State ethics panel report details Rep. Fagan's travel pay claims

A report was posted by the state Legislative Ethics Board June 17 following investigation of invalid travel reimbursements paid to Susan Fagan, then ninth district representative. The summary covered a period of nine months in 2014 and determined at least 18 incorrect reimbursement claims were submitted. The board summary said nine of the claims resulted in checks payable to Fagan for trips that she did not take or trips to events that did not take place.

Rep. Fagan, Pullman, resigned from the legislature May 1 and the ninth district seat was filled by appointment of Mary Dye of Pomeroy by county commissioners in the legislative district.

The summary said expenses for two trips that were paid for by the House were actually determined to be for campaign purposes.

Fagan was ordered to reimburse the House $836.29. That amount included reimbursements offered by Fagan which totaled $650.12.

The summary report noted the ethics board has the authority to assess a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per violation or in the alternative three times the economic value.

The summary said the board opted to accept a stipulated agreement from Fagan and not impose the potential fines with the key factor in their decision being Fagan's resignation.

Fagan also agreed to contribute $4,792 to the board to cover expenses of the investigation.

In the stipulation Fagan noted 35 reimbursements were alleged to be incorrect and after her review the number was cut almost by half.

She said she did not agree with the assertion in the report that she engaged in a pattern of untruthfulness.

In a statement sent out when the board report was released, Fagan again said at no point did she try to derive personal gain from the expense reimbursements. She said she wished she had given her expense reports "the attention they deserved instead of treating them casually."

Fagan's statement said the $4,782 she agreed to pay for the investigation amounted to half of the costs.

The report was signed by Dr. Kristine Hoover, Chair of the board.

Included in the report was the Jan. 6 finding from Barbara Baker, chief clerk of the house. It noted the Fagan investigation began last fall when two legislative assistants met with the senior staff of the House Republican Caucus. The two assistants were concerned Fagan's reimbursement reports were inaccurate and that Fagan constantly made changes to the reports. Their report was referred to Baker, who asked the assistants to prepare a report.

Baker said at that time it became clear to the House that the allegations of theft, fraud and improper use of staff were involved.

Fagan was represented by Bellevue Attorney Dan Wilson during the process.

Baker's report indicated Fagan pressured staff to change the reimbursement reports which they had prepared based on state policy.

Included was a segment of one assistant's account that she was uncomfortable with being left to continue as a scapegoat by falsifying expenses and listing fake meetings. The assistant reported she felt like the goat in Jurassic Park, tied up and waiting to get eaten alive.

The report noted travel reimbursement to members is done out of two funds. The House account pays for travel over 50 miles one way inside the district for legislative business. The Member's account reimburses for travel outside of the district or for shorter trips. That account is limited, and if a member depletes the account he or she remains liable for the expense.

Fagan, who did not exceed the limit for the Member's account in 2014, was found to wrongly seek reimbursement from the House account. Some of these involved trips to the Tri-Cities for events in Kennewick and Richland, which are outside the ninth district.

Fagan acknowledged 1,972 miles of travel charged to the wrong account from nine months of 2014 detailed in the report, amounting to $1,104.32 at the rate of 56 cents per mile.

The report noted Fagan sought reimbursement in 2014 for campaign trips which were wrongly listed as legislative business trips.

The report said she filed a claim for travel to the Ritzville fair Aug. 29, but she did not attend the fair on that date. She did appear in the fair parade the next day when she drove her car with a campaign sign. She also offered reimbursement on this claim.

She submitted a claim for an Aug. 20 trip to attend a meeting of the Pasco Chamber of Commerce. Pasco, unlike nearby Kennewick and Richland, is part of the ninth district. The inquiry determined there was no Pasco Chamber meeting on that date. Instead, Fagan helped staff the GOP booth at the Benton-Franklin County fair. She participated in a legislative tour out-of-district the next day. Partial reimbursement was offered on this trip.

Among the allegations for untruthfulness which were listed in the Wilson Investigative Service report to the committee was a Jan. 2, 2014 trip Fagan made in Whitman County. She traveled to Colfax for an interview with the late Sally Ousley, Gazette reporter, and then went to Garfield for a total of 68 miles. The expense report also listed 57 more miles to Rosalia which were not part of the trip. Fagan reimbursed the Rosalia part of the trip.