PUBLIC SESSION
MEETING CONVENED
Chair Maria J. Krokidas called the meeting to order at 9:38 a.m. Also in attendance were Vice Chair Thomas J. Sartory, Commissioner R. Marc Kantrowitz, Commissioner Josefina Martinez, and Commissioner Wilbur P. Edwards, Jr. Chair Krokidas, Vice Chair Sartory, Commissioner Kantrowitz, Commissioner Martinez, and Commissioner Edwards participated remotely.
REMOTE PARTICIPATION
Chair Krokidas announced that the meeting would take place remotely pursuant to Governor Baker’s Order Suspending Certain Provisions of the Open Meeting Law, G.L. c. 30A, § 20, dated March 12, 2020. She stated that members of the public had been invited to watch and listen to the public session via Zoom Webinar. Chair Krokidas noted that all votes at the meeting would be taken by roll call.
HEARING ON PETITIONER’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY DECISION
In the Matter of Christopher Hicks, Commission Docket No. 20-0007: Respondent was not present. Petitioner made arguments on Petitioner’s Motion for Summary Decision. The Commission took the matter under advisement.
APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES
On the motion of Commissioner Kantrowitz, seconded by Vice Chair Sartory, the Commission voted 5-0 to waive the reading and approve the public session minutes of the September 17, 2020 Commission meeting.
| Chair Krokidas | Yes |
| Vice Chair Sartory | Yes |
| Commissioner Kantrowitz | Yes |
| Commissioner Martinez | Yes |
| Commissioner Edwards | Yes |
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Executive Director David A. Wilson presented his monthly report.
Personnel
Mr. Wilson reported that the staff has been in contact with the Attorney General’s Office regarding the appointment of a new commissioner to succeed Vice Chair Sartory, whose term expired on September 21, 2020. He said that the process of appointing a new commissioner remained ongoing, and Vice Chair Sartory may continue serving until his successor is appointed.
Mr. Wilson said that the position of Special Investigator was posted last week to fill the vacancy left by former investigator Kevin Mazza, and reported that the Commission has already received many applications from interested candidates.
Budget
Mr. Wilson said that the Governor filed a revised Fiscal Year 2021 budget recommendation yesterday that would fund the Commission at its Fiscal Year 2020 level for the remainder of the fiscal year.
At Mr. Wilson’s request, Government Affairs Officer Robert Milt provided an update on the Governor’s revised budget. Mr. Milt explained that the FY 2021 budget may be passed in November as state government continues to await news of further federal aid. He said that the Commission will soon file its maintenance budget request for Fiscal Year 2022 with the Executive Office for Administration and Finance, which is due at the end of October.
Ongoing Projects
Mr. Wilson reported that Information Technology Specialist Tony Webb and a vendor completed the relocation of the Commission’s network servers from the Commission’s office to a more secure server room EOTSS operates in the building.
At Mr. Wilson’s request, Mr. Milt provided an update on the replacement of the Commission’s aging case management system, Ethos. Mr. Milt explained that the Governor’s capital plan authorized $500,000 in capital funding in FY 2021. Mr. Milt said that the Commission has been working with EOTSS to replace Ethos for the past three years with the goal of issuing an RFQ in early Q3 2021.
At Mr. Wilson’s request, Public Information Officer Gerry Tuoti provided an update on the replacement of the Commission’s online conflict of interest law training program. Mr. Tuoti said that, after a series of fact-finding meetings with the vendor RSM, the project team issued an RFI seeking information from prospective vendors regarding course design, technological capabilities, and potential pricing structures. He explained that the RFI process will help RSM provide the Commission with a set of recommendations and technical requirements to develop an RFQ for creating a new online training program. Mr. Tuoti reported that the project team hosted an information session meeting for prospective vendors and received several responses to the RFI. He noted that capital funding for the project for this current fiscal year will be transferred to the Commission, which will fund the future procurement of a new online training program.
Next Meeting
Following discussion, the Commission scheduled its next meetings for November 18, 2020 at 9:30 a.m. and January 6, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. There will not be a Commission meeting in December.
