State ethics panel boss brings thick skin to job

Stacy Jennings, a former Nevada Dairy Commission director, has gone from regulating cows to riding herd on government officials in her role as executive director of the state Ethics Commission.

Jennings investigates politicians accused of using their power for personal or financial gain - and has found the spotlight on her efforts can get intense.

In 2002, her position put her at odds with an attorney representing Gov. Kenny Guinn when he argued she overstepped her bounds in investigating the governor. And in recent weeks Jennings has been the target of Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman, who accused her of having a personal "agenda" that figured in ethics charges against him.

Jennings downplays the controversies, saying she tries to stick to her job and not play politics.

Still, the 36-year-old mother of a kindergartner estimated she works 60 to 80 hours a week and said her job can get "pretty stressful" at times.

"I just try to do my job the best that I can," she said. "Some people get defensive when you start asking questions about their conduct. I don't want to be defensive about my conduct because I'm just doing my job."

Nevada has had an ethics commission since the Watergate era. But many agreed that for decades the state's commission had no teeth. In 1999, Guinn championed a reform of the state's commission, and one of the changes was the addition of an executive director.

As outlined in Nevada law, politicians accused of using their power to help themselves, their businesses or their family members can be called before the Ethics Commission.

"It's very specific," Jennings said of the law.

If the commission finds an official has willfully violated state law, an official can be fined $5,000 for a first violation, up to $10,000 for a second violation, and up to $25,000 for a third.

After three willful violations, the commission files paperwork with the District Court asking for the official to be removed from office.

Even after Guinn's reform measures were implemented, some complained that the commission has little effect.

Since Jennings took the job in 2002, four complaints have gone before the full Ethics Commission, and no one has been found guilty of willfully violating state ethics laws.

Erik Herzik, a political science professor at the University of Nevada, Reno, said the commission provides the only forum for citizens to complain when they think officials are abusing their power.

Still, he said, the commission isn't "very effective."

"If they disappeared tomorrow, Nevada politics would be essentially unchanged," Herzik said.

Not only does the commission deal with dozens of "frivolous" complaints by government gadflies, but it's also difficult to determine when politicians are using their offices for personal gain, Herzik said.

Jennings, who holds a master's degree in public administration, said she applied for the ethics job because it was a "worthy endeavor."

"People have to commit themselves when they go into public office to a higher standard," she said. "That means you segregate your private interests from your public duties. That's what it's all about."

Indeed, Jennings and members of the Ethics Commission must remove themselves from any political involvement, including running for office or working on a campaign, she said. Her job is all encompassing: She investigates every charge of ethics violations levied against elected officials -about 100 a year - and also conducts workshops around the state to educate officials about Nevada's ethics laws.

"My job is not supposed to be about politics," she said. "It's just the people we investigate are in politics."