Hiring of senator's son drawing fire
Kane development post funded by state money
By Bob Bernick Jr.
Deseret News
Published: July 23, 2008
Kanab economic development officials say everything was above board in their hiring of a state senator's son for an $80,000 a year job after the Legislature funded the position.
Kelly Stowell, son of Sen. Dennis Stowell, R-Parowan, was hired last week as a special consultant/executive director for southwestern Utah's Center for Education, Business and the Arts, located in Kanab. Sen. Stowell represents Kanab and surrounding counties and supported the funding for CEBA.
In addition to his base salary, Kelly Stowell can earn another $20,000 if certain goals are met over the next year, said Christina Schultz, chairwoman of CEBA.
A number of state senators received an e-mail Tuesday complaining about Kelly Stowell's hiring. A July 14 story in The Spectrum, a St. George newspaper, has on its Web site a posted comment that makes the same allegations as the e-mail: that Kelly Stowell is unqualified for the position and that Sen. Stowell helped get CEBA a $125,000 grant funded by the 2008 Legislature that provided the money to hire a new consultant/executive director.
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