Friday, July 19, 1996

Lawmakers hope to set standards to control Council of Governments spending

By STEVE RAY
Harte-Hanks Austin Bureau

AUSTIN - Texas lawmakers called for more state oversight of 24 Councils of Government on Thursday as legislators began hearings on allegations of questionable travel expenses and possible misuse of funds.

Some said they hoped to see new laws that would standardize regulations governing the councils which control millions of local, state and federal dollars for projects ranging from senior citizen programs to job training and 911 services.

"Common sense would go a long way," said Alpine state Rep. Pete Gallego, who heads the House General Investigating Committee and sits on the Appropriations subcommittee investigating the councils of government. "We need standarized rules. The rules that apply to our state employees need to apply to COG employees.

"There is no need to stay in the fanciest hotel or drive the fanciest car," Gallego said. "Those are taxpayer funds and ... every local taxpayer is also a state taxpayer. COGs should be able to play by the same rules."

Problems in the councils were first discovered in the Concho Valley Council of Governments when a routine investigation of travel expenses by the San Angelo Standard-Times uncovered thousands of dollars spent on out-of-region trips, including annual retreats to a Horseshoe Bay resort and high-dollar meals at posh restaurants during out-of-town trips.

That caused San Angelo state Rep. Rob Junell, who heads the Appropriations Committee, to call for a statewide probe of council of government spending.

Since then Harte-Hanks Newspapers have found other problems spread across the state that ranged from hundreds of taxpayer dollars spent at topless bars to expense-paid trips for spouses and leases of expensive cars.

Junell said Thursday's hearing was the beginning of a probe that could result in new changes on how and on what councils of government can spend their money.

Lawmakers heard from several state agencies that have contracted with councils of government in the state regarding policies that govern how state money is spent.

"We are flowing a lot of money through the councils of government," said Junell, who sits on the Concho Valley COG board. "We are going to look at a clear set of standards so everybody knows the rules.

"Now, I don't need a rule to tell me I shouldn't be spending public dollars in a bar," Junell said. "But if that helps some people conform, we are going to have some rules that do that. At the same time we don't want rules so complex people don't understand them."

Among the things Junell said committee members would like to see are a clear set of travel standards, rules regarding how councils can charge administrative and indirect costs, and a standardized salary schedule.

"It doesn't make sense to me when there are executives of COGs making more money than the governor of Texas does," Junell said.

A salary schedule provided by the Texas Association of Regional Councils shows the base salaries of three executive directors are more than the $99,122 annual salary of Gov. George W. Bush.
Texas Association of Regional Councils executive director Jim Ray agreed councils of governments need more state direction, but he's not sure new laws are the answer.

"We are running a major public program, some $264 million worth of activities," Ray said. "It's public dollars and it should be overseen carefully - (but the oversight) should be split between the state and federal agencies and our local governing bodies - elected officials that govern the COGS all need to have a hand in assuring that (oversight)."

Junell said he expected a second hearing in mid-August where directors of the councils would testify about allegations raised in several newspaper stories and in a Legislative Budget Board review of COG expenditures.

"What we have not done is establish guidelines making it absolutely clear where they should be spending money in terms of the expenses that are justifiable ... or not justifiable," said state Rep. Richard Raymond, a Benavides Democrat who is on the subcommittee looking at the councils. "We have the authority to do that. I think you are going to see that we are going to do that."