William McKenzie/Dallas Morning News
Whats wrong with the State Board of Education?
Last week board members were in the news for the way in which they prematurely ended a contract with an investment firm. They went for a firm that one board member had been trying to do business with as a private investment marketer.
This week two board members were in the news for accepting thousands of dollars of gifts from a company seeking a contract with the board. The pair didnt declare the gifts which became known after the company filed a report showing it had given them 53 gifts that totaled more than $5000 in dinners football tickets rounds of golf and other niceties.
I shudder to think whats coming next week.
Really. Im not being snarky. What is going on?
Some board members Ive interviewed the last couple of weeks are very concerned. They think conflicts of interest run deep into the panels culture.
Others dont see it that way. Rick Agosto the only board member mentioned in last weeks story and this weeks report repeatedly told me over the phone last week that he has done nothing wrong.
And technically accepting some gifts wasnt wrong. State ethics rules requires disclosures of gifts over $250. On the other hand neither Agosto nor fellow board member Rick Nunez reported gifts over $250. Incredibly Nunez told freelance reporter Jeff Horwitz that he thought the gifts were given to him as a private marketing consultant and not as a state board member.
The House and Senate members should look into these patterns over their interim work session. Im not suggesting Haldeman/Ehrlichman-type corruption but somethings going on.
Enough so that Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and House Speaker Joe Straus should put House Public Education Committee Chairman Rob Eissler and Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Florence Shapiro in charge of either separate or combined investigations into the ethical practices and culture of this board.
One reform that would really help is giving either the Legislature the Texas Education Agency or the Texas Ethics Commission the power to enforce penalties if a state board member violates state code. According to the story there is no way for the chair of the state board or any other figure to enforce ethics rules.
Talk about crazy.
Let me be clear here: There are some really capable State Board of Education members. But this panel has a habit of landing in the front pages including way before these stories hit.
We need some changes.
