Wilson Names Former Aide to Hoover Panel

Gov. Pete Wilson on Wednesday named to a government watchdog commission a former top Administration official who was pressured to resign after being accused of abusing his official powers.

Carl Covitz, who for two years was Wilson’s secretary for business, transportation and housing, will join the Commission on California State Government Organization and Economy, commonly known as the Little Hoover Commission.

The commission, whose members do not receive a salary, investigates the efficiency and effectiveness of state government programs.

Covitz, 54, a Los Angeles real estate developer and longtime Wilson political fund-raiser, resigned from the governor’s cabinet in December after two tumultuous years as head of the state’s largest agency.

Among other things, he was criticized for using California Highway Patrol officers as chauffeurs on more than 40 occasions--including commutes between his Downtown Los Angeles office and his home--and for hitching a ride on a Department of Transportation helicopter to view a parade staged for soldiers returning from the Persian Gulf War.

Under investigation by an Assembly committee probing his performance, Covitz also reimbursed the state for more than $700 of personal calls on state lines, including many to his business partner.

Dan Schnur, Wilson’s top spokesman, defended Covitz’s record in office and noted that Covitz served on former President Ronald Reagan’s Grace Commission, which studied waste in government. Schnur said Wilson was well aware that the appointment of Covitz would draw fire from the same people who criticized his tenure in office.

“Some politicians might ditch a loyal public servant at the first hint of controversy, but that’s not Pete Wilson’s style,” Schnur said. “Pete Wilson sticks by people who give their all for the public good.”

But Assemblywoman Jackie Speier (D-Burlingame), who led the legislative effort to investigate Covitz, said Wilson “obviously sees some skills in Mr. Covitz that I’m not familiar with.”

Speier said she hopes Covitz will perform on the Little Hoover Commission with the zeal of the converted.

“I’ve got to believe that, like the reformed smoker who becomes the biggest advocate against smoking, Mr. Covitz, having recognized the mistakes he made as agency secretary, will in earnest utilize his business acumen to assist the state in promoting government efficiency,” she said.