Ohio Republicans question Democrats' lawsuit expenses

By Ann Sanner Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Ohio House Republicans have asked the state's attorney general and auditor to review legal fees billed to taxpayers by Democrats as part of a lawsuit brought on behalf of private citizens over newly drawn state legislative districts. The state redraws legislative and congressional districts once every 10 years to reflect population shifts identified in the U.S. census. And both Republican and Democratic caucuses were given $265,000 in taxpayer money for mapmaking last year. The money could be used to cover the cost of supplies, software, office space and consulting in the redistricting process. Invoices obtained by The Associated Press through a public records request show Democrats have sought almost $73,000 in taxpayer funds to pay for legal services from Perkins Coie law firm, which is headquartered in Seattle. Three lawyers from the firm are listed among the counsel representing citizens in the lawsuit over the new state legislative lines. Questions over the invoices are the latest in a string of claims from both sides that each has mishandled duties in the once-per-decade line-drawing process. Democrats filed the lawsuit over the Republican-drawn legislative lines last week with the Ohio Supreme Court on behalf of three dozen affected Ohioans. They claim GOP state leaders who controlled the mapmaking process violated provisions of the state constitution that prohibit political maps from unnecessarily splitting communities between districts. The lawsuit further charges Republicans with violations of state open meeting laws, after records showed they used nearly $10,000 in public money for a hotel room where they held secret discussions about the maps. It's unclear how much of the $72,756.96 in legal fees that Democrats want taxpayers to pay was related to the lawsuit, although attorneys for House and Senate Democrats wrote in a letter last week to the lawyer for House Republicans that "a portion" was related to the complaint. House Republicans are asking the state auditor whether the firm can be lawfully be paid; Perkins Coie has not received any payments to cover the invoices. The auditor's spokeswoman said Monday the office's legal counsel is reviewing the Republicans' request for the possibility of conflict of interest. Auditor Dave Yost, a Republican, sits on the five-member Apportionment Board that approved the state legislative maps and is also named in the lawsuit. While the House GOP acknowledges that mapmaking money could be spent on legal research, they say they are concerned about it being used to support a lawsuit brought for 36 private individuals. "You cannot have the state of Ohio paying private citizens' lawsuit fees, essentially," said Mike Dittoe, a spokesman for the House Republicans. Dittoe contends Democrats also needed the attorney general's approval for Perkins Coie to do certain legal work on their behalf, which he said was not requested. A spokeswoman for Attorney General Mike DeWine's office said it can't discuss conversations with clients. Mike Rowe, a spokesman for the Senate Democrats, said Democrats do not need DeWine's permission because previous lawsuits on redistricting and reapportionment have not required the attorney general's approval. Published: Wed, Jan 11, 2012