Heinous Ken Blackwell tells GOP Auditor Taylor to sue to recover illegal bonuses for his employees

[Kolesar]

At the end of his term as Ohio Secretary of State, Blackwell awarded $80,534 to several of his staff. The new auditor, Mary Taylor, the only republican elected to state office in 2006, has determined that this was illegal and instructed the recipients to return the money to Ohio. Blackwell told her she is going to have to file a suit to recover it (Ohio Public Radio source). So, Blackwell is going to force Ohio taxpayers to spend even more money in legal fees to recover money that he and his friends basically stole from Ohio taxpayers!

State audit faults Blackwell
Ex-secretary of state illegally paid $80,000 to outgoing workers, report says

COLUMBUS: A state audit has determined that former Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell illegally paid 17 employees $80,534 in bonuses and severance packages before leaving office in early 2007.

A special audit conducted by State Auditor Mary Taylor at the request of Blackwell's successor, Jennifer Brunner, holds the one-time GOP candidate for governor, his former chief financial officer, Dilip Mehta, and a bonding company, Travelers/St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co., responsible for repaying the state any funds not returned directly by the 17 employees.

...

Chris Abbruzzese, a Taylor spokesman, said the auditor used strict accounting standards without regard to politics in issuing the findings for recovery against the employees.

Taylor, like Blackwell, is a Republican. She ordered the audit after Brunner, a Democrat, took office and discovered the payments. Another Democrat, Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann, issued an opinion in May of last year that Blackwell lacked the legal authority to award the additional payments.
...
Brunner said she was pleased with Taylor's findings.

''These bonuses were illegal,'' Brunner said, noting she will work to return the money to taxpayers.

http://www.ohio.com/news/17007276.html

[AngryOldDem]

1. And is anyone surprised at this?

Blackwell needs to learn that he is no longer King Shit and that he can't bend the rules at his will.

I wonder if the legal fees that will be spent to collect this money can also be charged to Ken's tab?

JB sure has a pile of crap to clean up, doesn't she? More power to her.

[MeDeMax]

2. good investigation, poor implementation

Brunner & Taylor are squeezing the wrong people, you file a suit against Blackwell for mis-appropriation of funds and drag his election rigging ass into court.

Let him explain his actions in the courts and refund the tax payers either by collecting them back from ex-employees or by having his rich right-wing cronies contribute.

By chasing the ex-employees you are targeting people who accepted bonuses but didn't conspire to steal tax payer funds. Not a smart PR move.

[Shoedogg]

3. I don't think they intend to go after the ex-employees directly if they don't voluntarily return it.

From above:

"Jennifer Brunner, holds the one-time GOP candidate for governor, his former chief financial officer, Dilip Mehta, and a bonding company, Travelers/St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co., responsible for repaying the state any funds not returned directly by the 17 employees."

...but maybe I'm not understanding that correctly.