Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels

(Indianapolis, Ind.) - An Indiana Democrat state lawmaker has filed an ethics complaint against Governor Mitch Daniels.

The governor was tapped in June to be the next president of Purdue University starting in 2013, when his second term in office comes to an end. Daniels’ hiring caused some outcry politically, but the criticism increased last week when reports began to surface detailing Purdue's spending of $380,000 to renovate the president’s office.

Daniels issued a press release statement on the renovations through the governor’s office mailing list. He claimed he knew nothing about the office renovations and was not part of the decision.

In an ethics complaint filed with the Indiana Inspector General this week, State Rep. Charlie Brown (D-Gary) claiming Daniels’ use of governor’s office press releases pertaining to his upcoming job with Purdue is a violation.

Brown’s complaint also states that Daniels should not be allowed to lobby the legislative or executive branches of state government for one year after his term as governor ends.

Governor’s Office spokeswoman Jan Jankowski said Wednesday that Brown’s ploy is “partisan nonsense” and there is no basis for the complaint.

LINKS:

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