AUGUSTA – Lawmakers in both parties Thursday charged Senate President Beverly Daggett with abusing the power of her office by blocking a law that will increase state government accountability.

When the Senate convenes next Tuesday, Sen. Edward Youngblood, R-Brewer, said he’ll propose an order requiring Daggett to appoint members to a newly formed committee charged with overseeing the new Office of Program Evaluation and Governmental Accountability.

Daggett acknowledged she is delaying the oversight effort by refusing to make the appointments. An Augusta Democrat, Daggett said she is concerned the new office will have inappropriate access to information that is now confidential and that its powers will be “too far-reaching.”

She said her opponents are trying to “blackmail” her by talking to newspaper editorial boards and not negotiating with her.

Youngblood countered that Daggett’s stall tactic “is an abuse of her power.”

Even some members of Daggett’s party expressed frustration with her actions. Sen. Peggy Pendleton, D-Scarborough, said that while she respects the office of the Senate president, “If one person doesn’t agree with the legislation, that person shouldn’t block things, no matter who you are.”

Last year, after a series of accounting blunders were revealed in the Department of Education and Department of Human Services, legislators approved spending $300,000 a year to create OPEGA, staffed by non-partisan, independent professionals to assess the effectiveness of state programs.

Most legislators favored the program, saying they lacked the time to know if taxpayers are getting their money’s worth out of state programs. “We have no tool to find out what the heck is going on in the agencies we oversee,” said Sen. Peggy Pendleton, D-Scarborough.

Maine has had no organized review of state programs since 1994. Forty-four other states already have programs like OPEGA.

The OPEGA law requires the House speaker and the Senate president to each appoint six members to the oversight committee.

House Speaker Patrick Colwell, a fellow Democrat from Gardiner, appointed his six members in May. Colwell said he’s disappointed the delay in appointing the committee has prevented creation of the new office. “I’ve done all I can do,” he said.

In an interview, Daggett said she’s uncomfortable with proposed changes to OPEGA and is worried that once the program is up and running more changes will be made giving it too much power.

Last year legislators agreed on details of the new program, but since then some have pushed for more changes, drifting from the agreement, Daggett said. One proposed amendment, she said, would have opened confidential records about state workers, agencies and companies that do business with the state to not only the 12 legislators who oversee OPEGA, but to all lawmakers.

“I don’t believe we need to have people’s health records and income. … The language would allow (legislators) to go after employees, every corporation” that does business with the state as well as school districts, she said.

But other lawmakers disagreed with Daggett’s interpretation of the amendment, which was later killed, with Doug Rooks of Colwell’s office calling her concerns “phantom” issues.

Youngblood predicted he’ll have enough support in the Senate on Tuesday to pass his order directing Daggett to make the appointments.

“This passed both chambers,” Youngblood said, referring to the original OPEGA law. “If you’re the chair you don’t always get things to go your way. She’s obligated to do what the majority wants, whether she likes the bill or not.”

Asked if she would comply with the order if it passes, Daggett replied, “We’ll see.”

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