PUBLIC SESSION
MEETING CONVENED
Chair Maria J. Krokidas called the meeting to order at 9:32 a.m. Also in attendance were Vice Chair David A. Mills, Commissioner Thomas J. Sartory, Commissioner R. Marc Kantrowitz, and Commissioner Josefina Martinez.
APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES
On the motion of Commissioner Kantrowitz, seconded by Vice Chair Mills, the Commission voted 5-0 to waive the reading and approve the public session minutes of the October 17, 2019 Commission meeting.
| Chair Krokidas | Yes |
| Commissioner Mills | Yes |
| Commissioner Sartory | Yes |
| Commissioner Kantrowitz | Yes |
| Commissioner Martinez | Yes |
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Executive Director David A. Wilson presented his monthly report.
Personnel
Mr. Wilson told the Commission that two new employees, Special Investigator Kevin Mazza and Program Coordinator Arthur Xia, joined the Commission staff on November 4, and that Special Investigator Timothy Gravel had returned from military leave on November 12. Mr. Wilson said the Commission staff now has 26 employees and one contract employee.
New Commissioner
Mr. Wilson reported that he has been in contact with the Office of the Governor’s Legal Counsel regarding the appointment of a new commissioner to succeed Vice Chair Mills, whose term expired in October. Mr. Wilson said he was informed that the Office of the Governor’s Legal Counsel expects that a new commissioner will be appointed in the coming weeks and will be in place for the December Commission meeting. Mr. Wilson thanked Vice Chair Mills for his service to the Commission and the Commonwealth, and for his support and advocacy for the work of the Commission and its staff. Vice Chair Mills said that it has been a joy to serve on the Commission and commended the work of the staff.
Budget
Mr. Wilson reported that the Commission’s maintenance budget request for Fiscal Year 2021 was filed with the Executive Office for Administration and Finance on November 14. He said that the Commission requested an increase of slightly less than 4%, or approximately $92,000, over Fiscal Year 2020 maintenance funding levels. Mr. Wilson said that, in addition, the Commission plans to file a budget expansion request by November 22 to seek funding for a new attorney who will perform work for both the Enforcement and Legal Divisions. Mr. Wilson said additional budgetary information would be discussed at the Audit, Finance, and Human Resources Committee meeting, following the regular Commission meeting.
Audit
Mr. Wilson reported that the State Auditor’s Office will be conducting an audit of the Commission. He stated that the Auditor’s Office is required by law to perform an audit of state agencies every three years. Mr. Wilson said his understanding is that the audit will primarily focus on the Commission’s implementation of the education requirements contained in Sections 27 and 28 of the conflict of interest law, which were added to the law in the ethics reform of 2009. Mr. Wilson said he was notified that the audit is expected to last three to five months.
Ongoing Projects
Mr. Wilson discussed the ongoing projects to develop a new case management system and a new conflict of interest law online training program. He said that the two projects are nearly entirely dependent on state funding and, as such, have recently progressed slowly because the information technology bond bill had not yet been passed. Mr. Wilson said the Commission has been in close contact with the Executive Office of Technology and Security Services regarding both projects, and he appreciates Secretariat’s continued support and guidance. He said he is hopeful an RFQ for the case management project will be issued in early 2020. Mr. Wilson said he is also hopeful that the Commission will receive funding in the current fiscal year to hire a consultant to assist on the online training project.
COGEL Conference
Mr. Wilson reported that in three weeks, the Commission will be sending a six-person delegation to Chicago for the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws annual conference. He said the conference will be a good opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with ethics professionals from across the country and beyond.
Next Meeting
Following discussion, the Commission scheduled its next meetings for Thursday, December 19, 2019 at 9:00 a.m. and Wednesday, January 15, 2020 at 9:00 a.m.
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION MATTERS
Public Education and Communications Division Chief David Giannotti presented the monthly Public Education and Communications Division Report.
Mr. Giannotti thanked Vice Chair Mills for his service to the Commission.
Mr. Giannotti reported that new Program Coordinator Arthur Xia has been undergoing training with the Legal Division and has begun working on the Commission’s website. He said that, in the future, Mr. Xia will be taking Commission meeting minutes.
