Minutes 11-15-22 MINUTES OF THE OPEN SESSION OF THE RHODE ISLAND ETHICS COMMISSION November 15, 2022 The Rhode Island Ethics Commission held its 12th meeting of 2022 at 9:00 a.m. at the Rhode Island Ethics Commission conference room, located at 40 Fountain Street, 8th Floor, Providence, Rhode Island, on Tuesday, November 15, 2022, pursuant to the notice published at the Commission offices, the State House Library, and electronically with the Rhode Island Secretary of State. The following Commissioners were present: Marisa A. Quinn, Chair Matthew D. Strauss Kyle P. Palumbo, Secretary Holly J. Susi Lauren E. Jones The following Commissioners were not present: Arianne Corrente and Emma L. Peterson. Also present were Herbert F. DeSimone, Jr., Commission Legal Counsel; Jason Gramitt, Commission Executive Director; Lynne M. Radiches, Staff Attorney/Education Coordinator; Staff Attorneys Teresa Giusti and Teodora Popova Papa; and Commission Investigators Peter J. Mancini, Gary V. Petrarca, and Kevin Santurri. At 9:09 a.m., the Chair opened the meeting. The first order of business was: Approval of minutes of the Open Session held on October 18, 2022. Upon motion made by Commissioner Susi and duly seconded by Commissioner Jones, it was unanimously VOTED: To approve the minutes of the Open Session held on October 18, 2022. The next order of business was: Director’s Report: Status report and updates. a.) Complaints and investigations pending There are four complaints pending, including three noticed on today’s agenda. Executive Director Gramitt informed that the moratorium for filing complaints ended on Election Day. b.) Advisory opinions pending There are five advisory opinions pending, one of which has been noticed for today’s meeting. c.) Access to Public Records Act requests since last meeting There were four APRA requests received since the last meeting, three of which were granted within one business day. Executive Director Gramitt informed that one request required more than one day but was still granted within the 10-day required period. He explained that the responsive record was in draft form at the time of the request . d.) 2021 Financial Disclosure No updates. e.) Ethics Administration/Office and Education Updates Executive Director Gramitt informed that office renovations were largely complete, with only a few remaining items. In response to Chair Quinn, Executive Director Gramitt stated that he will again reach out to the Governor’s office regarding the two Commission vacancies, one of which is a direct appointment by the Governor and the other from a list submitted by the House Minority Leader. Chair Quinn expressed her interest in having the position(s) filled by a person of color and welcomed suggestions. Commissioner Jones proposed that Executive Director Gramitt contact Robert Barge, President of Rhode Island Legal Services, for suggestions. The consensus among the Commissioners was that having a mix of attorneys and non-attorneys has been productive and effective. The next order of business was: Advisory Opinions. The advisory opinion was based on a draft advisory opinion prepared by Commission Staff for review by the Commission and was scheduled as an item on the Open Session Agenda for this date. The advisory opinion was that of: Nicole M. Shevory, alternate member of the Newport Zoning Board of Review, requests an advisory opinion regarding whether she qualifies for a hardship exception to the Code of Ethics’ prohibition against representing herself before her own municipal agency, in order to seek approval of planned renovations to her home. Staff Attorney Popova Papa presented the Commission Staff recommendation. The Petitioner was not present but had consented to proceeding in her absence. Commissioner Jones queried whether it made a difference in the analysis that any benefits of the relief sought to Unit 1 of the home, which is expected to be rented out after the renovations, are intertwined with those to Unit 2 as represented in the draft opinion. Commissioner Palumbo responded by stating that if the benefits were not intertwined, then arguably they would weigh in favor of a commercial purpose for the property and against granting a hardship exception. Staff Attorney Popova Papa explained that the benefits to the primary residence and the commercial unit cannot be separated. In response to Commissioner Susi, Staff Attorney Popova Papa explained that the title of the Petitioner’s application refers jointly to a request for a “Special Use Permit” and a variance, but the Petitioner is only seeking a variance. Commissioner Susi expressed some concern regarding whether the Petitioner is seeking to change the current use of Unit 1 from a primary residence to a commercial use. Chair Quinn stated that Unit 1 is already used for a commercial purpose. Commissioner Susi queried what the Petitioner would do if she were not permitted by the Code of Ethics to appear before the Zoning Board. Commissioner Palumbo inquired whether the Petitioner’s spouse could appear on his own behalf. Legal Counsel DeSimone informed that the prohibition against representing herself before her own municipal agency also applies to the Petitioner’s spouse given that his and the Petitioner’s interests are jointly impacted. In response to Commissioner Jones and Chair Quinn, Staff Attorney Popova Papa referred to an opinion with similar facts cited in the draft and explained that the Commission therein opined that prior use of the subject property was a factor in its analysis. Legal Counsel DeSimone stated that the Code does not enumerate