TCMS: Tuesday, May 19th Edition

NEW SHOW: The Tuesday, May 19th edition of TCMS is now up. Very eventful day which is somewhat explained in the last segment kept the show from being out earlier. Topics include the Mayor's race, the OKC NRA employee who shot at an intruder, and the proof that the BOk Center will never pay for itself, no matter how much the Tulsa World spins that it will.

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Podcast: An Interview with Michael Bates on Downtown Tulsa Issues and More

The latest podcast is up and it includes my first interview. My guest Michael Bates and I talk about downtown Tulsa issues, including his article in Urban Tulsa Weekly on Downtown Tulsa Unlimited. Other topics include the governor's race and Kathy Taylor's "recusal" from any dealings with the new development proposed for across the street from the BOK Center.

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Kaiser and Margaret Erling-Frette

Was poking around in the Oklahoma Ethics Commission's website and found an interesting factoid in the section on lobbyists. Seems that the current principal lobbyist for the Kaiser Family Foundation is Margarette Erling-Frette. You remember her, the principal lobbyist for Great Plains Airlines? You remember George Kaiser, the guy that owns the bank that just got a $7.1 million settlement, thanks to our Mayor, for a bad loan centered on Great Plains Airlines?

Here is the text of the Ethics Commission entry:

The George Kaiser Family Foundation L080067 - Erling-Frette, Margaret
7020 S Yale #220
Tulsa, OK 74135

Apparently Kaiser isn't holding Erling-Frette responsible for the troubled loan.

[More] Appears she's also one of five lobbyists for the Tulsa Metro Chamber of Commerce. You remember them? The group that first dreamed up Great Plains Airlines.

Maybe Kathy Taylor IS a Republilcan?

Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor apparently hates paying taxes so much, that she and her husband, Bill Lobeck, have established the holding company for their investments in the State of Nevada.

As postulated in the post below, 1132 Investment Co., which is the official owner of "Mayor Force One," is a Nevada company. The following is a screen capture and link from the Nevada Secretary of State's web site [which is a heck of a lot more citizen friendly and transparent than the joke of a site Susan Savage oversees].
1132 Investment Co. link.

I have heard it often speculated that Mayor Taylor doesn't take her salary for the Mayor's job, because if she did all of her income might be subject to Oklahoma income taxes. I'm not an accountant, so while this sounds logical to me, I can't be 100% sure it is true.

We also know that Taylor and her husband don't have two Homestead exemptions on their two mansions; one in Mid-Town Tulsa near the Lortons, and one in the Ft. Lauderdale area. What I don't know is which mansion has the exemption. I'm pretty sure the Florida abode is the winner on this one, though. Why?

To make an educated guess, let's ask the question, what states don't have a state income tax?

Answer: "Seven states have no state income tax: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Two others, New Hampshire and Tennessee, tax only dividend and interest income."

Let's see...mansion in Florida which is your primary residence for income tax purposes...Nevada based investment corporation that owns one of your "his and hers" private jets. Sounds like a well thought out strategy to limit your taxes to me.

To which I say, Bravo!

As a Republican and admitted Randian Objectivist, I think such behavior is what makes our capitalistic system churn. Keep your dollars invested in states that don't squeeze you. Put aside your ambitions to be Governor of Oklahoma some day. There are other, less expensive ways to maximize your political potential, like...I don't know...like spending the money of taxpayers stupid enough to not place their assets in shelters.

Most Democrat politicos believe, "There is no joy greater than the spending of other people's money."

That is, unless it's is the joy of keeping other Democrat politicos from spending YOUR money!
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[MORE]
The Nevada Secretary of State lists Kathy Taylor and her husband as two of the three officers in 1132 Investment. The third is Joshua C. Miller of Nevada Holding Services. Miller and NHS are decent supporters of George W. Bush. See link here.

NHS provides services for Nevada subsidiary corporations, sometimes called "holding companies."

A cached web link says the following about the company which now operated under the name of The Key State Companies:

• Nevada Holding Services, Inc.
  Eliminate corporate taxes on income by maintaining a wholly owned Nevada Subsidary.
  www.nevhold.com

I think that pretty much ices any speculation that the Mayor and the First Mister's Lear Jet is owned by a for profit tax shelter in another state.