Mr. Giannotti told the Commission that a new compliance cycle for the conflict of interest law education requirements will begin in January and that all public employees will be required to acknowledge receipt of a summary of the conflict of interest law. Mr. Giannotti said that Mr. Xia will be involved with this program, including providing messaging and keeping records of elected legislators’ compliance. Mr. Giannotti said that Mr. Xia will also be involved in the municipal liaison program described in Section 29 of the conflict of interest law.
Mr. Giannotti told the Commission that he is scheduled to hold seven conflict of interest law seminars in November and will provide an update at the next Commission meeting.
Mr. Giannotti reported that the Public Education and Communications Division was busy issuing several press releases over the past month and thanked Public Information Officer Gerry Tuoti for his work.
Mr. Giannotti reported that Information Technology Specialist Tony Webb recently attended the Massachusetts Digital Government summit, where he attended sessions on cyber security and disaster recovery solutions. He said the Commission is exploring leveraging the cloud-based storage of data, which could reduce costs.
Chair Krokidas welcomed Mr. Xia to the Commission staff.
LEGAL DIVISION MATTERS
General Counsel/Legal Division Chief Eve Slattery reported on the activities of the Legal Division.
Litigation Matters
Ms. Slattery provided an update on McGovern v. State Ethics Commission. Ms. Slattery reported that the Commission has filed an opposition to McGovern’s application to the Supreme Judicial Court for further appellate review. Ms. Slattery said the Commission was told to expect a decision within 45 days on whether the Supreme Judicial Court will hear the appeal. Mr. Wilson thanked Ms. Slattery and Staff Counsel Norah K. Mallam for their work on the matter.
Legal Division Metrics for October 2019
Ms. Slattery presented the following Legal Division metrics for October 2019.
- Written advice. The Legal Division answered by letter or email 59 written requests for advisory opinions under G.L. c. 268A and c. 268B. Of these requests, 4 pertained to SFIs.
| October 2018 (same month last year): | 51 |
| September 2019 (previous month) (total/SFI): | 39/2 |
- Oral advice. The Legal Division attorneys provided advice by telephone or on a walk-in basis in response to 526 requests for advice from state, county and municipal officials. Of these requests, 67 pertained to SFIs.
| October 2018 (same month last year): | 415 |
| September 2019 (previous month) (total/SFI): | 412/19 |
- Review of municipal letters. Division staff reviewed 2 letters issued by city solicitors/town counsel pursuant to G.L. c. 268A, § 22 and 930 CMR 1.03.
| October 2018 (same month last year): | 2 |
| September 2019 (previous month): | 0 |
- Backlog. As of today, the Division has 4 pending requests for written advice that are more than 30 days old. There is a total of 24 pending requests for written advice.
Adjudicatory Matters
Ms. Slattery presented the Legal Division Calendar.
ENFORCEMENT DIVISION MATTERS
Enforcement Division Chief Monica Brookman reported that all open positions in the Enforcement Division have been filled. She said the Division recently welcomed back Special Investigator Timothy Gravel from military service and welcomed newly hired Special Investigator Kevin Mazza. She thanked Mr. Giannotti for helping with complaint intake while the Division was short staffed.
Ms. Brookman presented the Enforcement Division Intake Metrics.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
At 10:06 a.m., on the motion of Chair Krokidas, seconded by Commissioner Kantrowitz, the Commission voted 5-0 to enter executive session to discuss matters subject to the provisions of G.L. c. 30A, § 21, subparagraph (a)(7), and § 18, and G.L. c. 268B, §§ 3 and 4, including investigatory matters, preliminary inquiries, summons authorization requests, and adjudicatory matters.
| Chair Krokidas | Yes |
| Commissioner Mills | Yes |
| Commissioner Sartory | Yes |
| Commissioner Kantrowitz | Yes |
| Commissioner Martinez | Yes |
Chair Krokidas stated that the Commission would not reconvene in public session following the executive session.
LIST OF DOCUMENTS USED AT THIS MEETING
- Agenda for the Commission Meeting of November 21, 2019
- Minutes of the State Ethics Commission Meeting of October 17, 2019 Public Session
- Memorandum dated November 14, 2019 from Public Education and Communications Division Chief David Giannotti to the Commission concerning the Public Education and Communications Division report for the meeting
- Memorandum dated November 12, 2019 from General Counsel/Legal Division Chief Eve Slattery to the Commission setting forth Legal Division matters for the meeting
- Legal Division Calendar
- Enforcement Intake Metrics
Respectfully submitted,
Gerry Tuoti
Public Information Officer