At Houston hobnob, no freebies allowed for Wolf aide

HARRISBURG - After a year of playing it straight - with a ban on gifts, hospitality, and food and drink

for public officials in the Capitol - the Wolf administration could be shaking things up.

Gov. Wolf's secretary of community and economic development, Dennis M. Davin, was scheduled to attend a Texas cocktail reception on Wednesday, at which natural gas drillers were to network with movers and shakers, according to an event invitation obtained by the Inquirer.

"Shaking Things Up!" exclaims the invitation to the "Toast to Two Energy Towns" reception, beside a picture of a martini shaker. The two towns are Houston, home to big players in the drilling industry, and Pittsburgh, the heart of one of its markets.

And Davin is one of the main draws.

"We hope that you will attend, meet him [Davin] and network with your energy industry peers," the invitation says.

The meet-and-greet event at the Grove restaurant, overlooking an 118-acre city park, comes a year after Wolf instituted a rule designed to crack down on the influence of outside groups on public policy.

In an executive order, he banned all cabinet members, employees, and other officials in the executive branch from soliciting or accepting gifts or other niceties - food, liquor, travel - from anyone seeking to influence government.

Davin's spokeswoman, Lyndsay Kensinger, said in an email Wednesday that the state was picking up the tab for the trip for Davin and two aides but that Davin would pay for any personal expenses.

She said Davin was already headed to Houston for a conference, and that his attendance at the cocktail party - an invitation-only event, paid for by the Allegheny Conference on Community Development - was secondary and did not violate the governor's gift ban.

Davin went to Texas "to promote Pennsylvania as the best place to do business," Kensinger wrote. The Houston reception is being sponsored by the marketing arm of the Allegheny Conference, which is affiliated with the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce and others.

The secretary is also expected to ask his host for invoices if he eats or drinks anything at the event, the spokeswoman said.

"We made sure that this was by the book," she said.

Amid the budget impasse last fall, Wolf's administration instituted a travel ban for its officials. It has been relaxed, but administration officials said agencies are still being asked to be prudent and travel only for events that are critical to their mission.

There are exceptions to the gift ban: Gifts from family and friends don't count, and employees can attend gatherings, parties or receptions when they are acting in their official duty (and provided they pay their own way).

But administration officials - and Wolf himself - have been known to attend events carrying their own food and water, and, if necessary, reimburse an event organizer out of pocket. Wolf has prided himself for being more transparent than his predecessors, posting his schedule and expenses online, as well as expenses for his cabinet members.

The governor's spokesman, Jeff Sheridan, said Davin's attendance at the reception does not violate the ban - or even the spirit of the ban.

"There is no spirit of the gift ban," Sheridan said. "It is a very clear executive order that explains that you cannot accept gifts. ... But the secretary of the Department of Community and Economic Development going to a site-selection conference that is critical to his role and is being paid for by DCED ... it is not a violation."

Davin's attendance comes despite Wolf's outspoken belief that the natural gas industry should pay more for its use of the state's natural resources.

As part of his budget address last year, the governor proposed a new tax on natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. But the idea never gained traction and was ultimately abandoned.

Wolf is expected to reintroduce the proposal as soon as next week, as part of his second budget address to the legislature.

acouloumbis@phillynews.com

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