COLUMBUS, Ohio — Four state agencies paid a humor consultant thousands of dollars to cheer up public employees, raising questions about spending taxpayer dollars to raise morale, the Columbus Dispatch reported Wednesday.

        Ohio Inspector General Thomas Charles criticized the Ohio Civil Rights Commission in a report released Monday for spending $2,000 to hire Humor Consultants Inc. of suburban Powell in July 1999.

        “The cost for a one-hour presentation seems excessive,” Mr. Charles wrote, noting that the company had two other contracts with the commission, totaling $4,000.

        Humor Consultants also was hired to entertain and motivate employees of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, attorney general's office and the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction at a total cost of $28,500, the Dispatch said.

        The company's co-founder, Phil Sorentino, said he uses humor to show employees how to reduce stress.

        At one session, Mr. Sorentino pulled down his zipper to demonstrate that embarrassment isn't fatal, the Dispatch said. At others, participants were urged to scream at one another to relieve tension or to blow horns and wave flags to cheer people on.

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