Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday cranked up the pressure on state Auditor Troy Kelley to resign.
Inslee sent Kelley a letter calling his planned leave of absence “insufficient because the ongoing federal criminal proceedings will continue to cloud your office’s image, reputation, and ability to properly function.”
And Inslee told reporters Friday morning that Kelley needed to “step up to the plate” and make the difficult decision to leave office.
“We don’t have an auditor at the moment,” Inslee said. “The auditor has said that he’s not going to serve for some indefinite period that he can decide. That is not acceptable to the people of the state of Washington.
“It is not acceptable for someone to say he is not going to do the job until he decides to get back to us,” Inslee said. “Therefore he needs to resign and allow the state’s interests to be protected.”
Kelley, 50, faces a 10-count federal indictment including charges he stole money from former business clients, filed false tax returns and obstructed justice by lying to federal investigators.
Kelley pleaded not guilty to the charges Thursday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma. At a press conference he denied wrongdoing and said he intended to resume his duties after an unspecified leave of absence.
If Kelley did resign, Inslee would appoint someone to fill the post. The governor said his staff has not taken any formal steps in that direction yet.
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