Wednesday, February 7, 2018, by Nick Ochsner

RALEIGH, NC (WBTV) – Governor Roy Cooper hired a new legislative staffer with ties to the petroleum and natural gas industry the same month he announced a deal to approve permits for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.

An invitation obtained by WBTV shows Cooper’s office recently held a meet and greet event for Lee Lilley, who the invitation billed as “Governor Cooper’s new Legislative Director.”

Lobbying disclosure records maintained by the U.S. House of Representatives show Lilley worked as a lobbyist on behalf of companies and trade groups connected the petroleum, energy and natural gas industry.

Included in the companies on whose behalf Lilley was registered to lobby Congress in 2017 was Dominion Resources, Inc.

Dominion is a major investor in the Atlantic Coast Pipeline project. Lilley was also registered to lobby Congress on behalf of the American Petroleum Institute, American Transmission Company and Arkema, Inc, a multinational chemical company that manufactures products in the oil and gas industry, among others.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality—a cabinet agency that reports to Cooper—announced it would approve crucial water permits for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline on January 26, 2018. That same day, Cooper’s office announced Duke Energy and Dominion Power would contribute nearly $58 million towards the creation of an environmental mitigation fund.

The fund has come under scrutiny amid questions over who would control the fund, what it would be used for and whether such a fund is allowed under state law.

A copy of a memo drafted for lawmakers by the non-partisan staff at the North Carolina General Assembly found such a fund was unprecedented in state history. The memo concluded that staff from Cooper’s office had yet to answer many questions about the project other than to say the fund would be administered by a committee whose makeup had yet to be announced.

The meet and greet for Lilley was held on January 30, 2018, four days after the pipeline announcement.

Staff in Cooper’s press office have not responded—or even acknowledged—a request for comment submitted by WBTV prior to the publication of today’s story.

However, Cooper’s office formally announced Lilley’s hiring in a press release a little more than one hour after the story detailing Lilley’s hiring and previous lobbying work.

The release from Cooper’s office does not mention his previous work as a lobbyist, be says that Lilley will make $128,000 a year.

From an Article by Nick Ochsner, WBTV News, February 5th 2018

RALEIGH, NC (WBTV) -

The heads of three non-partisan legislative staffs at the North Carolina General Assembly sent a memo to legislative leadership Friday in response to questions about the $58 million mitigation fund proposed by Governor Roy Cooper related to the state’s approval of key permits for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.

Cooper announced the creating of the fund in late January, as part of an effort by the owners of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline—which includes Duke Energy—to gain approval for the project in North Carolina.

A press release from Cooper’s office announcing the creation of the fund said the money would “be used for environmental mitigation initiatives such as reducing the carbon footprint and expansion of renewable energy sources.”

The governor’s office said details on how the fund will operate will be forthcoming.

Document: Click SOURCE to read the MOU

The legislative memo sent Friday, obtained by WBTV, outlined questioned posed by staff that had yet to be answered by the governor’s office, including whether there is any legal authority for the creation of such a fund.

“First, it does not appear that the MOU is a legally binding contract but is more in the nature of a statement of intent,” the legislative memo said. “However, if the funds are ultimately transferred to an escrow account, we looked at whether the Governor has any authority to direct the use of the funds as suggested in the MOU.”

Since Cooper announced the creation of the fund, questions have abounded over who would control the money.

According to the memo, a board of directors will oversee its operation through a designated administrator. There is no information in the memo detailing who would appoint the board of directors or the administrator.

Document: Click SOURCE to read the memo from legislative staff

“We asked attorneys handling environmental law, economic development, and energy policy to look into whether there was authority under State or federal law for this type of arrangement, and they found no law specifically addressing the issue,” the memo said. “We also looked at whether the Governor has specific independent authority and again found that there was no law related to the issue, including no law that specifically prohibits it.”

The memo outlined five questions posed to the governor’s office but notes the response received from Cooper’s staff did not answer the questions asked.

A spokeswoman for Cooper’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the points outlined by legislative staff.

SOURCE: http://www.wbtv.com/story/37430146/legislative-analysis-raises-many-questions-few-answers-about-proposed-pipeline-fund