Minutes March 21, 2017 MINUTES OF THE OPEN SESSION OF THE RHODE ISLAND ETHICS COMMISSION March 21, 2017 The Rhode Island Ethics Commission held its 3rd meeting of 2017 at 9:00 a.m. at the Rhode Island Ethics Commission conference room, located at 40 Fountain Street, 8th Floor, Providence, Rhode Island, on Tuesday, March 21, 2017, pursuant to the notice published at the Commission offices, the State House Library, and electronically with the Rhode Island Secretary of State. The following Commissioners were present: Ross Cheit, Chair John D. Lynch, Jr. Marisa A. Quinn, Vice Chair James V. Murray Mark B. Heffner Also present were Edmund L. Alves, Jr., Commission Legal Counsel; Kent A. Willever, Commission Executive Director; Katherine D’Arezzo, Senior Staff Attorney; Jason Gramitt, Education Coordinator/Staff Attorney; Staff Attorneys Teresa Giusti and Teodora Popova Papa; and Commission Investigator Gary V. Petrarca. At 9:08 a.m., the Chair opened the meeting. The first order of business was: Approval of minutes of the Open Session held on February 7, 2017. Upon motion made by Commissioner Quinn and duly seconded by Commissioner Murray, it was unanimously VOTED: To approve minutes of the Open Session held on February 7, 2017. The next order of business was: Advisory Opinions. The advisory opinions were based on draft advisory opinions prepared by Commission Staff for review by the Commission and were scheduled as items on the Open Session Agenda for this date. The first two advisory opinions on the agenda were presented together. The first advisory opinion was that of: The Honorable K. Joseph Shekarchi, a state legislator serving in the Rhode Island House of Representatives, requests an advisory opinion regarding whether he may receive complimentary airfare, hotel accommodations, daily reimbursement for expenses, conference registration, tickets to an awards dinner and the opportunity to direct a prize of $5,000 to the charity of his choice, in order to accept an award for “Excellence in Advocacy by an Elected Official” at the National Council for Behavioral Health Conference being held in Washington State. Commissioner Murray informed the Commission that the Petitioner, in his private capacity as an attorney, previously represented him in a real estate matter. The second advisory opinion was that of: The Honorable Stephen R. Archambault, a state legislator serving in the Rhode Island Senate, requests an advisory opinion regarding whether he may receive complimentary airfare, hotel accommodations, daily reimbursement for expenses, conference registration, tickets to an awards dinner and the opportunity to direct a prize of $5,000 to the charity of his choice, in order to accept an award for “Excellence in Advocacy by an Elected Official” at the National Council for Behavioral Health Conference being held in Washington State. Staff Attorney Gramitt advised the Commission that, because these two advisory opinions were based on identical facts and the Commission Staff’s recommendation was the same for both, he would present both together to the Commission. The Petitioners were present. Discussion ensued. Both Petitioners expressed appreciation and commendation for the work of the Commission and its staff. Commissioner Heffner expressed concern over the Commission’s interpretation of the gift regulation, Regulation 36-14-5009, as it relates to the Petitioners’ ability to accept the waiver of fees to attend the conference but not the payment of airfare, hotel accommodations, and the like from an interested party. Staff Attorney Gramitt explained that the line between those items is one that the Commission has drawn in past advisory opinions. Chair Cheit provided the example of a conference being held in Honolulu, Hawaii, and explained that, if the Commission interpreted Regulation 5009 to permit a public official to accept payment of airfare to and hotel accommodations in Honolulu, this would raise an issue as to whether the funds are going to support only the educational content of the conference or a free vacation. Chair Cheit stated that, by drawing this bright line, the Commission does not have to make case-by-case decisions as to when it is acceptable to accept the payment of airfare, for example, and when it is not. Commissioner Quinn stated that she would not want to make decisions on a case-by-case basis as to whether a petitioner should be permitted to accept the payment of airfare and the like, because such decisions are subjective. She added that the General Assembly could pay for travel in these types of situations. In response to Chair Cheit, Staff Attorney Gramitt explained that there is no monetary limit under the regulation as to the amount that a public official may give to a charity of choice, as long as the official does not receive any financial benefit, such as a tax deduction, for doing so. Uponmotion made by Commissioner Quinn and duly seconded by Commissioner Murray, it was unanimously VOTED: (1) To issue an advisory opinion, attached hereto, to The Honorable K. Joseph Shekarchi, a state legislator serving in the Rhode Island House of Representatives. (2) To issue an advisory opinion, attached hereto, to The Honorable Stephen R. Archambault, a state legislator serving in the Rhode Island Senate. The next advisory opinion was that of: Beverly Burgess, the Chairperson of the North Providence Historic District Commission, requests an advisory opinion as to whether, upon recusal, she may attend and speak at a public hearing before the North Providence