Advisory Opinion No. 98-8

Re: John J. Igliozzi, Esq.

QUESTION PRESENTED

The Petitioner, a Providence City Councilor, a municipal elected position, requests an advisory opinion as to whether he may participate and vote in the selection of a Municipal Court Judge where one of the candidates works with him on the legal staff at the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (“RIDOT”).

RESPONSE

It is the opinion of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission that the Petitioner, a Providence City Councilor, may participate and vote in the selection of a Municipal Court Judge, notwithstanding the fact that one of the candidates works with him on the legal staff at RIDOT.

The Petitioner represents that both he and the candidate for the judgeship are RIDOT employees, working on the Department’s legal staff. Their job titles and levels of responsibility are identical. Neither exercises any supervisory authority or otherwise has the potential to exert any improper influence over the other. The Petitioner avers that neither he nor the candidate for the judgeship are involved in any payroll or salary decisions, performance evaluations, or other duties at RIDOT that directly or indirectly affect the other. The Petitioner further advises that he did not solicit the candidate to submit her name for the Municipal Court position.

Based on these representations, the Commission concludes that their common employment at RIDOT is not a relationship that triggers any prohibitions under the Code of Ethics. The Petitioner and his co-worker are not business associates as they are not joined together to achieve a common financial objective; they merely are employed by the same government entity. See R.I. Gen. Law § 36-14-2(8). Finally, because the Petitioner and the candidate for the judgeship are co-equal employees, the Petitioner’s work at RIDOT is not “other employment which will impair his … independence of judgment” as to his official duties and responsibilities as a member of the Providence City Council. R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(b). Therefore, absent any specific, identifiable conflicts of interest, no provisions of the Code of Ethics prohibit the Petitioner from participating and voting in the selection of a new Municipal Court Judge.

Code Citations:

36-14-2(8)

36-14-5(a)

36-14-5(d)

36-14-7(a)

Related Advisory Opinions:

89-37

Keywords:

Business associate