SEANC settles records suit with Treasurer's Office

A group that represents state employees said Tuesday that it has settled a 4-year-old public records lawsuit against the North Carolina State Treasurer's Office.

The State Employees Association of North Carolina said it dismissed its suit because State Treasurer Janet Cowell has sufficiently satisfied the group’s records request.

The suit stemmed from records requests filed by SEANC in March and October 2007 after an article in Forbes magazine suggested that former Treasurer Moore had engaged in pay-to-play tactics regarding investments he made with state employees’ pensions.

Moore called the lawsuit frivolous and suggested it was politically motivated since he was running for governor at the time.

A judge dismissed the suit in July 2008, but the state Supreme Court overturned that decision two years later in a unanimous decision.

“This is a victory for anyone who believes in open government,” SEANC Executive Director Dana Cope said in a statement. “We fought to ensure that our members’ pensions weren’t being used to further Richard Moore’s political ambitions. While we do not believe we received all the records we requested, we feel confident we have now obtained sufficient records to address our concerns.

"At the end of the day, it indeed seems like there were questions about some of Moore’s activities," Cope said.

WRAL was trying to contact Moore Tuesday evening for a comment.