EXTENSION OF TIME FOR STAFF TO USE VACATION AND PERSONAL LEAVE
Mr. Wilson said that the Comptroller’s Office has informed the Commission that, as an independent agency, it may request an extension of the deadline to use Calendar Year 2020 personal and vacation time from January 2, 2021 to April 24, 2021.
On the motion of Chair Krokidas, seconded by Commissioner Edwards, the Commission voted 5-0 to waive the time limitations of the Commission’s Personnel Manual sections 5.9 and 5.18 for the use of personal and vacation time and approve the extension of the time for staff to use personal and vacation time to April 24, 2021.
| Chair Krokidas | Yes |
| Vice Chair Sartory | Yes |
| Commissioner Kantrowitz | Yes |
| Commissioner Martinez | Yes |
| Commissioner Edwards | Yes |
DISCUSSION OF COMMISSION’S FY2019 ANNUAL REPORT
Mr. Wilson said that Public Information Officer Gerry Tuoti has compiled the annual reports for the past couple years, and the overall appearance of the reports has greatly improved. He explained that the Commission sends the annual reports to the Governor and other constitutional officers to provide a comprehensive overview of the Commission’s activities and performance.
Chair Krokidas thanked the Commission staff for their work to compile the annual reports. She said that the Commission should consider whether to issue more advisories, especially if there are surges of particular conflict of interest law violations.
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION MATTERS
Public Information Officer Gerry Tuoti presented the monthly Public Education and Communications Division Report for October in the absence of Public Education and Communications Division Chief David Giannotti.
Mr. Tuoti noted that, during September, he posted a news item announcing the issuance of the Fiscal Year 2019 Annual Report and Mr. Giannotti conducted five 90-minute online public education seminars for a total of 305 public employees.
LEGAL DIVISION MATTERS
General Counsel/Legal Division Chief Eve Slattery reported on the activities of the Legal Division.
Legal Division Metrics for September 2020
Ms. Slattery presented the following Legal Division metrics for September 2020.
- Written advice. The Legal Division answered by letter or email 31 written requests for advisory opinions under G.L. c. 268A and c. 268B. Of these requests, 4 pertained to SFIs.
| September 2019 (same month prior year) (total/SFI): | 39/2 |
| August 2020 (previous month) (total/SFI): | 132/102 |
- Oral advice. The Legal Division attorneys provided advice by telephone in response to 317 requests for advice from state, county and municipal officials. Of these requests, 23 pertained to SFIs.
| September 2019 (same month last year) (total/SFI): | 412/19 |
| August 2020 (previous month) (total/SFI): | 467/129 |
- 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.
| September 2019 (same month last year): | 0 |
| August 2020 (previous month): | 3 |
- Backlog. As of October 7, 2020, the Division has 2 pending requests for written advice that are more than 30 days old. There is a total of 10 pending requests for written advice.
SFI Summary
Legal Division Deputy Chief/SFI Lauren Duca provided an update on the Calendar Year 2019 Statement of Financial Interests (SFI) filing season. Ms. Duca explained that since May 26, 2020, which was the deadline for filing an SFI for Calendar Year 2019, the SFI Team has worked actively to locate any individuals who failed to file by the deadline. She reported that the SFI Team located the last remaining non-filer, who is a former public employee, and will help them to file.
Ms. Duca said that the SFI Team started its preparations for the Calendar Year 2020 filing season. She said that the SFI Team scheduled training sessions for agency liaisons on the use of the SFI system and SFI procedures via video conference. She noted that they are also reviewing and updating the SFI training materials provided to agency liaisons.
Adjudicatory Matters
Ms. Slattery presented the October calendar of conferences/hearings in pending Commission adjudicatory proceedings.
Draft Guidelines for Remote Adjudicatory Proceedings
Ms. Slattery presented the draft guidelines for remote adjudicatory hearings to provide guidance to Commission staff, counsel, and the parties on how to prepare for and conduct remote hearings and remote depositions in compliance with the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, 930 CMR 1.00. She thanked Assistant General Counsel T. Michael McDonald for drafting the guidelines, which were based, in part, on feedback from past remote pre-hearing conferences and motion hearings.
