Koester: Branstad firing of DAS director ‘sends a message’

DES MOINES - A lawmaker leading the Iowa House inquiry into secret settlements with state employees praised Gov. Terry Branstad for 'very swift and proper action” in firing Department of Administrative Services Director Mike Carroll.

House Oversight Committee Chairman Kevin Koester, R-Ankeny, also said Wednesday he's asking judicial officials for help in expediting the investigation into the practice of paying employees to keep silent about their terminations.

'The truth's already out there. It's not available to us. Yet,” Koester said.

Although he believes it's possible Carroll was a victim of DAS employees withholding information about secret payments to terminated employees, Koester said the firing 'sends a message to every department manager and the state of Iowa that the governor means business about open transparency.”

Koester expects a joint Oversight meeting with the Senate next week, but hopes to be able to look at information like the email Senate Oversight Committee Chairwoman Janet Petersen, D-Des Moines, released Tuesday showing former DAS engineer Carol Frank was offered $6,500 if she would sign nondisclosure clauses.

Petersen has filed a request for public information seeking 'things like the kind of email that scandalizes the DAS action relative to hush money,” Koester said.

He planned to meet with an official of the judicial branch Wednesday to see if there might be ways to search settlement agreements, including redacted portions.

'I'm not looking for dirt on public employees who entered into agreements and is gone and has received a payment,” Koester said. He wants to learn more about the use of payments for confidentiality.

Passage of his bill, House File 2462, would help, but it won't give Oversight access to all of the materials Koester believes are needed.

'I'm in a hurry. I think people want an answer now,” Koester said. Yet it would be 'stupid” to proceed in a rush without more information like the emails that were released by Frank's attorney.

He's committed to continuing the investigation 'not only around the money but around the practice” because that's what Iowans expect, Koester said.

'The citizen-taxpayer that contacts me is offended to think that hush money might be embedded in the system over many administrations, many decades as a way of buying silence from an employee where state government may have not been perfect and wanted to cover it up.”