Posted on 09/16/2004 12:39:49 PM PDT by SpeedRacer
Barnes is the former Texas lieutenant governor and heavyweight Capitol lobbyist whose political career evaporated when he became entangled in the Sharpstown scandal 25 years ago. Gtech hired Barnes and his partner Ricky Knox to help it win one of the largest contracts the state of Texas ever signed with a private company. In return, their contracts entitled them to 4 percent of the company's Texas revenues, minus some expenses, as long as Gtech holds the contract.
Both Barnes' daughter Amy and his former executive secretary were enlisted in the new Gtech brigade. With the help of Barnes (who did not respond to a request for an interview for this story) and the approval of a Sharp-supervised evaluation team, Gtech beat out a single rival, Minneapolis-based Control Data. The pact guaranteed the company nearly a quarter of a billion dollars by 1997 for launching and running the biggest lottery operation it had yet attempted.
(Excerpt) Read more at houstonpress.com ...
Knowing that Ben Barnes is a "Vice Chair" fundraiser for the Kerry Campaign, and that he is a Texas politician/businessman/lobbyist...
Knowing that Bill Burkett is also from Texas...
Knowing Marian Carr Knox is Rather's latest sock puppet...
I found where Ben Barnes was in partnership with a Ricky Knox when they bilked GTech out of millions over a Texas lottery contract. Is the last name of "Knox" a coincidence?
Who might the "former executive secretary" be?
Inquiring minds want to know...
It is simply amazing the hoops the "media" will jump through to try and connect Bush to the SBVT adds...while completely ignoring this "obvious" connection between the DNC/Texas Democrats and the memos CBS got a hold of. All the figures involved here aren't just political oppenents of Bush...many of them have serious credibility problems. Yet, the media ignores something they would never stand for if this were Republicans.
Ricky Knox? And he is who?
DNC>Van Os>Burkett
Yes, there is the Van Os-Burnett connection. Can we connect Van Os to Barnes?
Ricky Knox was also the campaign manager for Democratic State Senator Kent Hance against Bush in 1978. That seems to be an interesting tidbit...
here is an interesting article from the statesman.
Gtech settles Littwin lawsuit
Case raised issue of how Bush got into National Guard
BYLINE: Ken Herman
DATE: October 30, 1999
PUBLICATION: Austin American-Statesman (TX)
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Metro/State
PAGE: B1
A lawsuit that led to the disclosure of details about how young George W. Bush got into the National Guard was settled Friday by a former Texas Lottery director and the firm he blamed for his 1997 firing. Gtech, operator of the Texas Lottery, agreed to pay $300,000 to Lawrence Littwin. The company denied any wrongdoing and called the settlement a ``business decision that was in the best interest of our company and the Texas Lottery." ``The company is extremely disappointed and frustrated that it ultimately became necessary to reach a settlement of this matter,'' Gtech spokesman Marc Palazzo said. ``The cost and time associated with litigating this case would have been extensive and far more than the settlement." Littwin and his attorneys were unavailable for comment Friday. In the settlement, Littwin accepted a confidentiality agreement severely limiting what he can say about the case. Court records show Littwin wanted $2.6 million from Gtech. His lawsuit claimed the company had undue influence over the Texas Lottery Commission -- influence that led the commission to fire him -- because former Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes, a former high-dollar lobbyist for Gtech, had potentially damaging information about how Bush got into the National Guard. Gtech had cut its ties with Barnes -- paying $23 million to Barnes and associate Ricky Knox to terminate their contract -- before Littwin's five-month tenure at the Lottery Commission. Last month, in a deposition sought by Littwin's lawyers, Barnes was asked whether, while serving as speaker of the Texas House in 1968, he helped Bush get into the Texas Air National Guard. After the deposition, Barnes issued a statement saying he had been asked by Houston businessman Sidney Adger, a longtime Bush family friend, to recommend George W. Bush for the Guard slot that he eventually got. The statement said nobody in the Bush family had asked for favorable treatment for George W. Bush. The governor and his father have said they were unaware of any efforts by Adger