The Associated Press

FRANKFORT - A national expert on governmental issues and a state watchdog group have ethical questions about the new job of Senate President David Williams' wife.

Robyn Williams has been hired to lobby for the interests of three clients with issues before the General Assembly.

Robyn Williams and David Williams both said in interviews with The Courier-Journal last week that her work poses no potential conflicts for either of them because she's lobbying only executive branch officials, not legislators.

But Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said he sees "conflicts galore in this relationship."

Sabato said her relationship with the Senate president will put the officials she's lobbying in an awkward position.

"Surely these officials and the governor know she's married to the president of the Senate," Sabato said. "And what she says to the president of the Senate really matters on their agencies' funding and other pending legislation. It would be awfully difficult to say no to her, I would think."

Richard Beliles, chairman of Common Cause of Kentucky, said the situation creates "a huge appearance problem."

"It's damaging to public confidence," he said.

Based on her description of her work, state law requires that Robyn Williams register as a legislative branch lobbyist, said Anthony Wilhoit, executive director of the Legislative Ethics Commission.

In an interview last week, Robyn Williams said she had registered only as an executive branch lobbyist and didn't have to register as a legislative lobbyist because she was not dealing with lawmakers.

But after being told of the requirement and researching the matter, Robyn Williams said Saturday she would register as a legislative lobbyist for her three clients - Clark Distributing Co., a Warren County beer distributor; U.S. Tobacco, a Connecticut-based cigarette manufacturer; and Small Manufacturers Allied for the Reasonable Treatment of Tobacco, a Bowling Green-based tobacco industry group.

"I will register with the legislative commission by Monday at the latest," she told the newspaper. "It's just a matter of getting my employers to sign the papers. That I didn't register with them as well was absolutely an honest mistake."

Robyn Williams is a lawyer from Russell County who formerly worked for the legislature's staff. She married David Williams last July.