Advisory Opinion No. 2014-27 Rhode Island Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion No. 2014-27 Approved: September 23, 2014 Re: E. Stefan Coutoulakis QUESTION PRESENTED: The Petitioner, the chairperson of the Washington County Local Emergency Planning Committee who, by virtue of that position, is also a member of the Rhode Island Emergency Response Commission, a state appointed position, requests an advisory opinion regarding whether he is prohibited by the Code of Ethics from having any involvement as a member of either body in matters relating to applications for grant funding for Rhode Island Fire Academy courses for which he may be selected to serve as the instructor. RESPONSE: It is the opinion of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission that the Petitioner, the chairperson of the Washington County Local Emergency Planning Committee who, by virtue of that position, is also a member of the Rhode Island Emergency Response Commission, a state appointed position, is prohibited by the Code of Ethics from having any involvement as a member of either body in matters relating to applications for grant funding for Rhode Island Fire Academy courses for which he may be selected to serve as the instructor. The Petitioner represents that he has been a member of the Washington County Local Emergency Planning Committee – District 4 (“LEPC4”)[1] for approximately five years. He states that he was elected by the membership of LEPC4 to serve as its chairperson in June 2014, which resulted in his immediate membership on the Rhode Island Emergency Response Commission (“SERC”).[2] He states that he serves on both LEPC4 and the SERC in an unpaid, volunteer capacity. The Petitioner represents that each of the five LEPCs provides for the protection of the public within its designated district in the event of a hazardous chemical emergency. He states that the SERC supervises and coordinates the activities of the LEPCs, establishes procedures for receiving and processing public requests for information collected under the Act and reviews local emergency response plans. He further states that the SERC also considers requests from local first response agencies for funding under the federal Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness (“HMEP”) grant to supplement the cost of providing hazardous materials training. The Petitioner states that it is his responsibility as chairperson of LEPC4 to receive applications from local first response agencies and other qualified public entities in Washington County for HMEP grants to pay for certain training sessions related to hazardous materials. He states that when he receives such an application, he reviews it to ascertain whether it comports with a list of objective criteria. If the application meets the criteria, he states that he signs off on the application and forwards it to the SERC for review, first by the SERC Training Committee, a sub-committee of which he is also a member, and then to the full SERC. He informs that many of these funding requests are to pay for training sessions at the Rhode Island Fire Academy (“Fire Academy”). In his private capacity, the Petitioner informs that he is a retired firefighter who presently has a few part-time, paid positions including service as the Town of Exeter’s Director of Emergency Management and as an instructor at the Fire Academy where he teaches courses on firefighting, hazardous materials and CAMEO software.[3] He states that he serves the Fire Academy as an independent contractor and is paid at a hourly rate for each course that he teaches. He represents that he is currently the only CAMEO instructor for the Fire Academy. Given his work as a paid instructor at the Fire Academy,[4] the Petitioner seeks advice as to whether he can participate in LEPC4 and the SERC decision-making, discussions and voting relative to HMEP grant applications for funding for Fire Academy courses that he may be selected to teach. The Code of Ethics provides that no public official or employee shall have an interest or engage in any business, employment, transaction or professional activity which is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his duties or employment in the public interest. R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(a). A substantial conflict of interest exists if an official has reason to believe or expect that he, any person within his family, a business associate or an employer will derive a direct monetary gain or suffer a direct monetary loss by reason of his official activity. Section 36-14-7(a). The Code also prohibits a public official from using his public office or confidential information received through his public office to obtain financial gain for himself, a family member, business associate, or any person by which he is employed or whom he represents. Section 36-14-5(d). Finally, the Code of Ethics prohibits a public official or employee from accepting other employment that would impair his independence of judgment as to his official duties or require or induce him to disclose confidential information acquired by him in the course of his official duties. Section 36-14-5(b). In the present matter, the central question is whether it is reasonably foreseeable that the Petitioner’s participation in LEPC4 and the SERC’s decision-making, discussions and votes to award HMEP grant funding for hazardous materials training sessions at the Fire Academy would have a direct financial impact upon himself as a Fire Academy instructor. The Petitioner represents that he is qualified to teach Fire Academy courses that are eligible for HMEP grant funding, such as hazardous materials and CAMEO. Therefore, it is reasonably foreseeable that, as chairperson of LEPC4 and a member of SERC, his review and approval of HMEP grant applications to fund Fire Academy courses would result in a personal financial benefit if he is selected by the Fire Academy to teach said courses. See A.O. 2006-21 (opining that the Chief of the Manville Fire Department, who in his private capacity was employed as a full time mechanic, was required to recuse from any decisions relative to the Manville Fire Department’s financial interactions with his private employer). Accordingly, it is the opinion of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission that the Petitioner, the chairperson of LEPC4 who, by virtue of that position, is also a member of the SERC, is prohibited by the Code of Ethics from having any involvement in LEPC4 and SERC matters relating to applications for grant funding for Fire Academy courses for which he may be selected to serve as the instructor. Notice of recusal shall be filed with the Ethics Commission in accordance with section 36-14-6. This Advisory Opinion is strictly limited to the facts stated herein and relates only to the application of the Rhode Island Code of Ethics. Under the Code of Ethics, advisory opinions are based on the representations made by, or on behalf of, a public official or employee and are not adversarial or investigative proceedings. Finally, this Commission offers no opinion on the effect that any other statute, regulation, ordinance, constitutional provision, charter provision, policy or canon of professional ethics may have on this situation. Code Citations: § 36-14-5(a) § 36-14-5(b) § 36-14-5(d) § 36-14-6 § 36-14-7(a) Related Advisory Opinions: A.O. 2006-21 Keywords: Private Employment Recusal