BY PATRICK CROWLEY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
VERONA -- Congressional candidate Gex "Jay" Williams told state investigators Tuesday that none of the Statehouse calls made to members of his campaign were politically related.
Mr. Williams, a Republican state senator from Verona, said he also explained to the Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission a complicated land deal in which he sold farm land last year to a political supporter.
"They asked me very detailed aspects about both topics, and I answered all the questions," Mr. Williams said Tuesday after spending about two hours in private with the ethics commission in Frankfort.
Mr. Williams is under investigation, but he was not required to appear, he said.
"They give people an opportunity to respond to questions and make a statement, and that's what I wanted to do," he said. "But I was not required to be there."
Mr. Williams was accompanied by attorney Tom Kerr, a Democratic state representative from Taylor Mill. Mr. Kerr handled the legal work on the land deal the ethics commission is probing.
Last year, Mr. Williams sold part of his Boone County farm to a supporter, Dr. Arthur Nitz of Frankfort, for $60,000. Mr. Williams said he needed the money to support his family while he ran for Congress full time.
Dr. Nitz immediately donated the land to a Northern Kentucky anti-abortion group. Mr. Williams does not have an option or contract to repurchase the property and said he probably won't buy it in the future.
The transaction does allow Mr. Williams use of the land for two years. He is also paying the taxes on the land.
The complaint filed with the ethics commission against Mr. Williams alleges the deal was not properly disclosed and may have been a gift. It was filed by Covington Democrat Robert Arnett, who is close to some of Mr. Williams' political adversaries.
Mr. Williams has denied wrongdoing and said the land deal is proper and "straightforward."
Mr. Williams was also questioned about 17 phone calls he made from his Statehouse office to people associated with or working for his congressional campaign against Boone County Democrat Ken Lucas. It is illegal for state officials to use public time, property or materials to campaign.
Phone records Mr. Williams gave reporters earlier show he made the calls. But Mr. Williams said the calls were not made for political reasons, but instead for scheduling or other reasons not related to campaigning.
"One call was made to my campaign headquarters because I had to get ahold of my son to let him know he didn't have to come to Frankfort one day to pick me up, and he was working at the headquarters," he said.
"The calls were made to these numbers, but they weren't for partisan political purposes, and therefore aren't against any state laws," Mr. Williams said. "Somebody was trying to find me or I was trying to coordinate my schedule, but I wasn't campaigning." Mr. Williams noted that he asked for the investigation to clear his name after newspapers, including The Kentucky Enquirer, sought his phone records through open-records requests.
Gex "Jay" Williams also took a political shot Tuesday at opponent Ken Lucas, saying a campaign ad Mr. Lucas is running that mentions the land deal is a "smear tactic."
"It's what Democrats are doing all over the nation," Mr. Williams said. "When they are losing on the issues, they try to beat people with smear tactics."
Said John Lapp, Mr. Lucas' campaign manager: "That's really desperate.
"It's time for Mr. Williams to level with the voters of the 4th District," he said. "And testifying in secret for two hours is hardly the way provide answers."
