Governor Accused of Stacking Panel in Retaliation for Threatened Suit

SACRAMENTO —  Advocates for the developmentally disabled charged Tuesday that Gov. George Deukmejian appointed unqualified individuals to a state board that oversees the rights of the disabled in retaliation for the board’s threat to file suit against his budget cuts.

In an all-day hearing at the Capitol, some board members and relatives of the disabled said Deukmejian ignored the spirit, if not the letter, of the law requiring that appointees to the boards either be people with developmental disabilities, have family members who are disabled or be affiliated with disability organizations. The board also has two seats representing the public at large.

A developmental disability is defined by the state as a severe, chronic mental or physical impairment that occurs between birth and young adulthood.

Among recent appointees, the critics charged, is a woman who injured her leg but has no developmental problems, and another who reportedly joined a disability group 24 hours before being named a director of the 11-member Protection and Advocacy Board.

Failed to Appear

The investigation, chaired by Sen. Dan McCorquodale (D-San Jose) and involving four Senate committees, began in May, when several of the new appointees failed to show up for a hearing in Southern California, even though they were subpoenaed.

Tuesday, after being subpoenaed a second time, the five Deukmejian appointees agreed to testify and immediately came under fire from members of the investigating panel.

Sen. Diane Watson, (D-Los Angeles), a member of the joint committee, said she was “quite concerned” by information suggesting that the Deukmejian Administration had used its appointment power to “water down” the board and “compromise (its) effectiveness.”

Annette Ospital, one of the recent Deukmejian appointees, denied that there was any attempt by the five to vote in a bloc to protect the governor.

A spokesman for Deukmejian refused comment while the investigation was still under way.

The board’s problems began in June, 1987, when the veteran board members voted to sue Deukmejian if he cut funding for the board’s district offices from the budget. The governor ultimately did not cut the funding.

Immediately after the action, a series of new members were named by Deukmejian to the board. With two vacancies on the board, McCorquodale charged that the appointments caused the Deukmejian bloc to gain control of the board, which, he said, “brought any real actions by the board to a complete halt.”

Founding Member

Linda Kowalka, a founding member of the board, added that even if the five new appointees are replaced, the board will continue to be “tainted” by a lack of credibility.

“I personally believe right now, (that) in order to maintain the integrity of the organization, and the integrity of the services to our people . . . the present board should be dissolved,” Kowalka said.

She suggested that the board be reorganized by a special commission set up for that purpose, with no political appointments.

Another board member, Connie Lapin, said the five Deukmejian appointees are people “whose professional and personal agendas are first and foremost to protect the governor.”

“I am clear that they will do this at the expense of independent advocacy and guaranteeing legal assistance for people with disabilities,” she added.

Among the new appointees who came under criticism was Lori Roos, who, critics said, won her appointment because of a gymnastics accident that forces her to wear a leg brace. But board members later conceded under questioning that Roos was qualified because she has a cousin with developmental disabilities.