to get the younger Bush into the Guard. Littwin's lawsuit said Barnes ``is alleged to have helped the current Governor George Bush avoid active duty during the Vietnam War." The lawsuit also noted that two top former Bush aides, Reggie Bashur and Cliff Johnson, became Gtech lobbyists after leaving the governor's staff. Under terms of the settlement, Littwin ``admits that he has no personal knowledge of any of the criminal activity alleged in support of his claims against Gtech." Littwin also agreed to give to Gtech or destroy all documents produced by the litigation, including transcripts of Barnes' deposition. Gtech's ability to defend itself against the federal lawsuit took a direct hit recently when a federal judge ruled that Texas Lottery Commission Chairwoman Harriet Miers did not have to give a deposition in the case. Company lawyers had wanted to ask Miers about the reasons for Littwin's dismissal, which were never detailed by the three-member commission. ``The Texas Lottery Commission is not, and never has been, a party to this lawsuit,'' Linda Cloud, the agency's current director, said Friday. ``I strongly disagree that any action by our agency is the basis of today's settlement. I remain convinced that the commission acted properly and within our rights in this matter. And just as we were not a party to this lawsuit, we have not been involved in Gtech's decision to settle." Gtech now has paid out-of-court settlements to both directors fired by the Texas Lottery Commission. In 1998, the firm gave former Director Nora Linares $435,000 to end her lawsuit blaming the company for her dismissal in January 1997. Gtech also paid $290,000 to Linares' attorneys. Linares lost her $83,000-a-year state job after acknowledging that longtime friend Mike Moeller, to whom she is now married, has worked as a Gtech consultant in New Mexico. Linares said she had been unaware of Moeller's contract until asked about it by a reporter. Gtech said the contract was improper and said it had been approved by former company official J. David Smith, who has been convicted on federal charges of taking kickbacks f rom Gtech consultants in New Jersey.
-from the Wall Street Journal, 06-11-1999
Do you have a new article on Ricky Knox the campaign mgr.? Is it the same Ricky?
Thanks... Let's keep digging.
excerpt from another gtech article;
In case you haven't been following this story, Barnes, a former Texas lieutenant governor, and Knox, a longtime Capitol lobbyist,
That is all I could find. It seems unlikely that it was a different Ricky Knox than Ben Barnes's partner. Whether Ricky Knox is related to the 86 year old secretary I have no idea...
Sorry to keep posting these but i paid for 24 hours on the statesman archives and am trying to get relavent stories. I am only skimming them, and hopefully there will be something I am missing.
Buyout's beam of light
DATE: June 20, 1997
PUBLICATION: Austin American-Statesman (TX)
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Editorial
PAGE: A10
Texas Lottery operator GTECH and consultants Ben Barnes and Ricky Knox wanted to keep secret the amount Barnes and Knox were paid to stop working for GTECH a month after the consultants were implicated by federal prosecutors in Newark, N.J., in a kickback scheme.
The Austin American-Statesman and other news organizations believed the buyout contract was a public record.
State Attorney General Dan Morales sided with the news organizations.
Now we know why GTECH, Barnes and Knox did not want the payout revealed. It was huge. Barnes and Knox got more than $23 million, broken down as follows:
*Barnes and Knox split $15 million --in cash. The percentage each got of the total was not specified.
*In addition, former Lt. Gov. --Barnes is getting $168,328 per month for three years, and lobbyist Knox is receiving $58,752 per month for three years.
The American-Statesman's Ken Herman reported that the buyout specifies that the payments would stop if Barnes or Knox is named in a ``final conviction or a felony or other crime which materially adversely affects the business of GETCH or its affiliates in Texas.''
Neither man has been charged with any wrongdoing. Federal prosecutors in New Jersey said in a presentencing report on former GTECH official J. David Smith that Barnes and Knox paid more than $500,000 in kickbacks to Smith. The two consultants deny they did anything wrong. Barnes said he hired Smith to work on non-lottery business, but the prosecutor's report said there was no evidence Smith had done anything to earn the money.
