You were employed by a state agency (ABC) as a Counsel I from 1978 to 1979. You served as a hearing officer at Chapter 30A adjudicatory proceedings involving complaints, appeals from the Division, and two small rate cases. You also acted as intervenor in a set of major rate cases, aiding another attorney who was acting as lead counsel. You are now an attorney in private practice and ask whether you may represent clients in Chapter 30A adjudicatory proceedings before the ABC without violating the state's conflict of interest law, General Laws Chapter 268A.
In rendering this opinion, the Commission has been guided by and will continue to follow for the near future, the interpretations and opinions of the attorney General issued prior to November 1, 1978, the effective date of the Commission's jurisdiction over Chapter 268A matters. § 5(a) will prohibit you from representing or receiving compensation from a client in connection with any proceeding involving a particular matter in which you participated as a state employee. Each of the proceedings you describe constitutes a "particular matter" in which you "participated", as those terms are defined in § 1(j) and 1(k). § 5(b) governs only particular matters over which you had official responsibility as a state employee. Since you indicate that you did not have official responsibility over any particular matters other than those in which you participated directly, § 5(b) would place no additional restraints upon you.
Section 5(e) establishes a one-year prohibition against your acting as a legislative agent before the ABC. This prohibition specifically incorporates the definition of legislative agent found in General Laws Chapter 3, § 39. In your case, the critical portion of that definition is the reference to "any person who for compensation or reward does any act . . . to influence the decision of any members of the Executive branch where such decision concerns legislation or the adoption, defeat, or postponement of a standard, rate, rule or regulation pursuant thereto." Although participation in adjudicatory proceedings may in some contexts be considered an effort to influence a decision maker, the Commission adheres for now to the view of the Attorney General that the statutory definition of legislative agent should be construed to encompass acts influencing Executive branch decisions only when such decisions "would impose or remove a standard, rate, rule or regulation of general application". 1974-75 Op. Att'y Gen. No.48 (February 3, 1975).
Therefore, you may represent clients in all Chapter 30A adjudicatory proceedings before the ABC which do not constitute particular matters in which you participated as a state employee, except for those proceedings which may be used as the vehicle to establish a rule or rate of general application. If you should have any questions regarding the application of these guidelines to a specific case, you may request further advice from the Commission.
End Of Decision
