Advisory Opinion No. 2010-36 Rhode Island Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion No. 2010-36 Re: Jeanne-Marie DiMasi QUESTION PRESENTED The Petitioner, an Administrative Assistant for the Rhode Island Secretary of State, Division of Business Services, a state employee position, requests an advisory opinion concerning whether, given her public employment, the Code of Ethics permits to her hold office as a member of the Rhode Island State Democratic Committee. RESPONSE It is the opinion of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission that the Code of Ethics does not prohibit the Petitioner, an Administrative Assistant for the Rhode Island Secretary of State, Division of Business Services, a state employee position, from holding office as a member of the Rhode Island State Democratic Committee. The Petitioner states that she has been employed for the past fifteen (15) years by the Rhode Island Secretary of State's office as an unclassified employee, and is currently an Administrative Assistant in the Division of Business Services. She represents that she has never been assigned to work in the Elections Division of the Secretary of State's office. The Petitioner advises that she is a candidate for the Rhode Island State Democratic Committee, District 26, and that the election for this position will occur on September 14, 2010 as part of the Rhode Island primary election. She asks whether the Rhode Island Code of Ethics prohibits her from holding this position while maintaining her public employment. A person subject to the Code of Ethics may not accept other employment that will either impair her independence of judgment as to her official duties or require or induce her to disclose confidential information acquired by her in the course of her official duties. See R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(b). Furthermore, such person 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 her duties in the public interest. See R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(a). A public employee or official will have an interest in substantial conflict with her official duties if she has reason to believe or expect that a "direct monetary gain" or a "direct monetary loss" will accrue, by virtue of her public activity, to the employee/official, a family member, a business associate, an employer, or any business which she represents. See R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-7(a). A business associate is defined as "a person joined together with another person to achieve a common financial objective." See R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-2(3). The Code of Ethics does not bar public employees or officials from belonging to political committees. The Code does not address or regulate political affiliations and alliances. Furthermore, local and statewide political committees are private entities, and their members are not public officials (at least not by reason of their election to the statewide political committee). See A.O. 95-51 (neither the Scituate Republican Town Committee nor the Republican State Central Committee are government agencies). In an analogous advisory opinion, the Commission opined that the Code of Ethics did not prohibit a member of the Johnston Board of Canvassers from membership in the Republican State Central Committee or the Johnston Republican Town Committee. A.O. 2007-45. See also A.O. 2006-16 (Code does not prohibit member of Westerly Democratic Town Committee from seeking and accepting election to the Westerly Town Council. Similarly, the Petitioner's position as a state employee does not preclude her election to the Rhode Island State Democratic Committee. Furthermore, given the Petitioner's representation that she has no involvement in the Secretary of State's Elections Division, there would appear to be no likelihood that she could engage in any official actions that might impact the State Democratic Committee, its members or candidates. For these reasons, it is our opinion that the Petitioner is not prohibited by the Code of Ethics from seeking or accepting election to the State Democratic Committee. If the Petitioner's duties at the Secretary of State's office should change in such as way as to involve her in the elections process, she is advised to seek additional guidance from the Ethics Commission in order to avoid prohibited conflicts of interest. Code Citations: 36-14-2(3) 36-14-5(a) 36-14-5(b) 36-14-6 36-14-7(a) Related Advisory Opinions: 2007-45 2006-16 95-51 Keywords: Business associates Political