in Houston, Texas

The city has brought on international law firm Bracewell & Giuliani to examine the financial records of the city-approved nonprofit arm of the Houston Airport System, a spokesman from the mayor's office said Friday.

The scrutiny is part of the city's continuing review of the airport nonprofit -- HAS Development Corp. -- which may have spawned as many as nine spinoffs, some of which are incorporated off-shore.

The choice of Houston-based Bracewell gives the city a solid investigative body. It's a firm that has a background in, among other things, international law, internal investigations and white collar crime.

The firm will analyze audited statements and tax forms of HASDC, and the review is still scheduled to be completed by the end of the summer. The mayor called for the investigation in May after the abrupt resignation of airport chief Richard Vacar.

The audited statements were turned over to the mayor's office June 26, although the mayor's office asserted until last week that it did not have them.

Also on Friday, Mayor White spokesman Pat Trahan said the city's Chief Administrative Officer Anthony Hall is "still over the review," a change from previous information he provided.

Trahan told Texas Watchdog Wednesday: "For Mr. Hall to do this would be a conflict of interest," Trahan said. "Anthony is not doing the review."

In an interview Friday, however, Trahan said "if I misspoke... then there was a miscommunication" when he related the status of Hall.

Trahan said that when he spoke to Texas Watchdog of a conflict of interest he was referring to a May 24 column in The Houston Chronicle in which reader posted a comment and used the term "conflict of interest" when describing the sharing of employees between the city's airport system and the HASDC.

The Texas Watchdog reporter taking notes during this interview does not recall the Chronicle even being mentioned at all during the interview. Texas Watchdog stands by its reporting.

Hall had signed off on the Houston airport CEO taking at least one trip on the taxpayer's dime that appears to have aided HASDC.

Questions? Comments? Call Texas Watchdog editor Trent Seibert at 615-289-9549 or 713-9809-9776 or e-mail him at trent@texaswatchdog.org.

Photo of an airplane by flickr user davipt, used via a Creative Commons license.