Advisory Opinion No. 2010-24 Rhode Island Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion No. 2010-24 Re: Kevin D. McGee QUESTION PRESENTED The Petitioner, a member of the Coventry Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, a municipal appointed position, requests an advisory opinion concerning whether he may apply for a position with the Housing Authority as its Maintenance Director. RESPONSE It is the opinion of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission that the Petitioner, a member of the Coventry Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, is prohibited by the Code of Ethics from accepting employment from the Housing Authority as its Maintenance Director, while serving on the Housing Authority and for one year thereafter. The Petitioner is the Vice-Chairperson of the five-member Coventry Housing Authority ("Housing Authority") Board of Commissioners. According to its website, the Housing Authority was organized in 1963 to provide housing opportunities to low-income households for the citizens of the Town of Coventry.[1] To help accomplish its mission, the Housing Authority Board of Commissioners is responsible for hiring an Executive Director to run the Housing Authority's day-to-day operations. The Executive Director then hires other personnel, including a Maintenance Director. The Petitioner represents that the Housing Authority's current Maintenance Director plans to retire in the Fall of 2010, creating a vacancy in that position. The Petitioner states that he would like to be considered for the position, if permitted to apply under applicable provisions of the Code of Ethics. Under the Code of Ethics, a public official may not 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 in the public interest. R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(a). An official will have an interest in substantial conflict with his official duties if it is likely that a "direct monetary gain" or a "direct monetary loss" will accrue, by virtue of his official activity, to the official, a family member, or a business associate. R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-7(a). Section 5(b) of the Code prohibits a public official from accepting other employment that will either impair his independence of judgment as to his official duties or employment or require him to disclose confidential information acquired by him in the course of his official duties. A public official may not use his public position to obtain financial gain, other than that provided by law, for himself, his family or business associates. R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(d). Furthermore, Commission Regulation 5006 prohibits a municipal appointed official such as the Petitioner from accepting a paid position that requires approval by the body of which he is a member, until the expiration of one (1) year after termination of his membership on the board, unless the denial of such employment would create a substantial hardship for the board or municipality. See Commission Regulation 36-14-5006.[2] We have previously stated that the general purpose of Regulation 5006 and the Code's other revolving door provisions is to prevent government employees and officials from unfairly profiting from or trading upon the contacts, associations and special knowledge that they acquired while performing their public duties as members of state and municipal boards. In A.O. 2004-36, we opined that a state employee sitting on the Rhode Island Water Resources Board as the designee of the Director of Administration could not, while serving and for one year thereafter, become employed by the Board as its General Manager. See also A.O. 2010-10 (member of the City of East Providence Historic District Commission may not bid on or accept a contract to provide consulting services to the City relative to obtaining a National Register listing for the historic Phillipsdale area of the City, given the HDC's substantial input into the City's request for proposals for the consulting work). In A.O. 2003-65, the Commission applied Regulation 5006 to a School Committee member who wished to provide sports officiating services to the school department. Under the facts represented, sports officials were selected by the Athletic Director, who in turn was hired by the School Committee. "Because the School Committee selects the Athletic Director, who in turn selects the sports officials, the petitioner's continued receipt of financial remuneration for his officiating services would violate the spirit if not the letter of Regulation 5006." Id. In the instant case, the Petitioner is a current member of the Board of Commissioners of the Housing Authority. Even if he were to resign his seat in order to apply to become the Housing Authority's Maintenance Director, such application and employment within a year of his service on the Authority's governing board would violate Regulation 5006 and, more generally, run counter to the previously stated intent of such revolving door limitations. Accordingly, the Petitioner must wait one year from his termination of service on the Board of Commissioners before seeking or accepting employment with the Coventry Housing Authority. Code Citations: 36-14-5(a) 36-14-5(d) 36-14-7(a) 36-14-5006 Related Advisory Opinions: 2010-10 2004-36 2003-65 2000-4 Keywords: Appointing authority Revolving door