Advisory Opinion No. 99-117

Re: Carol S. Brotman

QUESTION PRESENTED

The petitioner, a State Housing Appeals Board member, a state appointed official, requests an advisory opinion as to whether she is required to file a 1998 Financial Statement given that she was appointed to her position in May, 1999.

RESPONSE

It is the opinion of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission that the petitioner, a State Housing Appeals Board member, a state appointed official, is required to file a 1998 Financial Statement upon her appointment to that position. The Code of Ethics requires all state and municipal elected and appointed officials to file annual financial statements with the Ethics Commission. See R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-16. Also, “in the case of [an] appointment… the appointee shall file the financial statement within thirty (30) days after the date his appointment.” R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-16(b). Since a financial statement covers activity for a particular calendar year, forms that are filed in 1999 will cover the 1998 calendar year (except as relating to questions 14-15 covering the part of 1999 that has already passed by). In this respect, the financial disclosure forms are much like the tax forms filed with the IRS. If appointees were to wait until the following year to file a disclosure statement, the public would not be informed as to the particular areas where conflicts of interests may arise during their initial period of appointment. Therefore, the petitioner should complete FS98-2 immediately and send it to the Ethics Commission.

Code Citations:

36-14-16

Keywords:

Financial Disclosure