VPA Lobbyist 3

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Saturday, June 1, 2013 DAILY PRESS

3

PORTS

Va. authority’s No. 2 official steps down
By Michael Welles Shapiro
[email protected] | 757-247-4744

J.J. “Jeff” Keever, the second in command at the Virginia Port Authority, left the agency this week after almost a decade of work. Keever, who handled government relations in Washington and Richmond for the port authority as its deputy executive director, left Wednesday, according to VPA spokesman Joe Harris and earlier reported by the Daily Press. He was hired by the VPA in 2004 after a long tenure at the Hampton Roads Maritime Association, a coalition of mainly portrelated businesses that advocates on behalf of Virginia’s maritime community. He earned a base salary of $246,313 in 2012, according to a report conducted for

the General Assembly. On Tuesday, Keever briefed the VPA Board of Commissioners in a closed-door session on the agency’s longtime relationship with a lobbyist, Federal Advocates Inc. Immediately after the meeting, boardchairmanWilliamFralinand Harris indicated the port authority had not hired a lobbyist, and Fralin suggested that any advocacy was done in-house by Keever. Fralin and Harris, however, clarified their statements Thursday after the Daily Press reported on Federal Advocates’ work done on behalf of the agency. Fralin said commissioners had been in the dark until last week about the lobbyist, which was retained on the VPA’s behalf by one of its contractors. Fralin said the board is now studying whether the arrangement runs afoul of a prohibition barring

state agencies from paying for lobbyists. Keever could not be reached by phoneThursdayandFriday.Hedid leave a voice mail message late Thursday night, but could not be reached Friday. Three people affiliated with the VPA and its operating company, and familiar with the situation, say his departure was not connected to the lobbying arrangement. They asked not to be named because stateemployees’personnelmatters are considered confidential in Virginia.

Lobbyist for at least a decade
Ten of the 11 gubernatorial appointees on the VPA board were appointed in July 2011. Fralin said they and a more recent appointee

were all unaware of Federal Advocates’ advocacy work until last week. The agency’s relationship with Federal Advocates President Sante Esposito has lasted a decade, according to lobbying disclosure formsandinterviewswithaformer port authority official and with legislative staffers. Federal Advocates’ website lists VPA as a client, saying it is represented through Moffatt & Nichol, an engineering firm that’s a longtime port authority contractor. Messages left for Federal Advocates and Moffatt & Nichol this week have not been returned. But lobbying disclosure forms filed as recently as April show that Esposito started working for the VPA as early as 2003. Interviews with legislative staffers in Washington indicate Esposito continued to do work for the VPA in the past

year–thoughhemaynothavebeen doing a lot of heavy lifting. Kevin Hall, a spokesman for U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, said Friday that Esposito had set up meetings in the pastyearbetweenWarner’slegislative staff and port authority officials. Hall said Esposito wasn’t engaged in what might be described as more traditional or extensive lobbying activities. “He was facilitating meetings, but he wasn’t working a web of personalcontacts”onbehalfofPort of Virginia projects, Hall said. Hall said that when Warner staffers had to talk to port authority officials they would call them directly rather than using Federal Advocates as a liaison. Fralin said the VPA board has reached out to the Attorney General to determine whether any rules were broken by the lobbying arrangement.

NEWPORT NEWS
A bear walks through the marsh on Mulberry Island along the James River near Fort Eustis in Newport News.
PHOTO COURTESY OF TIMOTHY O’CONNELL

Absentee voting deadlines loom
[email protected] | 804-643-0499

ELECTION 2013

By Todd Allen Wilson

Registrar’s offices
2400 Washington Ave., 23601 ■ Hampton: 1919 Commerce Drive, Suite 280, 23666 ■ Williamsburg: 412 N. Boundary St., 23185 ■ Poquoson: 500 City Hall Ave., Room 139, 23662 ■ York County: 224 Ballard St., 23690 ■ James City County: 101 Mounts Bay Road, Building B, Williamsburg, 23185 ■ Gloucester County: 6467 Main St., Building 1, Gloucester, 23061 ■ Mathews County: 50 Brickbat Road, Mathews, 23109 ■ Isle of Wight County: 17106 Monument Circle, 23397

■ Newport News: City Hall,

Homeowner spots bear
[email protected] | 247-7870

By Tyra M. Vaughn

NEWPORT NEWS — In the 12 years Corey Cook has lived in the Beechmont area, he’s seen his fair share of wildlife near his Columbia Drive home. From his backyard, he can see eagles, deer and otters in the marsh on Mulberry Island, but he’s never seen a bear — until Friday. “I was working in my home office, oblivious to everything, when my neighbor called and said, ‘A bear’s in your backyard,’ ” Cook said. “When I went outside,

he was there approaching the bank.” Cook grabbed a camera and took a picture. “I thought he was a beautiful creature,” Cook said. The sighting was short-lived because the bear ran away when his dogs started barking at it. Cook said he wasn’t too concerned about bears being in his yard. “I expect to see a variety of wildlife living so close to a wooded area, but bears are a new addition,” Cook said. “As long as he stays on his side of the fence, I’m happy to be a good neighbor.”

Local voter registrars will be open June 8 for voters to cast in-person absentee ballots ahead of the June 11 Democratic primary election. June 8 is the last day to cast an in-person absentee ballot. The deadline to request an absentee ballot from local registrars by mail is 5 p.m. Tuesday. To get an absentee ballot, voters must apply in person or by mail at the registrar’s office in the city or county where they are registered to vote. Mailed absentee ballots must be returned to those offices by or on Election Day to be counted. Voters must meet one of 17 eligibility requirements in order to cast an absentee ballot. They include being out of the city or county where a voter is registered for work, school, vacation or military duty; an illness, disability or pregnancy that makes a voter unable to vote in person; being in jail awaiting trial or because of a misdemeanor con-

viction; being the primary caregiver for an ill or disabled family member; being an election official or representative of a political party, campaign or candidate; or being a first responder, such as a police officer or firefighter. Voters casting an in-person

absentee ballot must present an acceptable form of identification to the registrar. These include a Virginia voter registration card; a valid Virginia driver’s license; any federal, state or local government ID card; a concealed handgun permit; a valid student ID issued by a institution of higher education located in the commonwealth; a current utility bill, bank statement, government-issued check or paycheck that shows the name and address of the voter; or a Social Security card. State Sen. Ralph Northam, of Norfolk, and Aneesh Chopra, President Barack Obama’s former chief technology officer, are on the ballot for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor. State Sen. Mark Herring, of Loudoun, and former federal prosecutor Justin Fairfax are on the ballot for the Democratic nomination for attorney general. Republicans chose their candidates at a nominating convention May 18. To find your local voter registrar’s office, visit www.sbe.virginia.gov.

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