GTECH spokesman Marc Palazzo said the buyout money came from ``general corporate funds, and not from funds attributable to the Texas Lottery.''
The Lottery Commission has been reviewing GTECH's business practices since last November, after saying it was concerned about the
amount of money Barnes was getting. The commission has voted to seek
new bids for the contract held by GTECH. Lottery Commissioner John Hill, who said he had earlier been given an idea of the size of the buyout, said he is ``shocked'' by the dollar amount the two consultants got.
Now that the extent of the buyout has been made public, Texans have the basis for forming their own conclusions, which is what open government is all about.
The lottery is a big moneymaker for the state and the operator, and if public confidence in the lottery is to be maintained at a high level, the public must have access to details of the lottery. That the lottery operator is a private company makes no difference.
Morales is to be congratulated for his ruling on behalf of government in the sunshine. We hope it is a precedent that is followed as privatization of traditional government services proceeds. It is vital that the public not be shut off from information which it has a right to, under the cover of protecting ``proprietary information'' or the like.
See if any of this information helps.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1218061/posts
I am trying to find enough info on Knox that we can maybe trace his family.
Campaign contributions:
KNOX, RICKY L
AUSTIN, TX 78731
CONSULTANT KENNEDY, PATRICK J (D)
House (RI 01)
FRIENDS OF PATRICK J KENNEDY (1994) $1000 05/16/94
KNOX, RICKY L
AUSTIN, TX 78731
SELF-EMPLOYED MARGOLIS, GWEN (D)
House (FL 22)
GWEN MARGOLIS CAMPAIGN FUND $1000 06/30/92
KNOX, RICKY L
AUSTIN, TX 78731 CLINTON, WILLIAM JEFFERSON (D)
President
CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT INC $750 03/11/92
This Kent Hance, who gave to Bush campaign? Must be different Hance?
http://www.tpj.org/pioneers/newpioneers/all_pioneers.html
Back to Ricky Knox...keep digging!
My vision is blurring but this article looks like there are more references if someone can sift thru and check them out.
Former Lt. Gov. Barnes linked to kickback inquiry
Feds: Texas money mirrored N.J. scheme
BYLINE: Ken Herman
DATE: January 16, 1997
PUBLICATION: Austin American-Statesman (TX)
EDITION: Final
SECTION: News
PAGE: A1
NEWARK, N.J. -- Federal prosecutors alleged Wednesday that the former GTECH executive convicted in a New Jersey kickback scheme also took more than $500,000 in kickbacks from ex-Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes, consultant for the company that runs the Texas Lottery.
Despite Barnes' claims that he hired one-time GTECH national sales manager J. David Smith as a consultant, prosecutors in Newark said they found ``no evidence'' that Smith did any work for the money. They also noted that the money went to a corporation headed by Smith's wife and contend it was ``laundered'' through an account Barnes set up to pay Smith.
U.S. Attorney Faith Hochberg of Newark alleged the kickbacks in a report filed Wednesday to convince a judge that Smith pulled kickback scams in Texas, Kentucky and New York, as well as New Jersey, and deserved a tough sentence.
Neither Barnes nor Smith has been charged with any wrongdoing in Texas. A spokeswoman for Barnes called the report riddled with ``factual mistakes and false assumptions.''
``Texas and New Jersey are totally different states, and these are totally different situations and contracts,'' Barnes' spokeswoman, Lisa LeMastersaid.
``The payments were open and honest and by check,'' LeMaster said. ``Ben Barnes wouldn't have it any other way. It's not how he does business.''
Smith, reached at his Kentucky home, said he would not comment. The presentencing report said Smith got $519,245 from Texas consultants for GTECH ``under circumstances remarkably similar to the New Jersey transaction'' that resulted in his October conviction for taking kickbacks.
