Ken Bennett
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Ken Bennett (born 1959) is a Republican politician and businessman who served as president of the Arizona Senate.
Bennett was born in Tucson into a family that were members of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon). He later moved to Prescott, Arizona, where he attended Prescott High School and Yavapai College. Between terms there he served his two-year mission in southern Japan. In 1981 he transferred to Arizona State University and graduated with a degree in accounting.
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[edit] Business career
In 2008, Bennett was named Chief Executive Officer [CEO] of GeoBio Energy, a company attempting to develop and market alternative fuel from plant sources such as algae. Bennett served as CEO of his family fuel distribution business, Bennett's Oil Co., from 1985 to 2006.
In 1989, several underground petroleum storage tanks owned by Bennett's Oil Co. released petroleum into the environment. In the years following, Bennett's undertook various remedies to decontaminate the area, paid for by its insurance company. Bennett's insurer, Federated Mutual Insurance, submitted five separate applications to the state for periodic reimbursement of the cleanup costs. The first four were approved, but the last was denied under a recently enacted act limiting reimbursement to costs not covered by insurance. Bennett's appealed the denial in court, arguing that the law was intended only to prevent double recovery, not to limit the state to providing only secondary insurance. The court affirmed the state's interpretation of the law and denied reimbursement. [1]
This later came to prominence when as a state senator (see below), Bennett co-sponsored a bill in 2004 which would provide reimbursement for oil company cleanup costs already covered under private insurance. [2] Some accused Bennett of a conflict of interest, given that his own company would benefit from this change. [3] The bill never made it out of committee and did not become law.
[edit] Political career
In the 1980s, Bennett was a member of the Prescott City Council. He was appointed to the Arizona State Board of Education in 1992, serving as president in 1996 and 1998.
In 1998 he was elected to the Arizona State Senate, where he served as Chairman of the Education Committee for two years and President of the Senate for four years [2003 - 2006]. After eight years in the State Senate, he was prevented from seeking re-election in 2006 because of term limits. He abandoned a run for governor in 2006, but has said that he will run for statewide or federal office in the future. [4]
[edit] Awards
In 2007 Ken Bennett received the Polly Rosenbaum Award from the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records [[5]]. Building on his interest in and understanding of the state's history, Mr. Bennett has been a leader in bringing attention and support to Arizona's historical and cultural institutions. The award recognizes Mr. Bennett for his unfailing support of the State Library's mission to preserve Arizona's history and to provide access to information.
Mr. Bennett has demonstrated commitment to the value of cultural institutions and the role they play in helping Arizona's citizens live their lives, work their jobs, and understand their history. Announced annually on Statehood Day, February 14, the Polly Rosenbaum Award connotes elected or appointed officials who cherish Arizona's rich cultural resources and support the work of the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records. See award text [[6]]
[edit] Family incident
A 2006 plea bargain involving Ken's son, Clifton, became controversial after several parents of victims accused Ken of exerting undue influence to affect the case.[7] In what a county attorney described as a summer camp "hazing ritual" gone wrong, Clifton and another man poked 17 clothed campers in the buttocks using a broom stick. Ultimately Clifton, –only 17 years old and a minor, plead guilty to one count of aggravated assault. Clifton was sentenced to 30 days in jail and three years probation. Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, said he "had questions about the handling of the case," but that his office had no authority to intervene.[8] Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk defended the plea bargain and accused the news media of misrepresenting the issue. [9]
