DENVER—An attorney for a state lawmaker refused to give telephone records and other documents to the House Ethics Committee on Tuesday for an investigation into allegations of attempted vote-buying.
Jonathan Anderson, attorney for Republican Rep. David Balmer of Centennial, sent a letter to the committee saying there was no proof that Balmer worked with a lobbyist to improperly try to win a leadership position in the state House.
Anderson told lawmakers it would violate Balmer’s privacy if he were forced to turn over phone records.
Ethics Committee Chairwoman Claire Levy said she was troubled by the rebuff, but the panel gave Balmer the option of blacking out information not relevant to the investigation.
Anderson said the request was still too broad because it included Balmer’s family phone records. Anderson said if the committee narrows the request and allows confidential information to be deleted, Balmer will respond.
“I had expected an answer from (Balmer), not a legal analysis from an attorney,” said Levy, a Democratic state representative from Boulder.
Lawmakers are looking into whether Balmer asked lobbyist Erik Groves to get an incoming freshman lawmaker to support him for minority leader. Another panel is looking at whether Groves, who represents the Colorado Chiropractic Association, violated rules barring lobbyists from getting involved in the Legislature’s leadership races.
In a written response to the allegations, Anderson said Balmer didn’t speak with Groves between Dec. 12, when Rep. Mike May announced he would step down as minority leader, and Dec. 16, when May filed the complaint against him.
May filed the complaint after Rep.-elect Cindy Acree, R-Aurora, told him that she received telephone messages from Groves and two chiropractors. She said one caller asked her to support Balmer in the upcoming leadership election, another said he was calling about House leadership, and the third mentioned that she could potentially get a committee chairmanship next term.
Acree said some of the messages also mentioned some campaign donations that had been pledged to her previously.
After filing the complaint, May withdrew his resignation.
