Opinion  EC-COI-83-62

Date:	04/12/1983
Organization:	State Ethics Commission

Both a former member of the General Court who also served as the Chairman of a legislative Committee and his associate may lobby before the executive branch and a state agency which was affected by legislation considered by his committee where his private sector activities relate to general, not special, legislation. He may not lobby before the General Court on behalf of a private entity for one year from his termination of state service.

Fact(s)

You are a former member of the General Court where you served as the Chairman of a Committee. You intend to serve as a lobbyist before agencies within the executive branch.

Question(s)

1: May you as a former member of the General Court lobby agencies within the executive branch within a year of your departure from the General Court?

2: May you or your associate appear before State Agency ABC in light of your previous position as Chairman of a legislative committee which considers legislation affecting ABC? 

Answer(s)

1: Yes, subject to certain limitations.

2: Yes, subject to certain limitations.

Discussion

       As a former member of the General Court, you are a former state employee as defined in G. L. c. 268A, §1(q) and subject to the conflict of interest law. Id. Section 5(a) of G. L. c. 268A prohibits former state employees from acting as agents for or receiving compensation from anyone other than the Commonwealth in connection with a particular matter^1/ in which the Commonwealth has a direct and substantial interest and in which they have participated^2/ as state employees. However, because "enactment of general legislation by the General Court" does not come within the scope of the term "particular matter," G. L. c. 268A, §1(k), §5(a) would apply to you only with regard to the enactment of special legislation. EC-COU-82-91. For example, if you previously participated as a legislator in approving a bill granting special benefits to a particular individual, you could not thereafter represent that individual in subsequent proceedings before ABC based on that bill.

       Section 5 (b) of G. L. c. 268A prohibits former state employees from appearing, within one year after termination of employment, before any court or agency of the Commonwealth as an agent for someone other than the Commonwealth in connection with any particular matter in which the Commonwealth has a direct or substantial interest and which was under their official responsibility within a period of two years prior to termination of employment. However, again because the "enactment of general legislation by the general court" does not come within the scope of the term "particular matter," §5(b) would not apply to you as a former member of the General Court except where the matter concerned was the subject of special legislation. See, EC-C01-82-91. You should also be aware that §5(e) will impose further limitations on your activities as a lobbyist following state employment. This section prohibits you from acting as the legislative agent, as defined in G.L.c.3, § 39^3/ for anyone other than the Commonwealth or a state agency before the governmental body with which you have been associated, within one year after you leave that body. Accordingly, you are prohibited from acting as the legislative agent for a private entity before the General Court until (date omitted). However, the scope of the one-year prohibition would apply solely to your lobbyist activities before the General Court and you would remain free to act as lobbyist before executive branch agencies, subject to the conditions previously stated.

End of Decision

DATE AUTHORIZED: May 5, 1983

^1/For the purposes of G. L. c. 268A, "particular matter" is defined as "any judicial or other proceeding, application, submission, request for a ruling or other determination, contract, claim, controversy, charge, accusation, arrest, decision, determination, finding, but excluding enactment of general legislation by the general court G.L.c. 268A, §1(k)

^2/For the purposes of G.L.c. 268A, "participate" is defined as "participate in agency action or in a particular matter personally and substantially as a state employee, through approval, disapproval, decision, recommendation, the rendering of advice, investigation or otherwise. " G.L.c. 268A, §l(j).

^3/ For the purposes of G. L. c. 268A, "legislative agent" means any person who for compensation or reward does any act c to promote, oppose, or influence legislation, or to promote , oppose, or influence the governor's approval or veto thereof  or to influence the decision of any member of the Executive branch where such decision concerns legislation or the adoption, defeat, or postponement of a standard, rate, rule or regulation pursuant thereto. The term shall include persons who, as any part of their regular and usual employment and not simply incidental thereto, attempt to promote, oppose or influence legislation or the governor' s approval or veto thereof, whether or not any compensation in addition to the salary for such employment is received for such services.