Draft Social Media Advisory
Ms. Slattery presented the draft social media advisory which provides guidance on how the conflict of interest law applies to the use of social media by public employees. She said that the draft would be posted on the Commission website for public comment for approximately 30 days. The final draft will incorporate comments received to be presented to the Commission for final approval. Ms. Slattery thanked Staff Counsel Norah Mallam and Mr. McDonald for drafting the advisory.
On the motion of Chair Krokidas, seconded by Commissioner Martinez, the Commission voted 5-0 to approve as a draft the version of Draft Advisory 20-1 presented to the Commission at its October 15, 2019 meeting; to authorize the Executive Director to release the draft to the public for comment through a posting on the Commission website and through other appropriate means; and to direct staff to present a final draft, revised as appropriate, to the Commission for final approval at a later Commission meeting.
| Chair Krokidas | Yes |
| Vice Chair Sartory | Yes |
| Commissioner Kantrowitz | Yes |
| Commissioner Martinez | Yes |
| Commissioner Edwards | Yes |
Litigation Matters
Ms. Slattery provided an update on [Doe] v. State Ethics Commission, Berkshire Superior Court Civil Action No. 1976CV00286. Ms. Slattery reported that on September 23, 2020, the parties filed a Stipulation of Dismissal of Count II (failure to properly serve summons). The Commission subsequently filed an Answer to Count I (declaratory judgment that summonses violate the 5th Amendment and Art. 12 of the Mass. Declaration of Rights).
Ms. Slattery provided an update on Donohue v. State Ethics Commission, Norfolk Superior Court Civil Action No. 2082CV00886. Ms. Slattery reported that on September 21, 2020, Helen Donohue served the Commission with an appeal. The next step is for the Commission to file the Administrative Record, which is due by December 20, 2020.
Ms. Slattery provided an update on Comtois v. State Ethics Commission, Suffolk Superior Court Civil Action No. 2084CV02105. Ms. Slattery reported that on September 29, 2020, Stephen Comtois served the Commission with an appeal. The next step is for the Commission to file the Administrative Record, which is due by December 28, 2020.
ENFORCEMENT DIVISION MATTERS
Enforcement Division Chief Monica Brookman presented the Enforcement Intake Metrics and Case Metrics. She reported that the Division successfully reduced the backlog of complaints in September that had been in intake more than six months by roughly a third, from 63 to 43. Ms. Brookman explained that the primary reason for the reduction, however, is that the Division received significantly fewer complaints six months ago, when the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Ms. Brookman reported that as complaint levels increased significantly in June and July, she expects backlog may increase again soon until the Division is fully staffed again. She said that the increasing complaint levels are already reflected in the ‘three-to-six-month backlog,’ which rose from 78 to 104 complaints.
Ms. Brookman thanked the Public Education and Communications Division for volunteering to assist the Enforcement Division with processing complaint intake, which will allow the current investigators to focus on older cases, especially when one investigator plans to begin family leave next month. Ms. Brookman noted that Public Education and Communications Division Chief David Giannotti, Public Information Officer Gerry Tuoti, and Program Coordinator Arthur Xia will each spend a day each week to process complaints by phone.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
At 10:38 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 |
| Vice Chair Sartory | Yes |
| Commissioner Kantrowitz | Yes |
| Commissioner Martinez | Yes |
| Commissioner Edwards | Yes |
Chair Krokidas stated that the Commission would not reconvene in public session following the executive session.
The meeting recessed at 10:39 a.m. and reconvened at 10:47 a.m.
LIST OF DOCUMENTS USED AT THIS MEETING
- Agenda for the Commission Meeting of October 15, 2020
- Minutes of the Commission Meeting of September 17, 2020 Public Session
- Commission Fiscal Year 2019 Annual Report
- Memorandum dated October 8, 2020 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 October 7, 2020 from General Counsel/Legal Division Chief Eve Slattery to the Commission setting forth Legal Division matters for the meeting
- Calendar of hearing dates and pre-hearing conferences in pending Commission adjudicatory matters
- Draft Guidelines for Remote Adjudicatory Hearings
- Draft Social Media Advisory
- Enforcement Intake Metrics
- Enforcement Case Metrics
Respectfully submitted,
Arthur Xia
Program Coordinator