Hitch Mulling Recusal
On Okie Ag Board Vote

OKLAHOMA CITY —(AP)— The Oklahoma attorney general's office wants to keep Paul Hitch, a member of the state Agriculture Board, from voting on matters dealing with a company that buys his hogs.

But Hitch said Monday he may just recuse himself without any legal prodding.

``I'm mulling that over. I don't know that I want to put the board in the position of having to vote on whether to disqualify me,'' Hitch said.

Hitch Enterprises, a major Panhandle livestock enterprise, sells $10 million worth of hogs to Seaboard each year, according to an eight-page motion filed by the attorney general's office.

Neal Leader, senior assistant attorney, filed a motion seeking Hitch's recusal with the state Agriculture Department on Monday.

The attorney general's office, representing the state Wildlife Department, wants to keep Hitch from voting Wednesday when the ag board decides on a license for Dorman Farms, a Seaboard-operated facility that intends to house 25,000 sows at a Beaver County site.

Hitch, who said his companies sell about 215,000 hogs to Seaboard annually, also leases 28 large hog barns to the company and is responsible for disposing of waste from the barns.

In the past, Hitch has voted for items related to Seaboard that did not directly relate to his business agreement with the largest hog producer in the state.

``Seaboard has never offered to reward me for my voting the way they wanted me to, and they've never threatened to punish me for my vote,'' Hitch said.

``There are suspicious members of the public who don't believe what I say, anyway. Obviously, Hitch Enterprises has gotten a lot of money from Seaboard, but they've gotten a lot of pigs from me.

``If I were going to vote my pocketbook, I would try to keep (Dorman) from getting a license, because it means more competition for me,'' Hitch pointed out.