the factors that must be examined when considering the applicability of the hardship exception to a set of facts, and the Commission has discretion in what factors to consider in conducting its analysis. In response to Commissioner Jones, Staff Attorney Popova Papa stated that the past opinions in which the Commission has denied a hardship exception mostly relate to purely commercial ventures, such as the AT&T advisory opinion. Executive Director Gramitt added reference to another opinion in which the Commission denied relief to someone who was seeking to sub-develop his property to create a separate development. He informed that since 2000, in matters involving requests for a hardship exception, the Commission has applied a totality of the circumstances analysis with a focus on transparency. Upon motion made by Commissioner Jones and duly seconded by Commissioner Palumbo, it was unanimously VOTED: To issue an advisory opinion to Nicole M. Shevory, alternate member of the Newport Zoning Board of Review. At 9:35 a.m., upon motion by Commissioner Jones and duly seconded by Commissioner Susi, it was unanimously VOTED: To go into Executive Session, to wit: a.) Motion to approve minutes of the Executive Session held on October 18, 2022, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4). b.) In re: Calvin Ellis, Complaint No. 2022-7, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4). c.) In re: Richard Nassaney, Complaint No. 2022-6, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4). d.) In re: Timothy Milisauskas, Complaint No. 2022-5, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4). e.) Motion to return to Open Session. At 10:25 a.m., the Commission reconvened in Open Session. The next order of business was: Motion to seal minutes of Executive Session held on November 15, 2022. Upon motion made by Commissioner Susi and duly seconded by Commissioner Jones, it was unanimously VOTED: To seal the minutes of the Executive Session held on November 15, 2022. The next order of business was: Report on actions taken in Executive Session. Chair Quinn reported that the Commission took the following actions in Executive Session: Unanimously voted (5-0) to approve the minutes of the Executive Session held on October 18, 2022. Unanimously voted (5-0) in the matter of In re: Calvin Ellis, Complaint No. 2022-7, to approve an Informal Resolution and Settlement by which the Ethics Commission imposed a civil penalty of $500 for violations of the Financial Disclosure Mandate. Copies of the Informal Resolution and Settlement will be available at the conclusion of the meeting. Unanimously voted (5-0) in the matter of In re: Richard Nassaney, Complaint No. 2022-6, to approve an Informal Resolution and Settlement by which the Ethics Commission imposed a civil penalty of $300 for violation of the Code of Ethics. Unanimously voted (5-0) in the matter of In re: Timothy Milisauskas, Complaint No. 2022-5, to enlarge time for investigation by 60 days. Unanimously voted (5-0) to return to Open Session. The next order of business was: Election of Officers. In response to Commissioner Jones, Legal Counsel DeSimone informed that a Commission member may nominate and vote for himself/herself and read the election rules to the Commission. Legal Counsel DeSimone stated that the Commission must take separate votes for each position. Commissioner Palumbo nominated Marisa A. Quinn as Chairperson. Commissioner Susi commented that Chair Quinn does a wonderful job and serves as a role model. Chair Quinn expressed gratitude and encouraged others to consider serving as officers. She also expressed gratitude to the staff for their hard work and integrity. It was unanimously VOTED: To elect Marisa A. Quinn as Chairperson. Commissioner Jones nominated Arianne Corrente as Vice Chairperson. Chair Quinn represented that she recently spoke with Vice Chairperson Corrente who is looking forward to returning. It was unanimously VOTED: To elect Arianne Corrente as Vice Chairperson. Chair Quinn nominated Commissioner Palumbo as Secretary. It was unanimously VOTED: To elect Kyle P. Palumbo as Secretary. The next order of business was: New Business proposed for future Commission agendas and general comments from the Commission. Commissioner Palumbo inquired of the status of financial disclosure reform. Executive Director Gramitt stated that if the Commission is willing to proceed with its current number of members, the staff can prepare the issues to bring to the Commission for discussion and possible rulemaking. Executive Director Gramitt informed that the process will involve multiple meetings and public workshops. In response to Chair Quinn, Executive Director Gramitt stated that there will be discussion of adding or changing relevant definitions where necessary and possible. He explained that the Commission cannot change statutes, but it can amend regulations and the financial disclosure form and instructions sheet. In response to Commissioner Jones, Executive Director Gramitt stated that these discussions will be held in open session. Commissioner Palumbo requested that thoughtful consideration be given to the placement of this discussion on the agenda, given the amount of time that will be involved. Executive Director Gramitt noted that these discussions will begin in the new year given that only one Commission meeting remains for 2022. At 10:36 a.m., upon motion made by Commissioner Susi and duly seconded by Commissioner Jones, it was unanimously VOTED: To adjourn the meeting. Respectfully submitted, ______________________________ Kyle P. Palumbo Secretary