TowneBank appoints Sen. Norment

By Michael Schwartz / Inside Business

An otherwise benign announcement from the largest bank headquartered in the region had an added tinge of controversy thanks to a recent media blitz involving questions over the actions of a state senator who also serves on the bank’s board of directors.

On Sept. 23, TowneBank appointed Virginia State Sen. Thomas "Tommy" Norment, R-James City County, to its main board of directors. Norment had previously been a director of TowneBank Williamsburg.

Though the appointment was made two weeks earlier, the announcement of the move came in a regulatory filing dated Oct. 8, and was not released until Oct. 14, just days after Norment became entangled in questions from local media investigations regarding his dual role as state senator and paid teacher and legal adviser at the College of William and Mary.

As reported by The Virginian-Pilot on Oct. 10, Norment earns $160,000 a year for teaching two classes and serving as a legal consultant at W&M. Norment also serves as senate minority leader and a senior member of the finance committee, which according to The Pilot writes budgets that affect the purse strings of state schools such as the one that supplements his income.

“During the 2009 Assembly session, six months after going on the college payroll, he sponsored nearly $20 million in spending measures for William and Mary,” The Pilot reported. None of the measures were adopted.

Norment and W&M have since defended the relationship.

The brief TowneBank filing shows the company thought twice before making the announcement, making sure to clear up any conclusions to which some might jump due to the recent controversy surrounding its new board member.

“There are no family relationships between Senator Norment and any director or other executive officer of the company and he was not appointed as a director pursuant to any arrangement or understanding with any person,” TowneBank’s filing said. “Senator Norment has not engaged in any transaction with the company that would be reportable as a related party transaction under the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission.”

This latest issue is not the first time Norment’s relationships with entities potentially affected by his duties as a politician were called into question.

In 2007, Inside Business reported on an electricity regulation bill that moved smoothly through the General Assembly and favored monopoly utility provider Dominion Resources.

One of the chief patrons of that bill and owner of a considerable amount of Dominion stock was Norment, who along with 10 other state legislators who were also Dominion shareholders voted in favor of the legislation.

Norment’s situation stood out not only because he owned between $50,000 and $250,000 in Dominion stock, but he also sat on the Senate Committee for Commerce and Labor, the committee that pushed the bill through for a final floor vote, where it received little dissension.

Immediately after the legislation was quickly and quietly passed, Dominion’s share price peaked twice with two 52-week highs.

Any potential conflicts of interest that come into question for state legislators must be reported and analyzed by the State Senate’s Rules Committee.

Norment at the time of the electricity bill was chairman of that committee. He remains a member of the committee.

Norment joins the 30-member Towne board that also includes other elected officials including Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim and Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms, also president of TowneBank Virginia Beach.