Lawmakers' luxurious digs still a hot button

Some news stories never die. Case in point: the "rent-to-own" flap involving lawmakers from Tarrant County and beyond.

Critics said the loophole that let legislators pay campaign "rent" to live in condos or houses owned by their spouses was a cute way for lawmakers to buy a second home in Austin. So the Legislature, responding to the controversy, shut down the loophole (see the bill language here). But that didn't end the controversy.

Former Rep. Toby Goodman, R-Arlington, was recently fined $10,000 by the Texas Ethics Commission for allegedly violating the law as it existed before the Legislature changed it. (Goodman say's he's appealing). His case centered in part on the degree to which a spouse’s property had to be separated from the lawmaker in order to qualify for the old loophole.

Now there's fresh criticism of Sen. Kim Brimer, R-Fort Worth, who first discovered the spousal property deal back in 1996. It subsequently became known as the "Brimer Loophole.'' Like Goodman, Brimer helped secure the loan for the property he later rented from his spouse, documents show. And Democratic operative Matt Angle is now calling on Brimer to cough up any profits he and/or his wife might have made when they sold their condo in the Westage Towers (pictured above left) in 2007.

Brimer's campaign did not respond directly to Angle's complaint Monday, saying instead he was simply pushing the story on behalf of Brimer's Democratic opponent, Wendy Davis. Angle said he doesn't work for Davis.

Despite the Legislature’s moves to shut down the spousal rent loophole, the Ethics Commission has the power to take action on past behavior, officials said.

-- Jay Root