``With minor deviations,'' Hochberg wrote, ``these payments are blueprints for the kickback scheme which occurred in New Jersey.''
GTECH spokesman Bob Rendine had nothing to say about the New Jersey report.
``These are issues that are still pending before the courts and therefore it is inappropriate to make any comment,'' Rendine said.
Barnes and his associate, Austin lobbyist Ricky Knox, through Barnes' Entrecorp firm, serve as worldwide consultants for GTECH. For their efforts, they get 4 percent, minus some expenses, of GTECH's gross Texas revenue. Since the lottery began in May 1992, GTECH has collected more than $500 million in Texas.
In 1992, Barnes and Knox signed a contract with International Marketing Co., owned by Smith's wife, Karen, in which they agreed to pay IMC a third of Entrecorp's gross revenues from ``any lottery or gaming activities.''
Texas payments questioned
According to the report, in 1992 and 1993, Barnes put a third of the income from GTECH into a bank account under his name, which in turn sent checks to IMC. The report included copies of checks totaling $501,906.93 from the Ben F. Barnes account to IMC.
Prosecutors say no evidence exists that IMC did anything for Barnes and Knox. Knox did not return a phone call Wednesday from the Austin American-Statesman.
The presentencing report includes copies of three checks totaling $7,039 from the Barnes account to a plumber, a carpenter and a lumber man who did work on Smith's Kentucky farm.
``As demonstrated below,'' prosecutors said in the presentencing report, ``the Texas monies are kickbacks and should be considered as relevant conduct for the purpose of calculating Smith's'' sentence.
Prosecutors in New Jersey say their findings will be shared with federal prosecutors in Texas looking into lottery-related matters.
``New Jersey is coordinating with Texas,'' said Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Guadagno, who prepared the report for Hochberg. ``It would be irresponsible for me to throw out a document like this without letting Texas know about it.''
A federal grand jury in Austin has been reviewing lottery-related matters for two years. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dan Mills of Austin, who was unavailable for comment Wednesday, has declined to discuss specifics of the investigation.
For sentencing, federal prosecutors in New Jersey must prove their kickback allegations by a ``preponderance'' of evidence -- a lower burden than they needed to convict Smith.
Newark attorney Lawrence Lustberg, representing Smith, called the prosecutors' presentencing report ``extremely premature'' because he would challenge the conviction itself. Lustberg said he would ask that the conviction be overturned, and that effort could include a motion based on what he believes was improper trial testimony concerning Smith's dealings in Texas.
``It is our fervent hope, and we are confident, that we will never reach the sentencing phase,'' said Lustberg, who declined to comment on the Texas-related allegations.
Knox and Barnes could be called to testify in Newark if Smith challenges the prosecution's presentencing memo, which calls for a prison term of 14 to 17 years. A hearing date has not been set.
The prosecutors noted that Knox answered questions from federal investigators ``on the condition his statements not be used against him.'' Barnes, through his attorney, declined to answer questions from federal officials.
A jury convicted Smith on Oct. 4 of taking $169,500 in kickbacks from politically connected consultants he hired to push the lottery company's New Jersey interests. The jury also convicted Steve D'Andrea, whom Smith hired as a GTECH consultant in New Jersey.
Those New Jersey kickbacks occurred over 21 months, starting in May 1992.
The Texas Lottery Commission, which has been questioning Barnes' deal with GTECH, will review the presentencing memo, Chairman Harriet Miers said Wednesday.
``We will obviously be in the process of determining what significance it has for the Texas Lottery,'' Miers said.
LeMaster, Barnes' spokeswoman, said that Guy Snowden, GTECH's chief executive officer, hired Barnes directly and that Smith had ``zero control'' over him. She also challenged the prosecutors' claim that Smith did nothing to earn the money Barnes and Knox paid him.
``The job was to bring in new business for Entrecorp, and it ranged on a number of issues, including gambling issues,'' she said, adding that she could not immediately identify any clients Smith brought to Entrecorp.
