Tag search result

A Wake County Superior Court judge has cleared former lobbyist Don Beason of violating the law when he didn't register to lobby on behalf of five companies and a trade association that wanted to sell imported iron for state highway projects.

Judge Paul Ridgeway ruled Beason doesn't have to pay the $30,000 fine Secretary of State Elaine Marshall imposed last year.

The judge found parts of North Carolina's lobbying reform law enacted in 2007 were ambiguous and that the secretary of state had overstepped her authority in issuing the fines.

Former premiere lobbyist Don Beason wouldn’t get the big break that a judge gave him last year on a record-setting $100,000 fine for lobbying law violations, under a decision the secretary of state issued earlier this month.

Secretary of State Elaine Marshall rejected an administrative law judge’s penalty of a $6,000 fine and a $100 registration fee. She increased the fine to $30,000 and added a $500 registration fee, in a decision issued April 8.

An audit by the state Auditor’s Office followed by an investigation by the Secretary of State’s lobbying division found that in 2007 Beason failed to register as a lobbyist for four companies and a trade association, which funneled more than $100,000 to his lobbying firm through a company that he was registered to represent.

The six entities wanted to repeal or weaken the state’s “Buy American” law so they could sell to the state Department of Transportation iron imported from India. Beason contended he didn't know about the financial arrangement.

Beason appealed the $100,000 fine to an administrative law judge, who heard testimony and then slashed the fine, determining that Beason was illegally lobbying for just one company. The case then went to Marshall, who was not directly involved in the investigation, to make a final determination.

In her written decision, Marshall applied a different logic to the penalty, finding Beason was really lobbying for all five entities, so she multiplied the judge’s fine by five. Marshall said Administrative Law Judge Fred G. Morrison Jr.’s findings were contrary to the evidence presented in the case, and that he failed to “give due regard” to her office’s investigation.

Beason has appealed the ruling to superior court. His attorney, Jack Nichols, could not be reached on Friday.

Beason's career ended after it was disclosed he gave former House Speaker Jim Black a $500,000 interest-free loan. Beason represented the video poker industry, which Black had protected from a ban by the legislature.

Don Beason may not have to pay an $111,000 fine levied against him earlier this year for lobbying law violations.

Senior Administrative Law Judge Fred G. Morrison Jr. on Monday issued a ruling reducing the fine to $6,000 with a $100 registration fee.

Beason was fined earlier this year by the Secretary of State's Office after the department's compliance division said he had failed to register as a lobbyist for all the companies he represented. The division also said Beason had concealed the multiple clients from two lobbyists who worked for him, which led to them not filing all the proper reports.

The group of companies wanted to repeal or weaken a law so they could sell iron imported from India to the state Department of Transportation.

In his decision, Morrison said Beason had failed to register as a lobbyist on behalf of just one of the companies, EEPC, and had not disclosed or filed lobbyist reports for the same company.

Because the ruling found Beason in violation of lobbying rules for just one company, the fine was reduced.

Morrison's decision can be appealed by both parties, Beason and the Secretary of State's lobbying division. The Secretary of State's office will issue a final agency decision. At that point, if Beason disagrees with the ruling, he can ask Wake Superior Court for a Judicial Review.

Liz Proctor, spokeswoman for the Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, said she could not comment on the decsion or whether the state might appeal.

"Our attorneys are still studying Judge Morrison's decision," Proctor said.

Jack Nichols, Beason's lawyer, could not be reached.

Former top lobbyist Don Beason testified again today in the hearing where he's appealing the $110,000 fine the state wants him to pay for for allegedly violating lobbying laws. The hearing ended today. Senior Administrative Law Judge Fred G. Morrison Jr. will likely rule within 90 days.

The state is arguing that Beason failed to disclose lobbying clients in 2007 who wanted to change state law to allow them to sell iron imported from India to the state Department of Transportation. The $110,000 fine is said to be the largest in history.

Beason said he did not know that one of the companies was collecting money from others to pay him. Beason said he did not contact any legislators or DOT employees  on the issue, but enlisted two other lobbyists, his son Mark Beason and T. Jerry Williams, to work on it. Williams also testified today.

Beason was ranked the state's top lobbyist in 2007. He left the business that year, having been linked to the scandal that enveloped former House Speaker Jim Black.

