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CHARLESTON - Mark Scott, the cabinet secretary for the Department of Administration, offered his resignation last week following a meeting where he was confronted with allegations of soliciting campaign donations from lobbyists while on the clock.
That is according to Gov. Jim Justice, who was asked about Scott's impending resignation Thursday afternoon during the governor's weekly administration briefing from the State Capitol Building.
This paper broke the news Tuesday that Scott had offered his resignation last week to Justice. The resignation is effective July 31. According to the Governor's Office, Scott has been on vacation. Attempts to reach Scott have not been successful, though the Governor's Office released a resignation letter to Justice dated July 22.
"I am incredibly grateful for the opportunities that I have been given in the past," Scott said. "I would also like to thank you for being supportive of my professional growth in State Government. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with the State and wanted to thank you for the opportunity to work with the State of West Virginia."
While Scott served as cabinet secretary, he also served as chairman of Conservative Policy Action, a federal 527 super PAC that endorsed and spent money on behalf of several Republican candidates during the 2024 primaries leading up to May 14. Conservative Policy Action made the announcement of Scott's chairmanship on Feb. 27 on its Facebook page.
Multiple lobbyists who declined to be identified confirmed they received campaign solicitations from Scott during work hours. Some of these lobbyists complained to Brian Abraham, Justice's chief of staff. Justice confirmed these conversations between Abraham and lobbyists.
"Brian said to me 'we may have an issue here and what do you want us to do and how do you want us to handle this,'" Justice said. "There is a possibility here that Mark Scott was doing stuff on government time that was basically solicitation of some campaign funds and campaign dollars. I said get to the bottom of it. We don't do stuff like that."
Scott was called into a meeting last week with Abraham and Justice regarding the allegations. Justice said he thinks a lot of Scott but believes that Scott may have gone too far. Scott offered his resignation to Justice at the end of that meeting.
"He thought he was doing it exactly the way it should be done and exactly by the book," Justice said. "He said 'look, I'm not going to cause the governor embarrassment or a problem. Really and truly, if I messed up and crossed the line...then I'm going to resign.' So he resigned.
"I believe he got out probably over his skis and maybe messed up and everything," Justice continued. "With all of that being said, I wish him the very best and I think Mark Scott is a good man."
John McHugh, the deputy secretary of the Department of Administration, will serve as interim secretary of the department which oversees 16 agencies and divisions that provide support services for state departments.
According to the Election Booklet published by the state Ethics Commission overseen by the Department of Administration, there are no prohibitions on a public official or subordinates from working with or leading private groups that solicit campaign donations. But the Ethics Act does prohibit solicitation of campaign donations using public resources.
Justice appointed Scott as cabinet secretary for the Department of Administration effective Nov. 1, 2021. Scott is a retired businessman and a former Elkins City Council member and Randolph County Commission president. Scott has also been active in state Republican Party politics for decades.
According to Federal Election Commission records, Conservative Policy Action was created on Jan. 25, 2023. According to the group's website, Matthew Parker is its executive director. Parker is a Weirton native who splits his time between Tulsa, Okla., and Triadelphia.
"Mark Scott has a long history in West Virginia raising funds for conservative causes and volunteered to help Conservative Policy Action during the primary election in West Virginia," Parker said in a statement Thursday evening. "He volunteered his personal time and resources for these purposes and indicated that he had clearance ethically to do so. We have no reason to believe that he did otherwise; nonetheless, to avoid distracting from our missions, Mark has resigned his position with our organization and is moving on in the private sector with new business opportunities. We wish him the best. Conservative Policy Action will continue to grow and work on electing governing conservatives in West Virginia."
A 527 super PAC is any group organized to influence an election. These groups cannot donate or coordinate with political candidates, but they can spend money in support of candidates or to oppose candidates. There are also no reporting limits on how much a person or group can donate to the super PAC.
Conservative Policy Action did not receive any campaign donations until the end of 2023, when it received $50,000 from BC Holdings LLC, owned by Bluefield businessman and former Republican Senate president Bill Cole; and Aumon Corp. By the end of June, the super PAC raised an additional $227,337 during the first six months of 2024, with $173,175 coming since April.
The group, which filed no independent expenditure reports with the West Virginia Secretary of State's Office, spent most of its money on behalf of state Economic Development Authority Executive Director Kris Warner, a GOP candidate for secretary of state. Conservative Policy Action spent more than $225,000 during the reporting period either supporting Kris Warner or opposing former Democrat-turned-Republican lawmaker Doug Skaff.
Conservative Policy Action also spent money opposing state Sen. Robert Karnes, R-Randolph, in his primary race with local economic development official Robbie Morris. Karnes was defeated in that race by Morris in the May primary. The group spent money on behalf of Del. Jonathan Pinson, R-Mason.