all of them, for three years terms) and four appointees of the city council, only two of whom will have to be residents of the area. But the residents of the area won't get to vote for the residents on the board.
Even for Krusee and Watson, this brings screwing the taxpayers for their toll tax roads and managed lanes - to a whole new level. Watson and Krusee also continue to push for tolls on roads we've already paid for, such as toll lanes on Mopac.
Kirk Watson's is scheduled for a floor vote in the Senate TODAY. Mike Krusee's House Committee action is scheduled for tomorrow.
