NH Democrats Seek LGC Records in Bragdon Hire

Calling it a blatent conflict of interest, the New Hampshire Democratic Party has filed a records request with the Local Government Center in challenging Senate President Peter Bragdon's hiring as its executive director.

Bragdon (R-Milford) dismissed the criticism in an interview Aug. 13 with Patch, but NHDP spokesman Harrell Kirstein pointed to news reports that the Bragdon selection for the job was announced before the LGC voted to approve it.

Kirstein also questioned how long the interview process took, and whether it transpired as Bragdon appointed Sen. Jeanie Forrester (R-Meredith) to a committee reviewing possible changes to laws concerning the LGC, as reported by the Concord Monitor.

"Serious concerns were raised across the state about both the substance and process of the LGC hiring of Senate President Peter Bragdon," Kirstein said in a press release on the records request. "With an elected official taking a $180,000 job controlling a publicly funded body with a checkered history, the people of New Hampshire deserve to know if the hiring process was skewed in Bragdon's favor, if other candidates were considered, and when this process began. Almost every single issue or piece of legislation that comes before the State Senate impacts the LGC and its affiliated organizations, and Bragdon and the LGC have created an enormous conflict of interest that leads to a host of ethical questions."

Listen to Bragdon respond to the NHDP charges of a conflict of interest.

The right-to-know request submitted by the New Hampshire Democratic Party on Aug. 14 includes a request for documents or correspondence related to:

Any public or private listings or advertising of the listings, the dates of those listings, and any internal or external communication related to the hiring process.

• "Any internal discussion or communication related the duties and/or recruitment of Executive Director of the New Hampshire Local Government Center. Including but not limited to their role as a lobbyist with the State of New Hampshire, their expected weekly hourly commitment, desired qualifications, and involvement with any subsidiaries of the LGC."

• "Any communication, correspondence or other documents with Peter Bragdon or other individuals seeking information about the Executive Director position with the New Hampshire Local Government Center."

• "Any information supplied by Peter Bragdon relating to his qualifications for the position."

• "Any communication between the LGC and the Senate on relating to the legislative study committee appointed to review potential changes to the state law that regulates the LGC."