CHEYENNE — The use of its subpoena power by a minor committee may ultimately damage the Legislature’s relationship with local government officials.
Recently, there were signs of resentment by local officials who were subpoenaed to attend meetings of the subcommittee and the committee of the Management Audit Committee.
Exercising its perceived legal role as a government oversight machine, the committee sent out a number of subpoenas as part of its investigation of local officials over flawed audits or no audits.
This action by the new committee controlled by the far-right Freedom Caucus is contrary to the Legislature’s history of using invitations rather than subpoenas to bring local officials to the legislative committee table.
But it is in keeping with the Freedom Caucus record as an aggressive force pushing its agenda for limited government and lower taxes.
In recent years the only subpoena issued by the Legislature was for former Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill in 2013.
That involved a constitutional case that Hill eventually won at the state Supreme Court.
Other than that case, a chairman of a legislative committee wanting more information from local officials would send a letter of invitation, asking them to testify in Cheyenne.
The diplomatic approach, which recognized the status of the locals, worked well in the past.
A subpoena has a threatening aspect as a legal document, which carries potential penalties of a $100 fine and six months in jail if ignored.
One of the committee subpoenas resulted in Cody Beers, treasurer of the Riverton Recreation Board, making a trip to Cheyenne .
He told the committee at an Oct. 21 meeting how the board hired a certified public accountant to reconcile the problems with its audits, which developed during the illness of the previous treasurer.
With help from the State Auditor’s office, he said the organization now is “doing good.”
“Are we excused. Can we go?” Beers asked after finishing his report and answering questions.
The audit committee chairman, Rep. Christopher Knapp, a Gillette Republican, chuckled. Some other members and visitors laughed out loud.
But at an earlier meeting a couple of town officials expressed their unhappiness with the subpoena hammer, saying they would have willingly come to testify, if only asked.
And later in the Oct. 21 committee meeting, two brothers from Manderson — Rod and Tim Patrick — expressed their outrage by the subpoena they received.
Rod is the mayor and Tim a council member. Both served on the council before.
Tim said they ran again because of the need to clean up the mess caused by a previous administration.
The small town, he said, hired a bookkeeper for $2,500 a month, which the town cannot afford.
While the current books are in good shape, reconciling past mishandling of funds is taking a lot of time.
Tim Patrick received permission to read a letter he had sent to the committee heads earlier, expressing his opposition to using subpoenas to compel attendance at committee meetings.
For the committee to issue a subpoena rather than just request a meeting is “not only unprecedented but disheartening,” he read. “It is unnecessary to issue one to the people who are trying to correct the problem.”
Subpoenas, he added, are for people who refuse to appear at an official meeting.
Knapp, the chairman, explained that the subpoena route was chosen because the committee was dealing with a long list of
towns and boards with flawed or incomplete audits, or none all — some year after year.
The committee intends to continue to keep track of the local audits going forward.
Although the committee members thanked town officials for attending the meeting, they offered no apology for the method used.
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Contact Joan Barron at 307-632-2534 or jmbarron@bresnan.net
