COLUMBUS - Democratic lawmakers accused Republican Gov. George Voinovich of killing a bill last year that would have helped curb improprieties at the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District (MVSD) but could have hurt the governor's brother.
Mr. Voinovich denied any involvement with the legislation and said he would sign it - if it ever passed.
''If people in any community want to change their governance we don't pay any attention to it,'' Mr. Voinovich said Wednesday. ''If they want to do it, and they can get it through the Legislature, amen and hallelujah.''
The bill passed the House last year, 96 to 1, but died in the Senate. It has been re-introduced, and supporters say they hope a recently released state audit of the district will convince lawmakers to approve the bill this time.
Following a 15-month investigation, Ohio Auditor James Petro is seeking recovery of $2.7 million from past and present MVSD employees and contractors. The 70-page audit report accuses former MVSD director Edward Flask of accepting $1.9 million in legal and consulting fees from vendors doing business with the Youngstown-area sanitary district, in violation of state law.
It also states that the V Group, a construction and architectural firm owned by the governor's brother, Paul, was overpaid for work on the project. The V Group cleared more than $2 million - an 80 percent profit, according to the audit.
The audit seeks no damages from the V Group. Mr. Petro said his office lacked authority over the V Group because it was a subcontractor and did not receive public money directly. Instead, it was paid by the main contractor, Gilbane Building Co. of Rhode Island.
A former Gilbane official told investigators that Paul Voinovich tried to over-bill the district and tried to rig bids involving other subcontractors, The Enquirer reported Tuesday.
The V Group has denied any improprieties and said the firm's profit was actually much smaller than the audit states. Company officials declined to specify the amount.
Rep. June Lucas, D-Mineral Ridge, has been pressing for reform of MVSD for nearly a decade.
''Sometimes it seems like the poor taxpayers in this state don't stand a chance,'' she said.
Ms. Lucas; Sen. Robert Hagan, D-Youngstown; and former Sen. Joe Vukovich, D-Poland, all said they think the governor's office made sure the reform would not pass.
The bill would expand the district's two-member board and change the board's appointing authority. Such changes, Ms. Lucas said, would provide needed checks and balances and help eliminate or expose future illegal or improper dealings.
Mr. Vukovich, now a court of appeals judge in Youngstown, said he asked then-Senate President Stanley Aronoff, R-Cincinnati, to intervene when it became obvious that the bill was stalled in a Senate committee.
''I was told by Stan the bill is dead unless I get an OK from the governor's office,'' said Mr. Vukovich.
''I was surprised he even knew about the bill,'' Mr. Vukovich recalled. ''He should have said, 'What bill are you talking about?' But he knew about it and he knew it was dead. If the thing only affected people in Mahoning and Trumbull counties, why would somebody from Cincinnati care?''
Mr. Aronoff recalls things differently.
''I think that that's not accurate,'' he said.
He contends that the committee chairman, Sen. Gary Suhadolnik, R-Strongsville, did not think the bill was ready for a vote. The bill arrived late, he said, and the Senate simply ran out of time.
Mr. Aronoff described the bill as ''not one that I took a particular interest in,'' and said he recalls no conversations with anyone in the governor's office about the legislation.
Mr. Vukovich and Ms. Lucas also did not speak to the governor or any of his aides, but both said Republican lawmakers told them that the Republican governor wanted the bill to go nowhere.
Sen. Robert Hagan, D-Youngstown, also blamed Mr. Voinovich for killing the bill and said Mr. Vukovich told him of the conversation with Mr. Aronoff the day it occurred.
''I remember it very clearly,'' said Mr. Hagan, who is sponsoring the current Senate bill.
''Joe (Vukovich) and I talked about it, about how everybody seemed to know about this parochial issue.''
Previous story
BID RIGGING BY V GROUP ALLEGED August 27, 1997
