Gibbons skirts law in picking travel chief

By David McGrath Schwartz, Cy Ryan

Saturday, Dec. 27, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Gov. Jim Gibbons ignored state law in appointing the friend of a top adviser to head the state’s Commission on Tourism — an appointment that even the governor’s staff acknowledges did not follow normal protocol.

The $117,000-a-year post is, by law, to be filled following a search by the state’s appointed Tourism Commission. The director “must be appointed by the Governor from a list of three persons submitted to him by the Commission,” according to the law.

But Gibbons on Christmas Eve named Kirk Montero, a manager for US Airways at the Reno/Tahoe International Airport, to the job without consulting the commission.

The appointment came after what sources describe as a three-month stalemate between the commission and the governor.

The attorney general’s office has been asked to review the appointment, including the fact that Montero’s application was received 10 days after the deadline.

The commission is scheduled to discuss the appointment Monday. The tourism director serves at the pleasure of the commission.

Montero told the Sun on Friday he got the job without an interview, either by Gibbons or anyone on the Tourism Commission. He said he was unaware he had not been nominated by the commission.

Montero said his references, “a number of whom know the governor,” might have helped him land the job. The list included Tourism Commissioner Bruce Dewing, and Howard Weiss, owner of a Reno RV dealership.

Some insiders believe Weiss is Gibbons’ closest friend and adviser.

Dan Burns, the governor’s spokesman, explained the appointment by saying, “The governor feels tourism is so vitally important, especially in this downturn, that 3 1/2 months is a long time to wait for a search.”

Burns did not address whether the governor could legally make the appointment without receiving names from the commission. Asked whether Gibbons had discussed the appointment with his attorney, General Counsel Chris Nielson, Burns said there had been conversations, but that he did not know the substance of those conversations.

“We did not go through normal steps of choosing a director,” he said. “It got to the point where action needed to be taken. And that’s what happened.”

Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki, chairman of the Tourism Commission, acknowledged the board had not sent the names of three candidates to the governor for consideration. A subcommittee was appointed to handle the search and 67 applications had been received.

“We moved as quickly as possible,” Krolicki said.

The deputy director is running the commission, and the panel was considering whether the position should be left vacant for salary savings.

The Tourism Commission, which is financed by the room tax, is responsible for developing marketing and advertising campaigns to bolster tourism in Nevada. The tourism development fund for this biennium totaled $47.6 million before budget reductions.

The lieutenant governor heads the commission, and its eight members are appointed by the governor. The members must be “informed on and have experience in travel and tourism, including the business of gaming,” according to the law.

Montero said his previous jobs include reservations manager for now-defunct Reno Air and owner of a tour company in California.

The former director, Tim Maland, resigned in September. Maland left his post as president of the Reno Hilton to take the job in January 2007, just after Gibbons took office.

In Business Las Vegas, a sister publication of the Sun, has reported that Gibbons told Maland he had lost confidence in him.

Maland could not be reached Friday for comment.

In the months since Maland’s resignation, Gibbons has pushed for Montero to fill the position, according to sources.

Gibbons has talked openly of combining the Tourism Commission with the Economic Development Commission to reduce costs. Employees and commission members declined to talk on the record, for fear their jobs would be eliminated.

Montero, 60, confirmed that Gibbons had spoken to him about the job.

“At one point, he asked if I had an interest,” Montero said. “But that was a long time ago, before Tim Maland resigned.”

Montero said he would not call Gibbons a friend, but said he has talked to Gibbons six or seven times over the past 15 months. Often the conversations occurred while Gibbons waited to board a flight at the Reno airport and centered on high fuel prices and his ideas for tourism, Montero said.

Montero said he talked to Gibbons about asking industries that manufacture products used commonly in Nevada, such as golf clubs and ski equipment, to contribute money to promote the state. He also talked about attracting businesses from China.

“We’re not going to ignore gaming. It’s still a vital part of our state, but we need to look at every opportunity out there, besides gaming, and see if there are other opportunities to bring additional visitors to the state,” he said.

Asked whether he was surprised to get the job without an interview, Montero said, “It was kind of a weird situation. I either had great conversations with the governor, and he had trust with me, or — I do volunteer work — I come across lots of business people and talk travel. I happened be at the right place at the right time.”

Montero denied he had submitted his application late.

He told the Sun he followed the protocol on the governor’s Web site and submitted his application to the deputy in charge of appointments and commissions at the governor’s office.

Yet his letter expressing interest in the job, dated Sept. 12, was addressed to Dianne Cornwall. (In late June, Cornwall was demoted from chief operating officer in the governor’s office to head of the Business and Industry Department.)

When asked about this discrepancy, Montero said someone in the governor’s office told him to address the application to Cornwall.

Weiss, the Gibbons friend and adviser, is also close to Cornwall, according to sources.

Cornwall said she did not know Montero.

Montero later said he applied for the job after reading about it in the Reno Gazette-Journal.

Yet the date of his letter of application, Sept. 12, was the day Maland resigned, and the state did not advertise the job until Oct. 5, and stopped accepting applications Oct. 24.

Montero’s application was hand-delivered to the Tourism Commission by a member of Gibbons’ office on Nov. 4, according to sources with knowledge of the transaction.

Burns said Friday that he did not know whether the governor had interviewed anyone for the job, whether the governor was a friend of Montero’s or how the governor learned of Montero’s interest.

As to questions about Montero’s qualifications, Burns said: “The governor must think he’s eminently qualified. That’s why he put him in the job.”

Burns acknowledged that the Tourism Commission has authority over the director and could replace him.

“They can fire him, if they wanted to,” he said. “Why not give the guy a chance?”