Last week, the Lottery Commission notified GTECH it faces a $25,000 penalty or cancellation of the contract as a result of Barnes' 1992 gift of a $100 paperweight to then-Gov. Ann Richards. Under the lottery contract, GTECH officials cannot make any gifts to state officials.
GTECH says Barnes gave the gift as a longtime friend of Richards and it had no connection with the lottery.
Money for nothing
Barnes has said he hired Smith for consulting work unrelated to GTECH or the lottery. GTECH permitted Smith to do outside work as long as it did not conflict with his GTECH responsibilities.
The presentencing report said GTECH was paying Smith more than $1 million a year in salary and commissions by spring 1992.
The outside consulting Smith performed, Barnes said in November, included work for a client interested in putting a riverboat casino in Texas if lawmakers approved that form of gambling.
But New Jersey prosecutors, noting that the checks went to IMC, said they found ``no documents to support a finding that Smith performed any services for Barnes.''
``Like New Jersey, there is no evidence of any work performed by Smith or International Marketing Co. for Entrecorp,'' Hochberg said. ``Certainly, there is no evidence that Karen Smith ever brought business to Entrecorp or performed any service for Entrecorp.''
Prosecutors said the Barnes-Smith arrangement was ``odd in several respects.''
``The agreement is curiously silent on naming either Smith or GTECH specifically. Yet the payments from Entrecorp to Smith were based on monies which were paid from GTECH to Entrecorp,'' Hochberg said in the presentencing report. ``In addition, the payments to Smith were laundered through a bank account before they were distributed to Smith.''
Though Barnes has claimed Smith was hired for non-lottery consulting, the ``business consulting agreement'' signed July 2, 1992, between Barnes and Knox, and IMC of Morganfield, Ky., says the corporation was to provide ``certain expertise as a business consultant'' for ``any lottery or gaming activities'' in which Barnes and Knox were involved. Prosecutors submitted the contract with the presentencing report.
The contract says Barnes and Knox were to pay IMC 33 percent ``of the gross compensation as provided in any business consulting agreements as they relate to gaming or lottery activities.''
Despite that, prosecutors noted, ``the payments from Entrecorp to Smith were made based on monies which were paid from GTECH to Entrecorp.''
Checks to IMC
Checks in 1992 and 1993 to IMC from Barnes and Entrecorp were attached to the prosecutors' report. Some include no notation; several have a handwritten notation saying ``1/2 of 33%''. Others include only a month or other period.
Prosecutors concluded Barnes got 42 percent of the money GTECH paid Entrecorp and Knox 25 percent. Barnes deposited the other 33 percent to an account in his name and paid half of that money to Smith through Smith's wife's company, the presentencing report said. The prosecutors' report does not address how, or if, Barnes paid the other half of the money due IMC under the one-third agreement.
The payments to Smith began in November 1992 and continued through November 1993.
``Like the payments from New York and New Jersey consultants, the payments from Entrecorp to Smith were stopped when the grand jury subpoenas were served in this case,'' Hochberg said in the government's report.
The report also alleges Smith took Texas ``kickbacks'' from a company co-owned by Knox's wife. The firm, GPMC, was hired by GTECH ``ostensibly to provide ribbon processing services in Texas,'' according to prosecutors.
``In return for simply processing the paperwork, GPMC was paid 8 percent of the ribbon orders placed,'' they said, noting that GPMC creditors actually deposited the checks, totaling $10,300.
Checks to IMC from Ben Barnes/Entrecorp Inc.:
Date^Account^Amount
Nov. 20, 1992^Ben F. Barnes^$130,000.00
Dec. 1, 1992^Entrecorp^26,253.00
Dec. 18, 1992^Ben F. Barnes^70,521,34
March 9, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^4,491.15
March 26, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^18,022.73
May 7, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^42,385.50
June 15, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^36,454.50
July 27, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^43,556.91
Aug. 23, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^30,207.55
Sept. 10, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^45,740.09
Oct. 7, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^17,788.38
Oct. 26, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^21,258.69
Nov. 24, 1993^Ben F. Barnes^41,480.09
Total^$528.159.93
Source: Presentencing report for J. David Smith filed in federal court in New Jersey.
