Sparks Lobbyist Cash Train: Dead Bill, Live Payments, and Political Favors

After we posted an article the other day we had a reader point out that we missed two someones who are supporting Chris Hicks for this fundraiser.

Sometimes beating a dead horse isn’t cruel—it’s journalism. Especially when taxpayers are still being forced to pay for the feed.

Earlier this year, we exposed how Mayor Ed Lawson’s pals—lobbyists Chris Barrett and Scott Bensing—scored an individual $80,000 annual contract to push a federal lands bill through Congress. That bill is deader than disco, yet Sparks continues to pay them monthly, as if the next paycheck will somehow resurrect it.

Why monthly? Because, in theory, the city can cancel with 30 days’ notice. But in reality? Barrett and Bensing keep cashing checks while Sparks stares down an $18 million debt hole.

Now comes the twist: seems like Barrett and Bensing have decided to back District Attorney Chris Hicks in his re-election campaign—not Sparks City Attorney Wes Duncan. Which makes one wonder: is this contract about lobbying? Or about political loyalty and keeping the mayor’s inner circle cozy?

If Duncan wants to make waves, maybe he should bring this up at the next City Council meeting—because paying $160,000 for a bill that’s DOA while running on fumes financially reeks of more than just bad budgeting. It smells like cronyism.

And if Sparks keeps writing these checks without results, the only thing more dead than the lands bill might be the taxpayers’ trust.