Advisory Opinion No. 96-17

Re: Stephen D. Zubiago, Esq.

QUESTION PRESENTED

The Mayor of Warwick requests an advisory opinion as to whether he may appoint to the Warwick Sewer Board of Review an individual whose spouse is employed by the Warwick Sewer Authority as a maintenance worker given that the Board of Review has limited appellate jurisdiction over certain decisions of the Sewer Authority.

RESPONSE

The Code of Ethics does not prohibit the Mayor of Warwick from appointing an individual to the Sewer Board of Review simply because her spouse works at the city's Sewer Authority as a maintenance worker. While the Board of Review has limited appellate jurisdiction over certain decisions of the Sewer Authority, that involvement does not in and of itself create an interest in substantial conflict with the prospective appointee's duties and employment in the public interest. See R.I. Gen. Laws 36-14-5(a) and 7. If, however, the prospective appointee is put in a position of reviewing conduct and/or work involving her spouse she should follow the dictates of R.I. Gen. Laws 36-14-6 relating to notice and recusal.

Code Citations:

36-14-5(a)

36-14-6

36-14-7

Keywords:

nepotism

family:public employment