How federal prosecutors say former GTECH executive J. David Smith received money from Entrecorp, run by Ben Barnes, former Texas lieutenant governor, and lobbyist Ricky Knox.
1. GTECH pays Entrecorp about 4 percent of its Texas lottery revenues for consulting services worldwide. Barnes gets 75 percent, Knox 25 percent.
2. Barnes puts a third of the money into an account under the name ``Ben F. Barnes.''
3. Checks for a half of that amount are issued to International Marketing Corp., run by Smith's wife Karen. All checks come from the Barnes account except for one from Entrecorp.
Total payments to IMC in 1992-93: $528,219.93. Prosecutors say there is no evidence IMC did anything to earn that money.
4. From other accounts, Barnes pays $7,038.53 to Smith's plumber, carpenter and lumberman.
J. DAVID SMITH is former national sales manager for GTECH Corp., which operates lotteries in Texas and other states. His wife, KAREN SMITH, runs INTERNATIONAL MARKETING CO., which operates their Kentucky farm.
BEN BARNES, former Texas lieutenant governor, owns Entrecorp, a lobby and consulting firm. RICKY KNOX, Austin lobbyist, works with Barneson lottery issues.
Ok here is an interesting one that might be able to trace who this knox guy is:
Lobbyist's ties to lawmakers resurrects ethics concerns
BYLINE: Ken Herman
DATE: December 11, 1996
PUBLICATION: Austin American-Statesman (TX)
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Metro/State
PAGE: B1
CORRECTION: Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock's political spokesman said Wednesday that he misspoke Tuesday when he said that Bullock "had no inkling" that Ricky Knox, who helped stage a 1994 fund-raiser for Bullock, was a lobbyist for the company that operates the Texas Lottery. Bullock spokesman Tony Proffit said Bullock knew that Knox was an associate of GTECH lobbyist Ben Barnes and "assumed" that Knox also worked for GTECH. Proffitt was quoted in a B1 article in Wednesday's editions.
Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock on Tuesday filed a campaign disclosure report to undo a $6,972 campaign contribution he reported from a lottery lobbyist in 1994.
Bullock told the Texas Ethics Commission he was correcting an oversight, but a government watchdog group said the episode highlights the need to bar officeholders from putting registered lobbyists on their political payrolls.
Bullock's July 1994 campaign finance report listed a $6,972 ``in-kind'' contribution from Ricky Knox, an Austin lobbyist whose clients include GTECH, the firm that runs the Texas Lottery and is under investigation for unrelated ethical matters.
Such a contribution from Knox would have violated GTECH's contract with the state; the contract prohibits company officials and lobbyists from making contributions, directly or indirectly, to state officials. Violations can lead to termination of the contract.
Although Knox helped stage a fund-raiser for Bullock by handling the invitations, that was not improper because Knox was working as a paid consultant for a state senator who sponsored the fund-raiser, according to Bullock, Knox and the senator.
Then-Sen. John Montford, D-Lubbock, hosted an April 21, 1994, fund-raiser for Bullock in Lubbock, raising $37,700 for his successful re-election campaign. Knox handled invitations for the event, spending $5,400 for design, printing and mailing of 6,000 invitations. The rest paid for Texas flags and Knox's expenses traveling to Lubbock and paying for dinner for staff planning the event.
He did the work in his capacity as a consultant for Montford, who paid Knox $25,000 in 1994. Montford has used his political funds to hire Knox as a consultant since 1982, long before GTECH won Texas' lotto contract a decade later.
A big problem
It is not uncommon for lawmakers, using campaign funds, to hire as political and public relations consultants people who also are registered lobbyists for groups with issues pending at the Capitol. That, according to Tom Smith, Texas director of Public Citizen, is a big problem.
