Mayor Fischer's fundraiser Tommy Elliott has clout

Written by Dan Klepal The Courier-Journal
Raised money and directed mayoral appointments
The man responsible for raising millions of dollars for Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer’s 2010 campaign has spent the past year advising Fischer on whom he should appoint to about 100 boards and commissions, including the Metropolitan Sewer District, suburban fire districts and the police merit board.
Tommy Elliott, a senior vice president at Old National Bank, worked as chairman of Fischer’s mayoral campaign that raised more than $2 million, and was co-chairman of Fischer’s inauguration fundraising that brought in an additional $290,000 to pay for those events.
But when the inauguration ended, Elliott’s role with the administration expanded — even as he kept his duties as the mayor’s chief fundraiser.

 Although he wasn’t employed in any official capacity by Louisville metro government, Elliott led the effort to find more than 200 appointees to many of the city’s boards. Roughly one-quarter of those appointed were also contributors to the mayor, potentially blurring the lines between policy and fundraising.
Elliott also advised Fischer on other city business, including the sometimes contentious negotiations with the would-be developers of the Kentucky Kingdom amusement park who were seeking city funding so the park could reopen.
Elliott offered his advice on that deal despite soliciting and receiving $10,000 for the inauguration from Ed Hart, the person granted development rights to Kentucky Kingdom. Hart himself gave $2,000 toward the inauguration and gathered a group of six other people to cover the rest.
And Elliott’s role as an unpaid adviser has been kept entirely out of the public’s view — Fischer never mentioned Elliott in the many public statements made during the Kentucky Kingdom negotiations, nor was the public or the Louisville Metro Council told by administration officials of Elliott’s role in finding appointees.

Mayor's spokesman says Elliott no longer adviser

Fischer spokesman Chris Poynter said Thursday that Elliott no longer has an advisory role in the administration and that the job of vetting appointments has been given to Ron Weston, a metro government employee who is a special assistant in Fischer’s Intergovernmental Affairs Department.
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