Opinion  EC-COI-80-4

Date:	01/15/1980
Organization:	State Ethics Commission

A member of the General Court may continue to serve on the Board of Directors of two non-profit corporations and on an agency area board and may appear personally before state agencies on their behalf, since he is not compensated for his services. Furthermore, his membership on these boards will not require him to disqualify himself in "particular matter(s)" relating to them since the "enactment of general legislation" is specifically excluded from the definition of "particular matter".

Facts

You are a member of the General Court.  You also serve without compensation as a Board member of,

a) a non-profit corporation which provides homemaker services to the elderly and handicapped;

b) Inc., a non-profit corporation which provides a community residence for adults under a contractual agreement with the Department of Mental Health; and

c) the area Health and Retardation Board, which acts in an advisory capacity to the Department of Mental Health.

Question

You ask whether your membership on these boards is a conflict of interest under General Laws Chapter 268A.  

Answer

The Commission concludes it is not.

 

Discussion

       In rendering this opinion, the Commission has been guided by the opinions of the Attorney General issues prior to November 1, 1978, the effective date of the Commission's jurisdiction over Chapter 268A matters.  Furthermore, in rendering this opinion, the Commission has relied upon the facts as you have stated them and has not made any independent investigation of those facts. You are a state employee but as a member of the General Court you are exempt from the prohibitions of § 4(a) and (c) by the fifth paragraph of § 4 as amended by Chapter 210 of the Acts of 1978. Under that paragraph, you are prohibited from receiving compensation other than your legislative salary for personally appearing before any state agency except in connection with ministerial matters, court appearances or quasi-judicial proceedings.

Decision

       Since you serve on these boards as a volunteer, you are not subject to the prohibitions of that paragraph, and you may also appear personally before any state agency on their behalf.  Further, your membership on these boards does not require you to disqualify yourself in particular matters relating to them since § 1(k) excludes "enactment of general legislation by the General Court" from the definition of particular matter. Consequently, the prohibitions of § 6 are inapplicable.  See Attorney General Conflicts opinion No. 562; Ethics Commission Opinion EC-COI-79-15,125.

End Of Decision