THE WEAPONIZATION OF TRANSPARENCY

 

There is a relatively new political tactic being utilized by local Republican office holders called “the weaponization of ethics.” This scheme is used by elected officials and their supporters to take positive precepts like “transparency” and weaponize them against political opponents. The sad part is that the attackers ignore the same standards in their own decision- making.

There is even an acronym to describe this hypocritical behavior. DARVO stands for “Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender.” It describes the act of evading responsibility for an elected official’s own behavior while criticizing another.

According to Merriam-Webster, within the political context, transparency is “Being honest, open, and clear without hiding information.” It is the obligation of governments to share information, without delay. Transparency forms the bedrock of democratic accountability. Elected officials are expected to proactively make their internal decisions visible and understandable.

As reported in last week’s Observer Reporter, the ongoing conflict between Washington County’s Republican Commissioners Nick Sherman and Electra Janis, and the head of the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency (Tourism), Jeff Kotula has resurfaced. There is no better example to illustrate my views on the misuse of transparency. In Washington County Republican politics, the weaponization of the word “transparency” is a common practice.

By way of background, as detailed in this newspaper, in May of 2025, despite stellar performance by Tourism, the Republican Commissioners voted 2-1 to freeze monthly distributions of the hotel tax (roughly $150,000 per month). There was a last-minute reprieve after minority Commissioner Larry Maggi argued that the vote violated the state's Sunshine Law. The freeze was delayed.

In December of 2025, the Observer Reporter disclosed that Sherman and Janis proposed changing the tourism distribution structure entirely. They planned to divert 75% of the hotel tax money into a joint fund to build a sports recreation and convention center—a move Maggi opposed and Kotula warned could violate state law. No immediate action was taken.

Tourism has consistently rejected the Commissioners' demand for internal documents, stating that they are an independent non-profit and have already provided over two decades' worth of required audits to county officials. In August, Sherman and Janis voted to hire outside legal counsel at $200 an hour to challenge Tourism’s position. Washington County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Lucas rejected the County's request. He affirmed the state Office of Open Records' decision that Tourism is not a government body subject to open-records laws. This decision is apparently on appeal at taxpayers’ expense.

On Oct. 1, we learned that tempers flared dramatically during a heated public board meeting. Sherman moved to place $2.5 million in annual hotel tax revenue into a "special fund" rather than distributing it to Tourism, citing a continued “lack of financial transparency.” Janis agreed and Maggi objected.

While transparency had been cited before, it was now the focus in the Republican effort to have additional documents provided by Tourism, beyond the state required audits. Sherman was quoted as stating to Maggi “We have always worked together on transparency.” (If only this were true.)

Finally, on October 7, the Observer Reporter updated its readers on the action taken by the Republican County Treasurer, Tom Flickinger. He sided with the Republican Commissioners. In a written statement he proclaimed, “Full transparency in this age of fraud and mismanagement is required to instill trust and accountability of taxpayers’ funds.”

Republican attempts to make transparency the issue in this dispute are an affront to Kotula’s impeccable reputation and nonsensical. Tourism has complied with all disclosure requirements under the law and offered to meet with the Commissioners to work out any differences. The Republican majority has refused.

This controversy is simply an attempt by Sherman and Janis to bring a large pool of hotel tax money under their political control.  These funds should remain independent, free from political maneuvering to ensure public accountability.

Pennsylvania officials recently released statistics that showed last year Tourism’s efforts resulted in a Washington County record of $804.5 million in visitor spending. While weaponizing transparency for their own purposes, the Republican Commissioners have consistently conducted county business with minimal transparency. On the Tourism issue, they have failed to inform taxpayers how they would internally duplicate these extraordinary results.

Another example occurred at the most recent Commissioners’ meeting. When Maggi attempted to question legal expenditures related to the county payment of $346,687 in the Jan. 2024 ransomware attack, he was ignored. Moreover, taxpayers remain in the dark concerning the total cost to the county and the agencies and individuals who were compromised

Also, early in the Republican administration, the majority commissioners voted to select the Motorola Solutions radio contract proposal after canceling the previous significantly less expensive contract. The county had already spent $8.5 million on equipment that could not be repurposed. How much did this ill-advised switch cost taxpayers and what is the final outlay? What is the status of this project?

At the March over-hyped and under-attended Real Estate Expo sponsored by Sherman and Janis, there was a brief Q&A session. I asked Sherman his position on data centers. His non-transparent answer was, “I will stay in my lane.” Sherman refused to share his views on one of the most important issues facing county residents.

There are other examples where Janis and Sherman have spent public funds while avoiding transparency. Their hypocritical weaponization of the term has unfortunately become the norm in Washington County.