CapRadio audit details ‘possible conflicts of interest’ for 5 ex-board members. Here’s who they are

Latest update: Sacramento State on Thursday evening temporarily removed the Capital Public Radio audit from the university’s website, saying “corrections and clarifications” were necessary for information about one of the board members.

Original story:

An audit released this week into financial practices at Capital Public Radio flagged five contracts involving possible conflicts of interest on the part of five different former board members — three more than previously known to the public.

The forensic analysis released Monday of finances at CapRadio, an auxiliary of Sacramento State, found that those three board members were “either a founder or a partner” at businesses that entered into contracts with the station totaling tens of thousands of dollars.

“As such, the contracts with CPR may have provided a financial benefit to the Board members associated with each vendor,” part of the audit reads.

Two of the three board members are partners at two different law firms with offices in Sacramento, according to the audit. The third is the founder of a management consulting firm. All three were among the 14 board members who resigned last October, days after a separate audit revealing vast financial mismanagement was released by the California State University system.

A full analysis of each of the three contracts wasn’t conducted because Sacramento State and the accounting firm agreed to prioritize other forensic analyses, according to the audit completed by accounting firm CliftonLarsonAllen, hired by the university to conduct the independent examination.

The university said it would complete a further review of the documents that would have been evaluated by CliftonLarsonAllen, according to the audit.

Sacramento State President Luke Wood in a Monday message to campus called the facts uncovered in the audit “deeply concerning.” Brian Blomster, a spokesman for Sacramento State, did not return a request for comment. Wood declined an interview request through a university spokeswoman.

At the times of the contracts, there weren’t issues raised about potential conflict of interests in meeting minutes, the audit said.

But Rick Eytcheson, CapRadio’s then-general manager and president who left the role in 2020 and served as president emeritus until 2023, said each contract was properly vetted and the appropriate people recused themselves if necessary. There was transparency in their proceedings, Eytcheson said in a phone interview.

The names of all five board members tied to possible conflicts of interest are redacted in Monday’s audit report. Two of the board members, Katherine Bardis-Miry and Bill Yee, were identified in The Sacramento Bee’s reporting last year.

The Bee determined the identities of two other board members, both attorneys, based on the descriptions of their law firms and their roles described in the audit.

A person knowledgeable of CapRadio’s finances, who wished to remain anonymous because the person was not authorized to speak about the matter, confirmed the identities of those two, as well as the board member who runs a consulting firm.

Andrea Clark

CapRadio retained legal services from Downey Brand, a Sacramento-based law firm focused on natural resources and other civil practices.

A partner at the firm, Andrea Clark, served on the CapRadio’s board of directors starting in October 2018, according to her profile. She assumed the position as board chair in March 2023, which she held until she resigned in October 2023.

The law firm has long been tied to the station, as Downey Brand helped CapRadio become an official NPR affiliate in 1982, according to its website. The law firm’s website says Downey Brand continues to support CapRadio “through underwriting and attorney service on the Board of Directors.”

From January 2019 until May 2023, Downey Brand was paid more than $42,000 for legal services related to “lease negotiations,” the audit said.

However, CLA did not determine whether Clark recused herself from the discussion and votes pertaining to the contract, the audit said.

The audit noted the payments “appear reasonable based on the stated services rendered” for this contract.

“There may be another contract with (Downey Brand) in addition to the contract CLA reviewed,” the audit states. “However, Sacramento State has been unable to locate any other contracts and no further outreach was made to (Downey Brand).”

Clark could not be reached for comment. An automated email response Tuesday said she was out of the office until Friday.

Christopher Russell

Another law firm, Stoel Rives, was paid more than $11,000 for two years while a CapRadio board member was employed at the firm.

Christopher Russell, a partner at Stoel Rives, primarily has expertise in helping “emerging companies” achieve their financial and corporate objectives, according to his biography.

He served on the CapRadio board of directors starting in October 2016, according to his LinkedIn profile page, and was the board’s secretary when he resigned last October.

