Questions raised about state deal with developers

? Some lawmakers are questioning the cost of a lease-purchase agreement between the state and developers with ties to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius.

An audit of the transaction found that it could end up costing the state more than $1 million for property that developers bought for $275,000 three years ago, The Wichita Eagle reported Sunday.

According to state records, the developers, their spouses and their companies have donated more than $40,000 to the governor’s political campaigns since 1994.

The governor’s office said in a statement that Sebelius had no influence on the deal, which involves land for a new state park and a building used as the Topeka regional headquarters for the state Department of Wildlife and Parks.

The developers include or have included the chairman of the Kansas Real Estate Commission, who was appointed by Sebelius, and two lawyers who have represented the governor, one of whom is married to a staff attorney in the governor’s office.

Rep. Peggy Mast, R-Emporia, chairwoman of the joint House-Senate Legislative Post Audit Committee, which had ordered the audit, said the committee may need to order a second study of the transactions.

“I just think we need to know everything that happened if we’re ever going to make government accountable and efficient,” she said.

The audit, dated Feb. 12, found that the Wildlife and Parks department “followed most requirements” when it leased the property. But auditors criticized the department for leasing almost three times as much space as it needed, at almost three times the price of other spaces it could have leased.

The audit said the department leased 9,800 square feet for 10 to 12 employees – or more than 800 square feet per employee. State guidelines call for 250 square feet per employee. The auditors also criticized the department for not finalizing a purchase price.

Sebelius’ office said agency negotiations on property and leases got through the Division of Administration. It also said in a statement that Wildlife and Parks Secretary Mike Hayden had been clear that all the required protocols for the agreement were followed.

Hayden, a former governor, said the developers’ ties to Sebelius were “immaterial.”

“We would have leased that building from any owner we could have gotten an agreement with,” Hayden said.

Hayden also said some lawmakers were criticizing the agreement for partisan reasons, because Sebelius is a Democrat, and Republicans control both houses of the Legislature.

“The idea that somebody got a special favor here or that somebody got an advantage simply isn’t true,” he said. “All decisions made surrounding that property, I made as secretary. There was absolutely no outside influence whatsoever.”

But some Democrats also are questioning the deal.

“On the surface, it doesn’t look very good,” said Rep. Tom Sawyer, D-Wichita, a Democratic House member on the audit committee. “This is the kind of thing that irritates taxpayers, and rightly so.”

He said the state can mitigate some of the building’s cost by moving another agency into space not needed by Wildlife and Parks – an option Sebelius mentioned in a recent news conference.

And he said lawmakers need to ensure similar transactions don’t occur in the future.

An audit of the transaction found that it could end up costing the state more than $1 million for property that developers bought for $275,000 three years ago, The Wichita Eagle reported Sunday.

According to state records, the developers, their spouses and their companies have donated more than $40,000 to the governor’s political campaigns since 1994.

The governor’s office said in a statement that Sebelius had no influence on the deal, which involves land for a new state park and a building used as the Topeka regional headquarters for the state Department of Wildlife and Parks.

The developers include or have included the chairman of the Kansas Real Estate Commission, who was appointed by Sebelius, and two lawyers who have represented the governor, one of whom is married to a staff attorney in the governor’s office.

Rep. Peggy Mast, R-Emporia, chairwoman of the joint House-Senate Legislative Post Audit Committee, which had ordered the audit, said the committee may need to order a second study of the transactions.

“I just think we need to know everything that happened if we’re ever going to make government accountable and efficient,” she said.

The audit, dated Feb. 12, found that the Wildlife and Parks department “followed most requirements” when it leased the property. But auditors criticized the department for leasing almost three times as much space as it needed, at almost three times the price of other spaces it could have leased.

The audit said the department leased 9,800 square feet for 10 to 12 employees – or more than 800 square feet per employee. State guidelines call for 250 square feet per employee. The auditors also criticized the department for not finalizing a purchase price.

Sebelius’ office said agency negotiations on property and leases got through the Division of Administration. It also said in a statement that Wildlife and Parks Secretary Mike Hayden had been clear that all the required protocols for the agreement were followed.

Hayden, a former governor, said the developers’ ties to Sebelius were “immaterial.”

“We would have leased that building from any owner we could have gotten an agreement with,” Hayden said.

Hayden also said some lawmakers were criticizing the agreement for partisan reasons, because Sebelius is a Democrat, and Republicans control both houses of the Legislature.

“The idea that somebody got a special favor here or that somebody got an advantage simply isn’t true,” he said. “All decisions made surrounding that property, I made as secretary. There was absolutely no outside influence whatsoever.”

But some Democrats also are questioning the deal.

“On the surface, it doesn’t look very good,” said Rep. Tom Sawyer, D-Wichita, a Democratic House member on the audit committee. “This is the kind of thing that irritates taxpayers, and rightly so.”

He said the state can mitigate some of the building’s cost by moving another agency into space not needed by Wildlife and Parks – an option Sebelius mentioned in a recent news conference.

And he said lawmakers need to ensure similar transactions don’t occur in the future.