``What's real clear to me is it is not proper for a lobbyist for GTECH to be working for the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee,'' Smith said. Montford chaired the influential budget committee until August, when he resigned to become Texas Tech University chancellor.
Knox's longstanding ties to Montford should have been severed when Knox became a lottery lobbyist, Smith said.
As Smith sees it, GTECH lobbyist Knox -- although acting as Montford consultant Knox -- scored some points with Bullock when Knox helped set up the fund-raiser.
``He is the face that Bullock associates with a successful fund- raiser. That accrues to the benefit of Knox's clients, including GTECH,'' Smith said.
Amended report
Bullock spokesman Tony Proffitt attributed the erroneous campaign report to mishandling of records submitted in connection with the fund-raising reception. The money Montford paid to Knox should have been reported as part of Montford's contribution to Bullock, not as a contribution from Knox, according to Proffitt.
The amended report scratches Knox's name and $6,792 contribution from Bullock's donor list and increases Montford's in-kind contribution by that amount.
The revision was filed after the Austin American-Statesman discovered the Knox contribution listed on Bullock's 1994 report.
GTECH spokesman Bob Rendine said Knox's participation in the fund- raiser had nothing to do with the lottery company, which has come under scrutiny on several fronts. The Texas Lottery Commission is examining the company's contracts with consultants and other subcontractors, including a 1992 contract with a close friend of Lottery Director Nora Linares. The company also has said a Texas grand jury is investigating state lottery operations.
``Knox provided services to Montford, which was his job, for which he was paid,'' Rendine said.
Knox said there was nothing improper about his work for Montford or on the fund-raiser.
``I followed all the laws of Texas,'' said Knox, a registered lobbyist who lists GTECH as one of his clients. In 1994, he reported income from GTECH between $100,000 and $150,000.
Proffitt said the lieutenant governor ``had no inkling'' that Knox was a GTECH lobbyist.
``Bullock would never take a contribution from someone who is not allowed to make one,'' Proffitt said.
Unclear of the details
Montford, Senate sponsor of the 1991 lottery bill, said Knox worked for him, not GTECH, in helping with the Bullock event. Montford said he knew Knox ``had some affiliation'' with GTECH but was unclear of the details.
``We had an agreement that he did not lobby me, period,'' Montford said.
Montford said he sees no need for a state law to bar officeholders from using campaign money to hire lobbyists.
``I guess it's a question of the appearance of impropriety,'' he said, adding that the issue should be left to ``individual members and their integrity and how they toe the line.''
Smith said he believes legislation is needed.
``It isn't against the law today, but it should be,'' Smith said. ``It creates an unusually tight working relationship between the lobbyists, their clients and the legislators.''
Bullock says fellow investors' use of his name unauthorized
BYLINE: AP
DATE: April 24, 1996
PUBLICATION: Austin American-Statesman (TX)
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Metro/State
PAGE: B3
DALLAS -- Fellow investors in a new long-distance telephone company are using Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock's name to get business without his knowledge or approval, he said.
``I don't know a thing about that,'' Bullock told The Dallas Morning News.
Three lobbyists told the newspaper earlier that company representatives had used Bullock's name while soliciting business for
Lone Star Long Distance Inc.
An investor in Lone Star, Ricky Knox of Austin, said he had mentioned the lieutenant governor's name while selling the company's services to lobbyists. Knox said he did so only after he was asked the names of the investors.
Bullock presides over the Senate and is one of the state's most powerful elected officials, prompting some lobbyists and the director of a government watchdog group to question his involvement in the company.
Bullock said he purchases 100 shares of Lone Star for $1 each at the suggestion of Michael Dougherty, a longtime friend and contributor of his political campaigns. Dougherty is president of Houston-based Lone Star.
It is not clear what percentage of Lone Star Bullock owns for his $100 investment. Dougherty won't say how big a stake Bullock has.
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