House Minority Leader Calls for Lottery Chairman to Step Down
Arkansas House Minority Bryan King tells the Tolbert Report today that he thinks Arkansas Lottery Commission Chairman Ray Thornton needs to step down amid controversy on the high salaries of the lottery executive. Thornton, a former U.S. Congressman, largely negotiated the hiring of Director Ernie Passailaigue from South Carolina with a salary of $324,000. (Video of Thornton defending Passailaigue’s salary.) Passailaigue has since hired two more employees from South Carolina at $225,000 a piece and several more employees also making six figure salaries, including some which have past connections to Thornton.
“The public has lost trust in the Commission,” Rep. King said. “And Chairman Thornton is the person that is responsible. Even Gov. Beebe has voiced concern over the way the executive salaries were handled. Chairman Thornton needs step down as Chairman so that the public can begin to regain trust in the process. People in my district have voiced concerns over high salaries and the appearance of political job paybacks.”
July 17th, 2009 at 1:24 am
That’s not fair, Speaker gets to go to Taiwan, you gotta stay here. Of cource he has lotta lottery money to toss around. Who is paying for that trip anyway? Himself, People of Arkansas, or the company that will make the lottery machines. Just wondering.