I had worked for my state’s Department of State, Bureau of Professional & Occupational Affairs for 23 years. Governor appointment heads of the bureau came and went. Often the “politics” we were affected by were frustrating, but we got through by telling ourselves that it was temporary (either 4 or 8 years, usually).

In my 11th year as Administrator of the Examination and Contract Management Unit, the commissioner of the bureau called me to her office and told me about a meeting she had with two members of the chiropractic board concerning their examination program. They wanted her to issue a sole source contract to a chiropractor to perform their examination, since the board members would no longer be able to administer the examination. I had been working with the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners to get an examination in place that would fulfill the requirements of the law, which clearly stated that professional licensure examinations were to be developed and administered by a “qualified and approved professional testing organization.”

I told her that I thought the board members she met with had put her in a bad position, asking her to do something that wasn’t legal and that violated the Governor’s Office of Administration Contracting for Services procedures. She pooh-poohed my comment and told me to issue a sole source contract for the chiropractor these two board members wanted to administer the practical part of the examination. I told her that I couldn’t do that, as it was in violation of law, as well as in violation of procurement procedures.

Not long after I had to take a short leave of absence to have back surgery. While out for surgery the commissioner reorganized the bureau, abolishing my entire unit. Examination duties were transferred back to board administrators (who knew nothing about examination development, administration, and related subjects - an area of expertise all its’ own), and transferred the contractual part of the process to her office, thereby allowing her to do as she wished.

Being a member of management I knew that I was risking my job by taking a stand for what was right and not agreeing to do what was unlawful, but I wouldn’t change that decision even though I took a demotion and spent the last 7 years of my time with the commonwealth in another agency.

As an aside, a friend of mine who had worked on the then governor’s campaign for many years and was now an elected representative to the state House, went to bat for me to try to right this injustice. He was shocked when the governor wouldn’t even consider listening to what had happened, indicating that he had complete faith in the woman he had appointed secretary of state, the person who had to approve the decision to reorganize the bureau, thereby abolishing the unit I worked in. Not long after, the commissioner of the bureau was asked to resign when some of her political shenanigans came to light and threatened to embarrass the governor.

Sadly, this is only one of many times when decisions were made not because they were right, but because of “politics.” When I retired in 2003 I was glad I wouldn’t have to witness anymore political posturing and wrongdoing.