I have been talking to a few people downstate recently and have been getting a feel for the race for Adams seat. Honestly, I don’t know a damned thing about Polly, so I cannot tell you whether or not she would make a good Senator or not. I have met a few house painters, and they seem nice enough. And let’s face it, if she is a straight woman doing an interior design business in Rehoboth, she must be doing something right.
But this post isn’t about Polly. It is about what her Father pulled in his 2nd to the last day in the Senate. It is about the Violent Crimes Compensation Board (now re-formed as the Victims’ Compensation Assistance Program) and what the restructuring meant to one of Thurman Adams’ friends, Leah Betts.
The reform of the VCCB was the result of a review of the Sunset Committee. Among the things that the committee discovered is that the VCCB board members drew an annual stipend of $10K. This differs from other boards, like the Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board or the Clean Water Advisory Council which are mostly made up of appointed volunteers paid like jury members. The JSC found:
The compensation paid to Board members increased over the years from $1000 to $5000 (1990) and in 2000 compensation was increased its current level $10,000, with the Vice Chair receiving $11,000 and the Chair $12,000.
interestingly, as I was reading the report, I noticed this:
F. The Joint Sunset Committee shall:
Send a letter to the Governor asking him to not move forward with reappointing any VCCB members whose term expires or who resigns before the JSC process is completed.
This request was not honored. Finally, the JSC made this recommendation:
5) Changes the current Board to an Appeals Board.The current Board members will serve out their existing term and continue to receive statutory compensation. Upon expiration of term, compensation will be $100 per day;
On June 16th, Leah Betts’ name was “read in” to the Senate record to renew her term. And on the very day that the JSC bill was introduced on the floor of the house, Leah Betts was confirmed for a 3 year term (at $10K/year). As you can see here (page 7), Leah Betts was a very good friend of Thurman Adams.
The next day Senator Adams was stricken and taken to the hospital. He never left.
Now, I have been hearing that Leah Betts was a player in this whole dump Eddy for Polly scheme. If so, perhaps that is what Senator Adams ended up buying for 30K, a shot at a dynasty.