Corroon to Herbert: Give back the coal money
Campaign ยป Herbert refuses, maintains $10K donation was proper.
By Jeremiah Stettler
The Salt Lake Tribune
Gov. Gary Herbert should return a $10,000 donation from a Utah coal company -- whether or not that campaign cash influenced decisions to expedite the mine's permit process.
So says gubernatorial challenger Peter Corroon, who called on the governor Thursday to put to rest perceptions of a "pay to play" policy in state government and order an independent inquiry into how the regulatory process was conducted.
"Public trust matters and the appearance of impropriety matters," the Democratic Salt Lake County mayor wrote in a statement. "The public needs to have confidence that their elected officials and government make decisions in an open, honest and transparent fashion."
The governor's chief of staff, Jason Perry, rebuked Corroon for what he described as an "unjustified and inaccurate attack for the sole purpose of political posturing."
"It is deeply offensive," he said.
The controversy lies in a campaign contribution the Republican governor received last fall from Alton Coal Development.
On Sept. 17, the same day that Herbert's campaign cashed a $10,000 check from the company, Alton officials met with the governor to complain that regulators were taking too long to issue a strip-mining permit.
As a "result" of that meeting, according to a memo from the Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining, regulators sped up the process. The permit was to be completed on Oct. 15, three months earlier than required by law.
But the Governor's Office insists the target date was set before Herbert ever met with Alton Coal -- a position corroborated by John Baza, director of the mining division, who said he relayed information about the governor's meeting to his staff to ensure the deadline was met.
The governor had no knowledge of Alton's contribution, Perry says, and the campaign's decision to cash the company's check on the day of the meeting was an "unfortunate" coincidence.
So does Herbert plan to give back the money?
"The answer is no," Perry said. "The governor has no intention of returning the check because nothing improper happened before, during or after that meeting."
That's the wrong decision, according to Corroon.
"The perception is that you have to pay to play," he wrote. "Utahns deserve a leader who will get rid of those perceptions."
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