Mrs. Susan J. Miller, also of NHS is a very solid GOP donor as well as a woman who likes to cover her bases. She gave the maximum $2,300 contribution to John McCain, Fred Thompson and Rudy Guilliani! Apparently she doesn't believe in covering her bases with the Democrats, though.

I guess Mayor Taylor likes working with Republicans when they can save her some cash. Never know when you're going to need a spare $4,500 for jet fuel to fetch a city councilor or two.

Is Taylor's Jet a Sub-Sonic Ethical Question?

Some time last week, Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor [as I expected she would] blocked the ability of the public to track her private jet, "Mayor Force One," on the Internet. Apparently, she has become concerned about the increased interest that I and other constituents have been showing in how she uses this rare asset to affect public policy.

I first had my interest piqued when I heard several councilors refer to trips they had taken with BOk President Stan Lybarger and others to visit ballparks in Memphis, Toledo and Indianapolis. They did this during the July 1o, 2008 City Council meeting during discussion regarding the proposed Business Improvement District [BID] for a new Tulsa Drillers baseball stadium. That measure passed the Council that night by a 6 to 3 vote.

I heard rumors last week that Kathy Taylor had used "her jet" to fly to Colorado to fetch her most loyal councilor, District 3's David Patrick. Seems, I was told, she thought she might need his vote to rush the BID resolution through to passage before opposition to the BID could mount. During my show on Friday, July 18, while talking about how Mayor Taylor had blocked the tracking of her plane, I purposely slipped in as one of the reasons she might have done so, her potential desire to send a plane up to Colorado to pick up David Patrick. [Hear the relevant audio here]. I like to do such things to see if it shakes anything up.

Lo and behold, the very next morning, the Tulsa World miraculously has a story on the occurrence of just such an event!

The story goes to great pains [not to be confused with Great Plains] to explain that the trip had been vetted for any legal and ethical questions that might have arisen. The more cynical among us could almost assume that the Tulsa World reported the story as part of Kathy Taylor's special "spin included" clause that comes with her premium subscription to her friends', the Lorton's, family newspaper.

But questions are still beginning to bubble to the surface. First, who owns the Lear Jet that fetched Patrick? The newspaper refers to it as Taylor's "private jet," which explains more who uses it than who owns it. If a reader somehow becomes confused by the reference so as to believe that Taylor is the sole, private owner, that can't be the World's fault.

The actual owner of the jet is 1132 Investment Co. As the graphic below shows, this is apparently not an Oklahoma corporation, but rather one from Nevada.

It remains to be seen if this is significant. I did some checking on the Oklahoma Secretary of State's website to see if 1132 Investment had any apparent registration with the State of Oklahoma. I could not find any. This isn't conclusive in itself, since the website, ultimately controlled by Mayor Taylor's good friend, former Tulsa Mayor Susan Savage, isn't exactly user friendly.

But let's assume that 1132 Investment isn't domesticated in Oklahoma, but is fully a Nevada corporation. Let us further assume that, as the name implies, the company is a for-profit venture. What then makes the use of this jet to fetch loyal councilors any different than if American Airlines had sent a jet up to get Patrick? In both instances, you would have a jet owned and operated by a out-of-state corporation, flying across state lines for the express purpose of bringing a vacationing elected official back home for a key vote.

I'm wondering if the State ethics experts were told about some of these wrinkles when they were asked their opinion. Or were they simply told that it was Kathy Taylor's "private jet?"

I further wonder if there are any federal ethical questions involved in this?

When I was a city councilor, we were not allowed to accept gifts in excess, if memory serves me right, of $50. By her own admission, Taylor gave Patrick something [a quick and timely trip home] that was far in excess of $50, unless you don't think $4,500 in jet fuel and hours on the road don't rate.

If 1132 Investment Co. is a for-profit corporation, can we assume that the corporate accountant will depreciate the Lear Jet 31a as a result of the trip? Doesn't that take tax payer dollars from the company's tax bill?

Patrick was not in Colorado on official business. He was there on a semi-vacation tending to private property he owns there. It cost him his own money to get to Colorado, so any expense saved in getting back from private activities is a net benefit to his personal wealth, hence a gift! Or are they telling us that Taylor then spent an additional $4,500 to fly him BACK to Colorado after the meeting?

