Advisory Opinion No. 2009-20 Rhode Island Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion No. 2009-20 Re: Robert Coulter QUESTION PRESENTED The Petitioner, a member of the Tiverton Budget Committee, a municipal elected position, requests an advisory opinion regarding: 1) whether he may participate in Budget Committee matters regarding the School Committee budget, given that his wife is a School Committee member who receives a stipend for her service; and 2) whether he may participate as an elector at the Tiverton Financial Town meeting in matters regarding the School Committee budget. RESPONSE It is the opinion of the Ethics Commission that the Petitioner, a member of the Tiverton Budget Committee, a municipal elected position: 1) may participate in Budget Committee matters regarding the School Committee budget generally, but must recuse from discussion and voting regarding School Committee members’ stipends, given that his wife is a School Committee member who receives a stipend for her service, in accordance with Commission Regulation 5004(b)(3); and 2) may participate as an elector at the Tiverton Financial Town meeting in matters regarding the School Committee budget. The Petitioner is a newly elected member of the Tiverton Budget Committee (“Budget Committee”). Additionally, he states that his spouse is a member of the Tiverton School Committee (“School Committee”) and that she receives a $100 monthly stipend for her service, an item that is included as part of the School Committee’s budget. He represents that the School Committee transmits its recommended budget to the Budget Committee for consideration. After the Budget Committee has finalized its recommendations regarding the School Committee budget, the Budget Committee then presents its recommendations to the electors at the annual Tiverton Financial Town meeting. The Petitioner further states that, pursuant to the Home Rule Charter for the Town of Tiverton, it is the electors who actually approve the town budget at the Financial Town meeting, not the members of the School Committee or the Budget Committee. Given this set of facts, the Petitioner requests an advisory opinion as to: 1) whether he may participate in Budget Committee matters regarding the School Committee budget, given that his wife is a School Committee member who receives a stipend for her service; and 2) whether he may participate as an elector at the Tiverton Financial Town meeting in matters regarding the School Committee budget. In regard to the Petitioner’s first question about the prohibitions placed upon him by the Code of Ethics in the Budget Committee’s discussion and vote on the School Committee’s budget, Commission Regulation 36-14-5004(b)(3), regarding participation in budgets, specifically addresses the question raised by the Petitioner. It reads, in pertinent part: (A) General Prohibition. No person subject to the Code of Ethics shall participate in discussion or decision-making relative to a budgetary line item that would address or affect the employment, compensation or benefits of any person within his or her family or a household member. (B) Specific Line Items. Notwithstanding the prohibition set forth in subsection 3(A), a person subject to the Code of Ethics may, only in accordance with particular instructions and advice received from the Ethics Commission in a written advisory opinion, participate in discussion or decision-making relative to a budgetary line item that addresses or affects the employment, compensation or benefits of any person within his or her family or a household member as a member of a significant and definable class of persons, and not individually or to any greater extent than any other similarly situated member of the class. (C) Vote on Entire Budget. Notwithstanding the prohibition set forth in subsection 3(A), a person subject to the Code of Ethics may participate in discussion or decision-making relative to approving or rejecting the entire budget as a whole, provided that the person within his or her family or household member is impacted by the entire budget as a member of a significant and definable class of persons, and not individually or to any greater extent than any other similarly situated member of the class. Commission Regulation 36-14-5004(b)(3). Pursuant to this provision, the Petitioner is prohibited from participating in any Budget Committee discussion or voting on line items related to School Committee members’ stipends in the School Department budget. However, the Petitioner is permitted to participate in the Budget Committee’s discussion and decision-making relative to approving or rejecting the School Committee budget as a whole. See A.O. 2007-30 (opining that a member of the East Providence School Committee was prohibited by the Code of Ethics from participating in any budgetary line item relative to bus monitors, given that he had a family member who was employed as a bus monitor, but that he may vote on the budget as a whole). Although the Petitioner is permitted to participate in the overall vote to approve or reject the School Committee budget, the Commission is aware that a general discussion can quickly devolve into a more narrow review of specific items. The Petitioner must be vigilant to identify such instances where a general conversation begins to focus on issues that are likely to financially impact his spouse. In such circumstances, the Petitioner must recuse from further participation or, if possible, seek further guidance from the Ethics Commission. As to the Petitioner’s second question, nothing in the Code of Ethics limits a duly registered member of the Rhode Island electorate from properly voting, pursuant to R.I. Const. art II, sec.1, on any matter submitted to the electors. Accordingly, the Petitioner is not prohibited by the Code of Ethics from participating as an elector in the Tiverton Financial Town meeting in matters regarding the School Committee budget, including School Committee members’ stipends. Finally, the Petitioner is advised that this opinion solely addresses the application of the Code of Ethics. We note that this opinion does not address whether any municipal charter provision or ordinance limits his ability, as a Budget Committee member, to make recommendations regarding the School Committee budget, given his wife’s status as a School Committee member. Such matters are outside the jurisdiction of the Ethics Commission and, as a result, cannot be addressed in this advisory opinion. Code Citations : Commission Regulation 5004 Related Advisory Opinions : 2007-30 Keywords : Nepotism