Tucson, Arizona Friday, 20 December 2002
By Howard Fischer
CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES
PHOENIX - The top two legislative leaders are weighing whether to oust Jim Irvin from the Arizona Corporation Commission if he doesn't leave voluntarily.
Senate President Ken Bennett, R-Prescott, said he and House Speaker Jake Flake, R-Snowflake, have directed their staffs to research "what it would take" to begin the impeachment process. That follows a jury's decision Wednesday that Irvin intentionally interfered with the effort by Southern Union Co. to purchase Southwest Gas three years ago.
More to the point, said Bennett, it comes after the nine jurors were so incensed about Irvin's actions that they voted to impose a $60 million punitive damage award.
"When a jury of one's peers find him guilty of something that merits a $60 million fine, that's significant," said Bennett.
The state constitution requires any impeachment process start in the House. Flake said he will be meeting with legal advisers to figure out his options.
Only if the House votes to impeach - essentially an indictment - does the Senate, sitting as a court, determine whether he should forfeit his office. A vacancy would allow the governor to name a replacement, who would have to be a Republican, like Irvin.
Both suggested they hoped the matter would be taken out of their hands. "If he resigns, that would eliminate the need for us to act," said Bennett.
That's apparently not going to happen.
In a statement released late Thursday, Irvin said he still believes he did nothing wrong and was well within his authority as a state utility regulator to do what he did. "I fully intend to appeal," he said.
In other developments Thursday:
* Mike Sillyman, Irvin's attorney, said he will seek a mistrial. He said the $60 million verdict "bears no relations to his ability to pay" and that the law specifies punitive awards are designed to punish someone, "not to destroy them."
* Elliott Hibbs, director of the Department of Administration, rejected a request by Irvin to have the state pay that $60 million. Hibbs also is directing his staff to determine if taxpayers should pick up the $390,000 compensatory damage award.
* The state Risk Management Division said Irvin's legal bills as of the end of November exceeded $3.7 million. And that does not account for the bills that continue to accumulate as the trial lasted into this month.
Flake said while he does not want to rush into anything, he also does not intend to wait until Irvin exhausts his appeals, a process that could take years.
"I want to establish ethics and integrity in state government," he said.
Bennett said lawmakers will have to consider that voters just gave Irvin a new four-year term.
"He just survived an election with this issue supposedly out there and known by the voters," Bennett said.