Stoel Rives, through a Portland-based attorney, helped CapRadio file a trademark application in 2021, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The station entered into a contract with Stoel Rives in October 2020 for “legal services” related to trademark matters, the audit said.

The audit noted that the “payments and contract appear reasonable for the stated services.”

The discussions surrounding the contract were not noted in the minutes from the Board of Directors meeting, executive or the finance committees, the audit said.

Russell did not respond this week to requests for comment.

Steven Weiss

The Weiss Group, described as a management consultant business, was paid $4,000 once in November 2019 to create and plan a retreat for CapRadio’s Board of Directors.

Steven Weiss, another former CapRadio board member, was the founder of the business and served as its CEO when the company was tasked with the retreat’s planning in 2019.

Weiss was not present at a meeting in which board directors agreed to have a retreat, the audit said, because he was not on the board’s executive committee. The meeting minutes for that discussion did not list any conversation about contract details or the prices of services.

Weiss was not on the board at the time his firm coordinated the retreat. He served a term on the board that ended September 2018 and rejoined the board in fall 2020.

After this story was published, Weiss emailed The Bee saying the audit “contains inaccurate information,” and that the indication he and his firm had a conflict of interest is “factually wrong.”

“At no time as a member of the Board of Directors did I or The Weiss Group provide any professional services for compensation,” Weiss wrote. “My term on the board concluded in September 2018. I facilitated one board retreat in September 2019, well after my departure date from the board.”

Katherine Bardis-Miry

The Bee’s previous reporting had identified two board members with whom CapRadio entered contracts that benefited their own business or a spouse.

CapRadio entered into discussions to buy property at two downtown buildings: one at 1010 8th St. and another at 730 I St.

The I Street location was partially owned by Sacramento developer Bay Miry. Miry’s wife, Katherine Bardis-Miry, joined CapRadio’s board of directors around the time the station began formulating plans to expand at 730 I St., the audit said.

Eytcheson, then CapRadio’s general manager, told The Bee last year that Bardis-Miry had no influence on the decision to purchase 730 I St., and that lease negotiations were already underway when she joined the board.

Bardis-Miry has said previously that she recused herself from the discussions about the property.

“The spousal relationship was not noted in the Board meeting minutes,” CLA wrote in Monday’s audit. “The majority of meeting minutes which detail discussions of the 730 I St. lease negotiations do not contain detail as to whether (Bardis-Miry) was recused from the discussions when listed as in attendance at those meetings.”

Bill Yee

Bill Yee, former treasurer for the board, entered into a contract with the station that was negotiated and executed between October 2017 and May 2022 to provide furniture for CapRadio’s new downtown station, according to the audit and The Bee’s previous reporting.

Yee, in an email cited in Monday’s audit, wrote that his company Western Contract offers an aggressive pricing structure and that “there is no need to get information from multiple vendors.”

The audit said the contract with Western Contract “was entered into without evidence of undergoing a competitive bid process,” which the audit further notes is necessary under Sacramento State policy for personal property contracts exceeding $100,000 in value.

The contract’s total agreement was for nearly $127,000 and required a $50,000 deposit. A deposit of $58,365 was paid to Western Contract in January 2022.

Yee excused himself from CapRadio board meetings when discussions arose about creating a contract with his company, according to The Bee’s previous reporting.

Conflict-of-interest statements not found in 2023 audit

Though Eytcheson said the contracts were properly vetted, the 2023 financial audit by the CSU said annual documents that were supposed to track board members’ conflicts of interest could not be located.

“Conflict‐of‐interest (COI) statements for board members were not retained,” a portion of last year’s audit reads, in part.

“The COI policy states that members of the board should complete an annual COI statement. However, CPR could not locate signed statements during the audit period because the staff member responsible for maintaining the statements was on sabbatical leave.”

This story was originally published August 7, 2024 at 6:01 PM.