Renters, Ranters, and Representation

Democratic State Representative Jim House of Fayetteville, is catching some flack because neighbors don’t like having a liquor store out in the bucolic area along Huntsville Road. East Side Liquor Store had been there for years, and now Premier Wine & Spirits wants to rent the same store building. The land is owned by Rep. House's two children, and the rent collected goes to their college education fund. That doesn’t matter to his neighbors who don’t like whiskey or the people who do. Karen Stewart and others are protesting and attacking Rep. House for signing a lease with the new business owner. Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder has also protested the transfer of location for the store’s existing license, a fight he didn’t need to pick.

Representative House has no financial interest in either the old liquor store or the new one. "I'm just trying to lease my facility to another businessmen, and if it's a liquor store or a hardware store, that's fine with me," he said. I think he deserves a pass on this. Rental property is one of the few avenues that public officials can earn income without creating a conflict of interest, as long as they’re not doing business with the government or using their position to advance their personal financial interests.

There are exceptions that clearly raise ethical questions and present at least an appearance of conflict of interest. Republican State Senator Bill Pritchard rented a building to a state agency during the time he was serving in the House, and that was not very smart on his part. Double unwise was the fact that it was rented to a correctional facility office with criminal clients, and it was located near a public school. Democratic State Senator Sue Madison is also in the rental property business, and every session she introduces self-serving legislation to give landlords additional advantages and powers while reducing the consumer rights of her renters. It just don’t smell right, and Senators Pritchard and Madison should know better.