I wonder if the IRS will have some interest in this matter?

One more thing troubles me about the Tulsa World's account of what happened. The paper writes:

Patrick said he and his grandson, who has never flown, traveled back in the jet with the pilot and Stacy Kymes.

Kymes, director of capital markets and mergers and acquisitions for the Bank of Oklahoma, is one of several people who has worked behind the scenes on a proposed downtown baseball stadium for the Tulsa Drillers, the city's Double A baseball team.

Why is a mergers and acquisitions specialist for Bank of Oklahoma made available for several hours to lobby a city councilor? Why is such a specialist working on a ballpark issue for the city and the Mayor, during the same period of time that the Mayor and Bank of Oklahoma were hammering out a $7.1 million settlement in the Great Plains Airlines debacle? Just two weeks prior to the ballpark vote, the Tulsa City Council had voted 5 to 2 to certify that money existed in the city's Sinking Fund, sufficient to pay the $7.1 million to none other than Bank of Oklahoma!

Oh yeah...before announcing her run for the position of Mayor of Tulsa, Kathy Taylor had been a member of the Board of Directors of Bank of Oklahoma!

George Kaiser, the principal shareholder of Bank of Oklahoma has been throwing a lot of money and weight behind much of what the Mayor has been involved in of late. If downtown property owners will benefit from the building of an new downtown ballpark, and if George Kaiser is the owner of downtown property [which he is] then can't we assume that Stacy Kymes, Mr. Kaiser's employee, will be advising Patrick more toward what is in BOk's best interest, rather than the City's? Or are you so naive as to delude yourself that what is good for BOk is also good for Tulsa?

I'm not sure what we can do with this, other than to begin to pressure a city council made up of city councilors who have been enjoying high roller treatment through the generosity of 1132 Investment Co, to change the Council's Ethics Ordinance to stop future activity of this nature. Not likely.

Maybe it's time to put together a petition to publicly censure the Mayor and her jet setting City Council?

Richard Studenny Off the Hook?

[Note: I ran the audio from the video that I shot at the Airport meeting and then ran it through a graphic equalizer. With the audio cleaned up and headphones on, I realized I miss heard the Airport Board's position on this. The Board will retain their claims against Studenny. This doesn't mean that Studenny doesn't get a free pass. The best friends he has within city government are at the airports. We'll see if they ever press the courts for his money.]

I attended the special meeting of the Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust that was held at 8:30 AM in Room 1101 of the Tulsa City Hall. Even though this was on the same floor and mere feet from Mayor Taylor's office, Kathy Taylor never appeared during the meeting.

All board members were present in the room with the exception of Meredith Siegfried, who was on a speaker phone as she was in Singapore on business.

The meeting was late starting and relatively brief. There were few surprises, but one jumped out at me. Richard Studenny, the attorney for the Tulsa Industrial Authority AND TAIT [the lender AND the borrower] back when the Great Plains deal was cooked up, will potentially be given a free pass. 

TIA, and indirectly BOK, was going after Mr. Studenny's malpractice and/or errors and omissions insurance to recoup their financial losses. Studenny was fired, after a too lengthy drama in the media, by then Mayor Bill LaFortune. It was always speculated that Studenny knew where "all the bodies" were buried at the Tulsa Airport. 

Now with Kathy Taylor's rushed and hushed settlement, the word is that both the bank, and TIA will waive any claim to Studenny's insurance. This let's him off free and clear, unless the City Council and/or the mayor muster the political will to pursue him in court. Remember though, this will be a brand new law suit and the clock and the cash machine will have to begin anew.

What's that smell? Can you smell that smell?

Kathy Taylor to Pay Off Great Plains Despite Former BOK Ties?

The hot scuttle-butt down at City Hall is that Kathy Taylor is planning to sign over millions of Tulsa tax payer dollars to the Bank of Oklahoma for a questionable loan made regarding the Great Plains Airlines fiasco.

Word is that Friday morning she will meet with the Tulsa City Council in a special meeting to inform them of the deal. She will be using her full authority to bind the city to a contract, so she can act without the approval of the City Council.

Since the meeting is not regularly scheduled, it will not appear on TGOV. Anyone with a video camera and some time should plan to be at the meeting.

