ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, January 18, 1996 TAG: 9601180089
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: DAVID M. POOLE STAFF WRITER
THE VINTON DEMOCRAT acknowledged he is a lead counsel in Trigon's bid to shed its not-for-profit status.
House Majority Leader Richard Cranwell faced new ethical questions Wednesday over the disclosure that he has added Trigon Blue Cross Blue Shield to a list of law clients whose interests overlap with his legislative duties.
The Vinton Democrat acknowledged he is a lead counsel in Trigon's high-profile bid to shed its not-for-profit status and raise capital on Wall Street.
Cranwell said there was nothing improper about his legal work for Trigon even though the General Assembly could make several decisions affecting the insurer's application, which is pending before the State Corporation Commission.
"The laws and rules of the House provide for this situation," he said. "If there is a problem, I'll abstain. It's that simple."
Cranwell has broken no laws, but his role with Trigon is the latest example of how his successful career as a litigator and his considerable legislative clout appear to have become entwined.
After writing annexation laws in the late 1970s, he became the state's premier local government attorney. Three years ago, Cranwell created a stir when he and four senior Democratic lawmakers invested in a state-regulated insurance company.
Some Republican lawmakers say Cranwell should step away from Trigon, even if his involvement does not rise to the legal standard of a conflict of interest.
"I think the important thing is to avoid even the appearance of a conflict," said House Republican Caucus Chairman Leo C. Wardup Jr. of Virginia Beach.
But Cranwell said he has no control over other people's perceptions. He said he can control his conduct, which falls within the guidelines of the state's conflict of interest statute, which he wrote.
"What you do is, you make judgments and you move on in life," he said.
Cranwell was mobbed on the floor of the House of Delegates Wednesday by reporters seeking reaction to a Richmond Times-Dispatch story about his association with Trigon.
In the frenzy, he sat on top of his desk and amiably fielded questions.
"I'm a little surprised at all the interest in this because I have been representing Blue Cross and Blue Shield for a number of years," he said.
Cranwell said he has reported his longstanding association with the insurance company on financial disclosure statements filed with the House Clerk's Office. His latest disclosure, dated earlier this month, lists his role in the company's bid to become a for-profit company.
He called Trigon's application a "garden variety piece of trial work."
Trigon paid Cranwell's law firm at least $50,000 in fees last year, Cranwell said.
Trigon, which donated $67,000 to General Assembly candidates this fall, says its future depends on the ability to sell stock and gain added resources to compete in the changing health care industry.
Cranwell said the idea that Trigon hired him for his political position sells short his legal reputation. "I hope in some circles I'm considered a pretty fair country lawyer," he said.
Cranwell said he didn't plan to abstain when the General Assembly selects two of the three SCC judges who will decide the Trigon matter. He noted that both candidates are unopposed, making it impossible - if he had wanted - to stack the panel in his client's favor.
He also said he had no intention of abstaining on the state budget, which could include $95 million from Trigon. The money would come from a $159 million foundation that Trigon has agreed to set up to repay the public for the tax breaks it enjoyed as a not-for-profit company.
He noted that the total money Trigon would pay into the foundation would not change if part of the funds were funneled into the state budget.
Cranwell said he probably would abstain on legislation that altered the amount of the Trigon payment or dealt directly with the company's for-profit application.
"If there is a conflict, I will abstain," he said.
Cranwell, a 24-year veteran of the General Assembly, has been dogged by ethics questions in his past two battles for re-election in a district that includes Craig County and parts of the counties of Roanoke, Bedford and Botetourt. His GOP opponents have charged that he used his political clout to enrich his law practice.
Cranwell denied anything improper, saying that if critics had their way, many lawyers in the part-time legislature would have to give up their careers.
"I'll focus on politics two years from May when I have to go through the nomination process. If the people of the 14th District find my conduct inappropriate, I'm sure they'll turn me out to pasture."
LENGTH: Medium: 92 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Cranwell. color. KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1996by CNB