Key players in controversial $4M grant fund in Tennessee budget downplay role, remain silent – The Tennessean
Last week, the Republican chairman of a legislative committee denied Democrats’ request for two Tennessee commissioners involved in administering a little-known economic development grant to appear before the panel.
Meanwhile, all the main players involved in the creation of the grant, which was added to the state budget by former House Speaker Glen Casada, spent the week downplaying their role or remaining quiet.
The latest developments come after The Tennessean reported two commissioners in Gov. Bill Lee’s administration had knowledge of as many as 60 “commitments” for the newly created $4 million fund.
When Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe appeared before a legislative committee on Nov. 19, he fielded several questions from House Minority Leader Karen Camper about his office’s involvement in the fund.
Rolfe said he was informed of the fund near the end of the legislative session by Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Stuart McWhorter.
According to the appropriations bill, McWhorter would have final approval of any funds disbursed from the grant.
In an effort to determine whether ECD would need to hire additional staff to process applications, Rolfe said he asked McWhorter’s office for an estimate of the grants.
“That’s when they said we think it’s about 50 or 60 projects initially or grants or commitments,” Rolfe said.
As a result, ECD is asking for an additional staff member to process the grants, which have since been frozen by the governor, in the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
Grant fund under scrutiny
Officials who have raised questions about the fund, with involvement from Casada’s office, have been looking for a list of projects that were set to receive money, including one in the district of Rep. Matthew Hill, R-Jonesborough..
Rolfe said he had not seen a list that identified the 50 or 60 commitments that the Department of Finance and Administration informed him about.
“No dollars have been granted, no applications have been received,” Rolfe reminded the House committee.
“We have been about the process of building an application process, and I think in Commissioner McWhorter’s defense, they are in their very first year, and were not terribly familiar with how ECD administers programs and funds,” said Rolfe, reminding the committee his office was an administrative partner.
When Rep. Ron Gant, R-Rossville, asked whether the creation of the grant fund came from Lee, Rolfe said, “I’m not sure.”
Rolfe once again reminded the committee he initially found out about the fund from McWhorter.
Finance commissioner remains silent
McWhorter, meanwhile, remained silent.
On Nov. 18, Lola Potter, a spokeswoman for McWhorter and his office, said the commissioner was busy working on the upcoming budget and would not be able to answer The Tennessean’s questions.
Hours after a story published on Nov. 19 about emails showing knowledge of commitments, Potter sent a follow up email.
“Despite multiple attempts to explain the grant process and our role in creating guardrails, it seems that there is confusion on your end,” Potter said.
Potter, who did not answer the same questions presented to Rolfe, said the reference to commitments was merely to outline the “potential case load” of the fund.
“While members of the legislature may have ideas or wish lists, as a department we do not make promises for requests that have not gone through the formal process,” she said.
Separately, McWhorter was admonished for failing to appear at a Nov. 19 meeting of the Joint Government Operations Committee, with his deputy citing his need to keep an eye on the House budget hearings. Ultimately, McWhorter came to the operations committee and faced questions about an audit of his department.
After the meeting concluded, a sullen McWhorter once again declined to answer questions about the commitments for the ECD fund, referring a reporter to Potter’s earlier email.
Casada defends fund
Similarly, Casada, who has defended the fund, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
In a brief interview after he left a committee meeting on Nov. 20, Rep. Matthew Hill, R-Jonesborough — who set off the flurry of questions about the fund after touting a forthcoming grant to a nonprofit in his district — similarly downplayed his role.
Asked whether he had been involved in any discussions with employees in McWhorter’s office, Hill said, “Nope.”
Hill denied having worked with a state employee who, according to an email obtained by The Tennessean, had said as many as 60 commitments for the fund had been made.
Lawmakers’ reactions to the disclosure of the emails and Rolfe’s subsequent explanation varied.
In separate statements, Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, and House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, noted the fund had been frozen while calling the latest news “troubling.”
Camper, the House minority leader, said she would take Rolfe’s explanation about his lack of knowledge about the fund at face value.
Asked how she would respond to the contention from McWhorter’s office that they were trying to add guardrails on the fund, Camper said, “That’s poppycock.”
As the week ended, Democrats were informed by Rep. Martin Daniel, R-Knoxville, that their request for Rolfe and McWhorter to appear in front of the government operations committee to answer questions about the fund was denied.
“I do not believe that the Government Operations Committee should engage in any inquiry,” Daniel wrote in a letter to House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Stewart, D-Nashville.
Noting the questions Rolfe faced during the House budget hearings, Daniel said he thought such queries were more appropriate with that legislative panel.
Stewart said he was disappointed with Daniel’s decision, given the government operations committee’s role in potentially approving rules for the fund.
“This delay tactic will not work,” Stewart said. “We will simply find another way to get to the bottom of this slush fund mystery.”
As they’ve asked questions about the fund, Democrats, including Rep. Bo Mitchell, D-Nashville, have alleged the grant was created to reward lawmakers who voted for the governor’s controversial and narrowly approved education savings account legislation.
Reach Joel Ebert at jebert@tennessean.com or 615-772-1681 and on Twitter @joelebert29.
Published 11:55 AM EST Nov 26, 2019