The timing of the deal on a Friday is obviously intended to minimize media attention. It appears she's planned this for a time when many Tulsans will be on vacation.

My sources have been telling me this has been coming for some time, but the speed of this move astounds those I have spoken with today.

For more on this, tune in to the Chris Medlock Show today at 2 PM on 1170, KFAQ AM.

They're Ba-ack!

Tax increase…tax increase…tax increase!

Remember that creepy scene in the movie Poltergeist, when little Carole Ann Freeling, played by Heather O’Rourke held her hands on the tube of the family TV, which was showing only “snow,” and announced to her parents' horror the infamous line, “They’re Here?” Remember in the somewhat lame sequel Poltergeist II: The Other Side, when in a similar fashion, Carole Ann told her parents, “They’re Baa—ack!?”

Reading this morning’s Tulsa World opinion section reminded me (eliciting more horror than either of these two Hollywood products ever could), of the sequel’s tagline. Only this time, it isn’t angry specters and goblins that are coming back to haunt us, but the tax-and-spenders of Tulsa, who the city’s newspaper of record always seem more than ready to support.

If you purchased a Sunday paper today [March 18, 2007], pull out the Opinion section [Section G] and participate in this quick little exercise.

Look on the front page. You’ll see two articles; one by Ken Neal and one by Janet Pearson. Both stories are preliminary “think pieces” on why Tulsans should ultimately raise their taxes. Then flip over to the back page. There you’ll find another, somewhat whimsical piece, by Mike Jones on why Tulsans should immediately support the Mayor’s desire to move City Hall to the partially vacant One Technology Center. A careful reading of the article shows Jones’ analysis of the move is made logical by several future changes that would require a tax increase.

There you go. Three opinion pieces telling Tulsans that life in our city could be so much better [You might even be able to find parking at City Hall!] if you’re just willing to raise your taxes quite a bit.

Neal is the most shameless, suggesting we add a five year renewal to the thirteen year long Vision 2025 tax to pay for low water dams that we thought we were getting in the first thirteen year package. Or, if we don’t want to extend the tax, perhaps it would be easier to just add the .4 cent tax that didn’t go into effect when Boeing opted to stay in Washington. What’s another 40 cents on every $100 you spend in Tulsa, if it could get us what we thought we were getting on the first 60 cents in taxes per hundred bucks we voted in back in 2003?

Gird your loins folks, for Kathy Taylor and the Mid-Towners are itchin’ for a fight. Keep practicing saying “nay” and get ready for a whole bunch of momentum killing negativity. Why?

Because “They’re Baa-ack!”

Mayor Sending Staff to Tout Tax Increase

Mayor Taylor has begun her behind the scenes full-court press to develop support within the City Council for her proposed property tax hike to pay for fire safety.

"Herronner" has instructed policy staffer, Dr. Monica Barczak, to meet with the various counilors to edify them as to why a Fire Protection District in Tulsa is "critically" needed by the city. With a Republican majority on the council, one would normally assume passage of a significant property tax increase would be unlikely, but this council has seemingly preferred commity and decorum over ideology.

Word is, the Fire Protection District is the brainchild of Deputy Mayor and former City Councilor Tom Baker, who is also a former Tulsa Fire Chief. You know it has to be questioned by conservatives when the Tulsa World has begun to heap praise upon the proposal. The editorial writers recently penned,

"Residents might not like the idea of a new tax, even a very
modest one, but the realities of municipal finance in Oklahoma require that
responsible city leaders take on this challenge."

Here we go again. Support a tax hike supported by the Tulsa World, or face being called "irresponsible."

Should the legislature approve this tax district, Tulsans will not only be faced with increased property taxes for Fire Protection Districts, but are also looking at the likelihood of a property tax hike to fund EMSA shortfalls.

Mayor Taylor, who is rumored to be weighing a campaign soon for either John Sullivan's house seat or Jim Inhofe's senate seat, won't be able to garner enough Republican support in a congressional race to win, unless she gets help now, from Republican office holders. She needs to be able to equally lay the blame for tax hikes under her administration in the laps of republicans.

We'll have to stay tuned to see how many of the GOP councilors fall under the say of Dr. Barczak's lobbying.