Ethics hearing could change Indiana House rules

No conclusions were drawn Wednesday in an ethics hearing over House Speaker Pro Tem Eric Turner’s role in the failure of a ban on construction of new nursing homes to pass during this year’s Indiana General Assembly.

Turner, a Cicero Republican, spoke to a private meeting of House Republicans about the proposed construction ban, according to written testimony submitted for Wednesday’s meeting of the House Ethics Committee.

The Associated Press has reported that Turner, an investor in his son’s nursing home development company, lobbied the caucus against the construction ban and that he stood to lose millions of dollars if the ban had passed.

The Associated Press reported last week that Turner has earned more than $8 million through his ownership stake in Mainstreet Property Group, which builds nursing homes, and that he stood to lose more than $4 million if a construction ban passed the Legislature this year.

Documents obtained by the AP show that Turner owns a 38 percent stake in Mainstreet Property Group through another company. Mainstreet, which is operated by his son, builds nursing homes throughout the state and then sells them to a Canadian company, HealthLease, which was founded by Turner’s son.

Turner did not attend Wednesday’s hearing and was represented by his lawyer, Toby McClamroch.

House Speaker Brian Bosma (R-Indianapolis) requested the House Ethics Committee, whose membership includes three Republicans and three Democrats, review Turner’s actions and also consider whether changes were necessary to the House’s ethics rules and the legislature’s economic interest disclosure form.

On Wednesday, the committee reviewed Turner’s answers to a series of questions members had asked about his business interests and his actions in the 2014 legislative session. The questions were answered under oath. The committee will meet next week to discuss an advisory opinion and the conclusion of its review of Turner’s actions.

“We tried to get to the bottom of this and cover every base in terms of what happened,” said committee member Clyde Kersey, D-Terre Haute.

Turner did not publicly vote on the construction ban or sponsor legislation on the nursing home industry. Both practices are barred in the House’s ethics code. Turner wrote in testimony that he disclosed his interests and role in his son’s business to House Republicans and that the House’s ethics rules allows members to speak in their areas of expertise. Turner also wrote that he didn’t publicly offer testimony or debate the proposed construction ban while in committee or on the House floor.

The current ethics code does not address whether members should lobby on an issue of which they have a direct interest. Ethics Committee Chairman Rep. Greg Steuerwald, R-Avon, said he relies on the expert opinion of his colleagues. Steuerwald noted he did not find any ethics rules which apply to caucus.

“The present rules say that each one of us are to express our knowledge and expertise within our field that’s part of what we have with the citizen legislature,” Steuerwald said. “Each of us brings to the table a different expertise, so I think it’s important everybody shows those things.”

The committee will meet over the summer to discuss possible changes to ethics rules and the disclosure form.

Rep. Gail Riecken, D-Evansville, a member of the committee, said she wants to see changes to the disclosure form, which would take legislation to amend.

“Our statement of economic interest needs to be tightened,” Riecken said, “and there needs to be more transparency somehow. We’ve got to do that.”

Turner issued a statement after the hearing thanking the committee for its work.

“I thank Chairman Steuerwald and the House Ethics Committee for conducting a thorough review of the facts, and I was pleased to answer the questions presented to me,” Turner said in prepared statement. “I am confident the Ethics Committee will conclude that I have acted within the House Rules and the House Code of Ethics, as I have for my entire 24-year legislative career.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.