U place payment
By Sen. Clint Stennett
Sen. Clint Stennett, D-Ketchum, is Senate Minority Leader in the Idaho Legislature. Questions or comments? You may reach Sen. Stennett at 208-726-8106 or fax at 208-788-4504. Email address: clintsten-nett@earthlink.net
Attorney General Lawrence Wasden deserves our appreciation for his latest action relative to the University Place fiasco.
The failed venture to give the University of Idaho more presence in Boise has been a painful and costly lesson, not only to the legislators who were duped into supporting the concept, but mostly to the adminis-trators, faculty, staff and alumni of the institution. The price in terms of jobs, morale and reputation has been felt deeply by everyone involved.
Democratic leaders were accused of making University Place a parti-san issue when we requested the Attorney General's Office to conduct an investigation that would be independent of the Board of Education. That request went far beyond party politics. University Place is a nonpartisan issue. We felt strongly then that the Board of Education, members of which are appointed by the governor, who were deeply involved in the scheme, should not be investigating itself. The attorney general, citing a conflict of interest, did indeed appoint a special deputy attorney general who conducted an in-depth investigation, culminating in what is now called the Prince Report. That report, in summary, concluded that there "likely" were violations of state law. Local prosecutors as well as Idaho's U.S. attorney's office all reported conflicts of interest and referred the case to an Oregon U.S. attorney. That investigation is ongoing.
Wasden's decision to seek repayment of the loss to Idaho's taxpayers is a gutsy one. It is an example of the impartiality of his office in matters of law. A claim against the foundation is necessary to determine what insurance coverage may be available. It will help determine who and what entity may be liable for the loss. And most important, it will, hope-fully, recoup the state's losses.
University Place not only cost the state and taxpayers. It is forcing ever-higher student fees at our colleges and universities. We salute Was-den for stepping up to the plate and providing some protection for those students now and in the future who want the opportunity to get a college education in Idaho.