Historic District Commission regarding a proposed development of property that directly abuts her personal residence. Staff Attorney Popova Papa presented the Commission Staff recommendation. The Petitioner was present. Upon motion made by Commissioner Murray and duly seconded by Commissioner Lynch, it was unanimously VOTED: To issue an advisory opinion, attached hereto, to Beverly Burgess, the Chairperson of the North Providence Historic District Commission. The next advisory opinion was that of: Susan E. Gardiner, a former Legislative Fiscal Analyst for the Rhode Island State Senate, requests an advisory opinion regarding the application of the revolving door provisions of the Code of Ethics, given her new employment as the Director of Policy and Business Development for the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council. Staff Attorney Popova Papa presented the Commission Staff recommendation. The Petitioner was present. Upon motion made by Commissioner Lynch and duly seconded by Commissioner Quinn, it was unanimously VOTED: To issue an advisory opinion, attached hereto, to Susan E. Gardiner, a former Legislative Fiscal Analyst for the Rhode Island State Senate. The final advisory opinion was that of: Nicole H.B. Barnard, formerly an Assistant Labor Relations Hearing Officer in the Human Resources Division of the Rhode Island Department of Administration, a state employee position, requests an advisory opinion as to whether she may represent union members in hearings before her former agency. Staff Attorney Gramitt presented the Commission Staff recommendation. The Petitioner was present. The Petitioner addressed the Commission and argued that the prohibition should not apply to persons like her who had only been employed in her previous position for six months. The prohibition period as applied to her is twice as long as the time she was employed. The Petitioner also stated that she must bring along another attorney to all types of meetings because the Department of Administration (“DOA”) is sending its representatives to all different departments. In response to Chair Cheit, the Petitioner explained that she is a relatively new attorney and neither she nor anyone at Rhode Island Council 94, her new employer, was aware of this prohibition. The Petitioner stated that there is a backlog of cases due to the passing away of her predecessor. She also informed that, because she must bring another attorney with her to all meetings, these other attorneys cannot get their work done. In response to Commissioner Quinn, Staff Attorney Gramitt stated that the Code of Ethics does not specifically address the duration of previous employment, but the prohibition is for one year. He noted that the Petitioner has approximately three months left before the one-year prohibition expires. Commissioner Lynch asked how it is considered appearing before the DOA if people just show up and participate peripherally. He further expressed that he would be comfortable with saying that the Petitioner cannot appear before the DOA for grievance hearings but could appear before other departments even if DOA representatives are involved. Staff Attorney Gramitt informed that the draft advisory opinion could be amended to reflect this change. Chair Cheit noted that he and Legal Counsel Alves would review the amended draft. Upon motion made by Commissioner Lynch and duly seconded by Commissioner Murray, it was unanimously VOTED: To issue an advisory opinion, as amended and attached hereto, to Nicole H. B. Barnard, formerly an Assistant Labor Relations Hearing Officer in the Human Resources Division of the Rhode Island Department of Administration. The next order of business was: Director’s Report. Executive Director Willever reported that there were five (5) complaints and ten (10) advisory opinions pending. He stated that five (5) APRA requests were received since the last meeting, all of which were granted within one business day. In response to Chair Cheit, Executive Director Willever stated that the five (5) pending complaints did not include any financial disclosure matters initiated by Commission Staff. Executive Session. At 10:03 a.m., upon motion made by Commissioner Heffner and duly seconded by Commissioner Quinn, it was unanimously VOTED: To go into Executive Session, to wit: 1. Motion to approve the minutes of the Executive Session held on February 7, 2017. 2.In re: Francis X. Flaherty, Complaint No. 2016-14, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) and (4). 3. Motion to return to Open Session. At 10:11 a.m., the Commission reconvened in Open Session. The next order of business was: Motion to seal minutes of Executive Session held on March 21, 2017. Upon motion made by Commissioner Quinn and duly seconded by Commissioner Murray, it was unanimously VOTED: To seal minutes of the Executive Session held on March 21, 2017. The next order of business was: Report on Actions Taken in Executive Session. Chair Cheit reported that the Commission took the following actions in Executive Session: 1. Unanimously voted (5-0) to approve the minutes of the Executive Session held on February 7, 2017. 2. Unanimously voted (5-0) in the matter of In re: Francis X. Flaherty, Complaint No. 2016-14, to grant a Motion to Enlarge Time, First Extension. The final order of business was: New Business. There was no new business. At 10:13 a.m., upon motion made and duly seconded, it was unanimously VOTED: To adjourn. Respectfully submitted, ______________________________Robert A. Salk Secretary