PICKED ON: An attorney for lobbyist Don Beason said the Secretary of State's office unfairly went after the lobbyist and eventually issued a record-$111,000 fine because Beason was a high-profile target. (N&O)

N.I.M.B.Y.: Speakers at a packed public hearing Tuesday night criticized the state Department of Transportation's ideas for routing high-speed passenger trains through downtown, and some of them urged the City Council to call for more study. (N&O)

HERE I GO: In a prime-time address to the nation, President Barack Obama said it was time to "turn the page" on Iraq and that he intended to focus on the U.S. economy. (NYT)

Tuition rising: Looks like students will bear the brunt of the UNC system budget cuts. Additional tuition increases are in the works for the coming academic year, an attempt to mitigate budget cuts recently imposed by the legislature. Students at UNC-Chapel and N.C. State will pay $750 more. (N&O)

Lobbying for foreign steel: Court documents filed this week reveal the identity of five entities that quietly funneled money to Don Beason in a case that led to a $111,000 fine for the once-influential lobbyist. The state says Beason was lobbying for four companies and a trade organization that promotes products made in India. (N&O)

Birthday bash: Hundreds of people waited in line to wish UNC President Emeritus Bill Friday a happy 90th birthday in Chapel Hill. (N&O)

An administrative law judge cut a little slack for Don Beason and his son, who are contesting fines over what the N.C. Secretary of State says are violations of the state's lobbying laws.

In an order issued Thursday morning, Senior Administrative Law Judge Fred G. Morrison Jr. set a schedule to hear the Beasons' appeal. But more helpful for Beason and his son Mark Beason, Morrison said that while the appeal is pending, the Beasons do not have to pay a fine — $111,000 for Don Beason and $6,000 for his son.

The Secretary of State's office has accused Beason of lobbying on behalf of five clients who funneled their money through another company. In his appeal, Beason said he only lobbied for clients who were properly registered. 

The appeal is the only publicly available record about the case, which dates back to 2007, because state law makes all information about enforcement of lobbying laws secret.

Morrison's order also cuts a break to the five clients, who do not have to file registration paperwork with the state until the case is over.

That heavy blanket of secrecy, which can be lifted only by court order, was apparently created by mistake when lawmakers sought to tweak the state's ethics and lobbying laws in 2008. The issue surfaced this week when a former lobbyist appealed a $111,000 fine. The only information publicly available about the fine against Don Beason came in a court filing from his lawyer. (N&O)

FINE APPEALED: Don Beason, the once-influential lobbyist who left the profession because of his entanglements with disgraced House Speaker Jim Black, is fighting a $111,000 fine levied by the N.C. Secretary of State's office.

Beason and his son Mark appealed the fine to an administrative law judge, saying that the decision by Secretary of State Elaine Marshall's office was wrong on its facts and the law and that the penalty assessed was "arbitrary and capricious." (N&O)

ISSUE GROWS: The controversy swirling around Wake County's schools has taken on a political life of its own, and regional, state, local and grass-roots leaders are trying to define it for their own partisan purposes. (N&O)

FINANCIAL SHOWDOWN: Senate Republicans united Monday to block debate on legislation that would make the most far-reaching changes in financial industry regulation since the Great Depression - slowing but probably not stopping a bill that has been propelled by angry voters who want to crack down on Wall Street. (TRIBUNE)

Former State Rep. Robert "Bob" Hensley, Jr. died this morning at Rex Hospital from complications of leukemia. He was 62.

Hensley represented Wake County in the House from 1990 to 2002, according to a news release announcing his death.

"Bob Hensley was a spirited and dedicated public servant who fought for what he thought was right and always cared about the average citizen," said State Rep. Deborah Ross, who now holds Hensley's seat.

He was among a handful of dissident Democrats during the early 2000s who didn't hesitate to buck the will of then-Speaker Jim Black.

Hensley was born in 1947 in Wilmington.

He graduated with a BA in history from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and received his law degree from North Carolina Central University Law School.

"Bob was a progressive voice for Wake County and for the people of NC. During his time in the NC House, he represented the people with courage, enthusiasm, wisdom and wit. We will miss him," said Jennifer Weiss, a Raleigh Democrat. 

Hensley was most recently in the news for representing lobbyist Don Beason who was charged in a road rage incident. 

Hensley is survived by his wife, Pat Granger Hensley and sons Preston, Chris and Robert Hensley, III.

"I want to thank our many friends and neighbors for their kindness and care during Bob’s illness. We hope that everyone will keep us in their prayers during this difficult time," said Pat Hensley.

Funeral arrangements are pending.