Branstad demurs on recent state personnel issues

DES MOINES - Gov. Terry Branstad on Tuesday declined to comment on a pair of recent state personnel matters, saying he does not know enough about a case involving a state patrol officer who was stopped for speeding but not cited and deferring to a top official in his administration over a firing that surprised some people.

Branstad said Tuesday that he stands by his statement that state patrol officers should be held accountable to the same laws as the public, but he stopped short of calling for punishment over a November incident in which an officer was stopped for speeding but not cited.

A state patrol officer stopped an off-duty officer for speeding on Interstate 80, but the driver was not cited and no incident report was filed, The Des Moines Register reported this week.

In 2013, in the wake of highly publicized cases involving state troopers speeding in state vehicles while transporting Branstad, the governor said 'no one is above the law” and he had been assured by Iowa Public Safety Commissioner Larry Noble that state patrol officers would be held accountable by the department in addition to paying whatever penalty any other citizen would pay if they violate Iowa's traffic laws.

'If they value their jobs, they are going to abide by the law,” the governor said then. 'I've made that clear. If they value their jobs, they have the same responsibility as any other citizen to abide by the speeding laws of this state.”

On Tuesday, Branstad said he still feels that way, but he declined to say whether either officer in the November incident should be punished, saying he does not know the details of the case.

'I don't know anything about this, so I really can't comment on it,” Branstad said. 'I do think, however, that the Department of Public Safety needs to investigate and needs to determine what the appropriate action is.

'First of all, I have the highest respect for the highway patrol. These are dedicated people that risk their lives to protect the safety of us as citizens. But they also need to set a good example, and they need to be accountable if they violate the law as well.”

In response to a question about his administration's recent firing of an expert on energy policy, Branstad deferred to and stated his confidence in Debi Durham, director of the economic development agency for which the energy expert formerly worked.

Paritosh Kasotia, the team leader in the state energy office under the Iowa Economic Development Authority, was fired Dec. 8, The Associated Press reported last week. Kasotia worked under Democratic Gov. Chet Culver in the state Office of Energy Independence, which under Branstad was rolled into the economic development agency headed by Durham.

A spokeswoman for the Iowa Economic Development Authority told The Associated Press the agency could not comment on Kasotia's firing, calling it a confidential personnel matter.

Branstad said he knows nothing about the matter, and he doesn't he seek to, instead placing his trust in Durham and the agency. He said such personnel matters do not generally come to his office.

'I'm not a micromanager,” Branstad said. 'Debi's done a great job of managing that whole department, that whole agency. …

'She's reduced staff by about 30 percent, and we've seen over $9 billion in capital investments. So I guess I trust Debi to make the decisions and manage that agency in the appropriate way.”