by KYW's Tony Romeo

Governor Rendell (file photo above) says he doesn’t see the need to hire a private investigator to probe one of his friends who failed to properly register before lobbying on behalf of a film company. 

Dauphin County Republican Jeffrey Piccola, chairman of the Senate State Government Committee, says he plans to hire an investigator to probe the actions of a film company, Lionsgate, and of a Pittsburgh lobbyist for the firm who failed to properly register before she began seeking tax credits for the film industry that were ultimately signed into law. When asked about Piccola’s move, Governor Rendell quipped:

“You know, the last person who hired a private detective to look into something in the state Senate, I think got indicted for it, didn’t he? That was one of the charges in the indictment, no, I’m only kidding.”

A state contract given to a private investigator for alleged personal and political missions was one of the matters raised in the indictment of Philadelphia state Senator Vincent Fumo. The Governor, meanwhile, says he doesn’t believe a private eye is necessary to conduct a probe of the lobbyist flap.