House speaker paid own way to BYU game

Seeking to avoid even the appearance of wrongdoing, Utah House Speaker Dave Clark says he personally paid for a trip to Dallas and the BYU-Oklahoma football game last weekend.

Clark, R-Santa Clara, played wide receiver for BYU back in the day.

"I bleed Cougar blue," Clark said Thursday. "It was a great game. I had a wonderful time. It is all on my personal credit card." BYU beat the then-No. 3-ranked Sooners 14-13.

Clark said he went with about a dozen other Cougar fans on tickets arranged by lobbyist David Stewart. "But I paid for everything — airplane, hotel, tickets, everything," Clark said.

Legislative ethics is on the political front burner again as a citizen group proceeds on signature gathering for a far-reaching legislative ethics proposal, which includes an independent commission to review charges against any of Utah's 104 part-time lawmakers and would make disciplinary recommendations — if necessary — to the House or Senate.

In addition, a special governor's commission on democracy is preparing recommendations on how to achieve greater confidence for residents in how their government operates.

Stewart is a well-known lobbyist who, along with his parents-in-law, Sue and Cap Ferry, carry a large stable of clients, including Ballet West, EnergySolutions, several local governments, drug firms and tobacco producers.

Stewart reported spending about $2,000 in entertaining lawmakers in the first six months of 2009.

Clark noted: "We are in flux" in how to interpret a new lobbyist gift-giving law. And to be on the safe side, Clark said he wanted no questions about this football game trip, so he paid for it himself.

The new law apparently forbids legislators from accepting any sporting, recreation or arts tickets greater than $50.

That was not the intent of the sponsor, former senator, now-Lt. Gov. Greg Bell. Bell wanted to provide greater transparency in lobbyist gift-giving, but no bans.

And his bill lowered the dollar thresholds under which a lobbyist had to name the legislator who accepted the free meal, ticket or round of golf.

However, apparently by mistake, the bill classified sports, recreation and arts tickets as "gifts." And in another part of the law, unchanged by Bell, it says that lawmakers cannot accept any "gift" more than $50.

Clark, upon being elected speaker by his GOP House caucus last November, announced a broad-reaching agenda on ethics reform. However, in later negotiations with Senate Republicans, that agenda was greatly watered down.

And after the general session, a citizen group formed, Utahns for Ethical Government, with its supporters saying the Legislature on its own won't properly control the ethics of its own members.

If successful, UEG will put on the 2010 November ballot for acceptance or rejection far-reaching ethics reforms for the Legislature.

However, even under the tough restrictions of the initiative, Clark's actions appear to have been proper, since he paid for the trip himself.

e-mail: bbjr@desnews.com