Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
COLUMBIA — Attorney General Alan Wilson appeared in front of the S.C. Senate Oversight Committee answering questions over the performance of his office, including high turnover within certain divisions and concerns external pressures played into his management style. Committee staff identified a number of perceived concerns expressed in anonymous exit interviews with agency staff. Those issues raised Nov. 5 included: Pay disparities among some similar members of staff. Poor job retention in sensitive areas like the Internet Crimes Against Children division. Insularity between executive officers and the office’s rank-and-file. Office culture concerns, including with the office dress code. Others, including Senate Minority Leader Brad Hutto, D-Orangeburg, raised concerns about potential political influence on the office’s activities. Wilson, a GOP candidate for governor next year, denied the characterization, saying that oftentimes the more controversial lawsuits they sign onto are in efforts to save the cost of pricy litigation around more conservative legislation the state might pursue. While some staff had the perception some in his office were engaged in more political activities, Wilson denied those concerns. “That perception is wrong, and it would not be allowed in our office,” he said. The hearing received national attention after U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-Charleston, who is running against Wilson for governor, suggested the hearing would feature allegations that could have been damaging to his campaign. Mace was in attendance and took questions from reporters, some of whom flew in from Washington, D.C., to attend. A primary concern shared by Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, was around the growing number of lawsuits filed against the Attorney General’s office, driven in part by increasing litigation against state agencies and the Legislature, particularly in regard to more controversial laws they pass. He questioned whether the office should continue to serve as a de facto private law firm for state government in contentious cases, adding he believed some state agencies should consider expanding their own legal departments or even contracting with outside counsel to save costs. Wilson agreed. In many cases, the AG’s office is legally required to intervene. And even then, their ability to handle the cases depended largely on whether his office had the basic capacity to handle them. “We physically do not have the bandwidth,” he said. According to the committee’s review, some members of the office’s Internet Crimes Against Children task force felt “isolated” from the rest of the AG’s office, which Wilson said had been of internal concern “for years.” Others expressed concern about office burnout, which Massey acknowledged was likely the result of the emotionally overwhelming nature of their office’s work.
