By John Lyon
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — A public relations expert hired to help revamp the state House of Representatives’ information office says he will recommend the office remain nonpartisan.

House Speaker Robbie Wills, D-Conway, announced this week the hiring of Craig Douglass of Little Rock to develop what Wills called a more comprehensive communications office that will advocate for the membership “instead of merely distributing information.”

The announcement drew criticism from some Republican legislators who questioned whether the office would advocate only the views of Democrats, who control the chamber. Other Republicans endorsed the change.

Douglass, owner of Craig Douglass Communications, told the Arkansas News Bureau on Thursday that politicizing the information office is not on his agenda.
“An effective communications office is, by its nature, nonpartisan, and I would certainly continue to recommend that that be the policy of any new communications office,” he said.

State Rep. Ed Garner, R-Maumelle, said Wednesday he questioned how neutral Douglass would be. Douglass has contributed money in the past to the Democratic Party of Arkansas and several Democratic candidates, including U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor and former presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton.

“If he is indeed a partisan person … it causes concern,” Garner said.

Douglass said he is a Democrat, but “what my politics are and what the goals and objectives of the communications office are are most likely two different things.”
He joked that he is also Episcopalian, but that doesn’t mean the communications office won’t be fair to Methodists.

Douglass has worked as a lobbyist, most recently for El Dorado-based Deltic Timber and the March of Dimes, but he said his main focus has been on public relations, communications and advertising and marketing.

Clients of his communications firm, which he founded in 1993, include the Consumer Protection Division of the state attorney general’s office, the Pulaski County Special School District and Mercedes-Benz of Little Rock.

Douglass previously worked with Wills on a volunteer basis during the development of the state lottery law. He later submitted an unsuccessful bid for the lottery’s advertising contract.

The House will pay Douglass’ firm $5,000 a moth, plus expenses, and a 15 percent commission on any additional contracted work. The contract runs through the end of 2010.

Asked to outline his plans for the communications office, Douglass said, “Probably step one is just a general communications audit, if you will, about how the House is currently communicating and how we can better communicate — not only with the news media, but with the various constituencies of the full membership.”

Douglass said he also will explore how the office can make the best use of new media, such as social networking Web sites.

“Everything else that flows from that would, I guess, manifest itself in a more long-term plan on who does what, how we do it, how we staff it and how we fund it,” he said.