Ray’s Round Up: The Resignation of Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane

Most fiction publishers would reject the saga of Kathleen Kane for being too unrealistic for fiction. The unhappy tale came to a close in Pennsylvania this week, as Attorney General Kane was convicted by a jury in Montgomery County on Monday evening. She was found guilty of nine counts of perjury, obstruction and other charges for orchestrating a leak of secret grand jury information to a Philadelphia newspaper with the aim of embarrassing a political foe. After lying about it to a grand jury, Kane was convicted and later announced her resignation, ending a tumultuous three-and-a-half year term in office.

Her legal situation was one of the main topics of conversation in Pennsylvania political circles over the past few years.  Upon her election in 2012 as the first female statewide elected official in Pennsylvania, it appeared as though she would use her position as Attorney General as a stepping stone to higher political office.  But as events unfolded she soon found herself consumed by controversy, resulting in the criminal charges which led to her conviction.

Unfortunately, while everyone was focusing on Kane’s personal situation, the impact on the work of the Office of Attorney General has been overlooked.

The Attorney General is one of three statewide elected officials who work independently from the General Assembly and the Governor - the State Treasurer and the Auditor General are the other two positions.  The position of Pennsylvania Attorney General first became an independently elected office in 1980 after previously being appointed by the Governor.  The Attorney General is the chief law enforcement officer in Pennsylvania, and is are charged with investigating criminal activities, representing the Commonwealth in all actions brought by or against Pennsylvania, and reviewing all proposed rules and regulations by Commonwealth agencies.

The Attorney General’s office often makes headlines when prosecuting high-profile cases involving public figures.  But much of the day-to-day work of the Office of Attorney General concerns consumer protection, which is why Kane’s controversy is important to AARP and you.

The Bureau of Consumer Protection is responsible for investigating complaints from Pennsylvanians about unfair practices, as well as ensuring that organizations classified as charitable organizations follow Pennsylvania law, and enforcing Pennsylvania’s Do-Not-Call law.  The Bureau of Consumer Protection often partners with outside organizations like AARP to present consumer education sessions, or help Pennsylvanians to protect themselves from scams, frauds, and identity theft.  More information about the work of the Attorney General’s office may be found here.

The Office of Consumer Advocate is an independent office working under the Attorney General to represent consumers in utility matters. The Consumer Advocate’s office investigates utility rate hike requests, assists consumers in disputes with utility companies, and takes positions on legislation regarding utility matters that impact consumers.  Pennsylvania is recognized as having one of the most effective Consumer Advocate offices in the nation and information about the role the Consumer Advocate plays is on their website.

The consumer-oriented divisions of the Attorney General’s office continued to function effectively during the controversy surrounding Kathleen Kane, but an important function of the position of Attorney General is to use the office to draw attention to the work that is being done on behalf of consumers.  It was much more difficult for an Attorney General, who was the subject of controversy, to highlight the work of the office. Protecting consumers from fraudulent activities and providing information that would be helpful to many Pennsylvanians may have been lost in the legal battle reporting that personally involved the Attorney General.

Upon Kathleen Kane’s resignation, Deputy Attorney General Bruce Castor assumed the role of Acting Attorney General.  Pennsylvania law allows the Governor, upon the consent of the Senate, to appoint a new Attorney General. On Thursday, August 18, Governor Wolf announced his nomination of Pennsylvania Inspector General, Bruce Beemer, to the post.  He is expected to be confirmed by the Senate shortly.  Pennsylvanians will elect a new Attorney General this November – the major party candidates are Republican State Senator, John Rafferty and Montgomery County’s Democratic Commissioner, Josh Shapiro.

Pennsylvania’s Attorney General performs an important function that has a significant impact on the lives of Pennsylvanians.  AARP and other organizations representing Pennsylvania consumers are hopeful that the controversies surrounding the office can now be put behind us and the focus can now turn to critical work of this office, which specifically includes protecting consumers like you.

 

“Ray’s Round Up” features updates on current state and federal issues by Ray Landis, AARP PA’s Advocacy Manager.