CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's appointment of Art Kirkendoll to fill his vacant Senate seat has drawn some discontentment among constituents in the 7th Senatorial District.

One concern is that Kirkendoll, who did not seek re-election last year after 30 years of service as a Logan County commissioner, is in a position to triple-dip: His Senate salary ($20,000 base, plus at least 30 additional days of per-diems at $150 a day for $4,500, plus $131 a day in expenses), his county pension through the CPRB (about $21,400 a year), and his work as a paid consultant to the county commission (reportedly, at $4,000 per month.)

Kirkendoll's financial disclosure form filed with the Ethics Commission following his Senate appointment lists no regular employment, but two sources of income more than $1,000 -- his pension and fees as a consultant.

Coincidentally, Kirkendoll is one of the first public officials to file the new expanded disclosure form under ethics legislation passed in the 2011 regular session.

The new forms require disclosure of spousal income and financial interests, and disclosure of public-sector employment of any adult children.

In that category, Kirkendoll discloses that son Brian is employed by state Treasurer John Perdue, and by the city of Chapmanville (where he is a city councilman).

Brian Kirkendoll, whose state salary is $45,200, is part of the army of Local Government Specialists that Perdue has hired over the years.

Specialists with Logan County connections also include Alvis Porter Jr., ($41,808 salary), son of the retired circuit clerk.

And, of course, Perdue's deputy treasurer, Danny Ellis ($93,712 salary), is Kirkendoll's successor on the Logan County Commission.

(Some suggest that Kirkendoll's announcement that he would not seek re-election in 2010 was purposely timed just days before the candidate filing deadline to assure that Ellis would not face serious opposition in the primary.)

Perdue hired Ellis in May 2010, resolving a dilemma for the then-commissioner candidate. At the time, Ellis was employed in a dual role as assistant secretary of transportation and business manager for the Division of Highways. The issue was that, under state law, highways employees are prohibited from running for any public office.

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The Ethics Commission has given former state Board of Dental Examiners executive secretary Marc Harman the green light to serve as a paid lobbyist for the board in the upcoming legislative session.

Harman, a former delegate and longtime lobbyist for entities other than the board, resigned as executive secretary on June 30, one day ahead of the enactment of the so-called Puccio amendment to the Ethics Act, which bars state elected officials and top aides from becoming lobbyists for one year after leaving public service.

If he is retained by the board as a lobbyist, Harman said he will be pushing next session for revisions to what he called antiquated sections of the state Dental Practice Act.

General provisions in the law were last revised in 2001, while the section on rules for administering anesthesia or sedation to patients has not been updated since 1986.

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Speaking of county elections, word that longtime Kanawha County assessor Phyllis Gatson will retire at the end of this term has possible candidates already lining up.

Chesapeake Mayor Damron Bradshaw has already filed pre-candidacy papers (pre-candidacies don't mean much, except they allow would-be candidates to start fund-raising), while Martin Castleberry, who unsuccessfully challenged Gaston, is rumored to be strongly considering a run.

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Finally, Secretary of State Natalie Tennant isn't one to get bullied very often, but does admit she felt set up at a recent conference on Internet voting in New Britain, Conn.

Tennant was invited to the symposium to discuss West Virginia's pilot project to allow members of the military and others living overseas to vote in statewide elections via the Internet. She noted that 2010 tests of the system had worked flawlessly, and were well received by the participants.

After her presentation, two other panelists, MIT professor Ron Rivest and University of Michigan professor Alex Halderman, teamed up against her, blasting Internet voting, contending it is impossible to design a secure, hacker-free online voting system.

Rivest, according to news accounts, called Internet voting an oxymoron, like "safe cigarette."

Political scientist William Kelleher, who has an Internet blog "Internet Voting for All," titled his account of the exchange, "Cyber-bullying in Connecticut."

Not being a computer expert, Tennant said she could defend online voting from a policy standpoint, but not on the technical issues.

Tennant said, at first, she assumed that the panel was balanced, and that there would be computer experts who could offer a positive perspective on online security, but said she quickly realized the panel was stacked against her.

Nonetheless, Tennant stands by her position that states should continue to pursue online voting as a way to assure that residents serving on active military duty overseas don't end up being disenfranchised.

Reach Phil Kabler at ph...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1220.