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HomeMy WebLinkAbout108 SchiffbauerMr. William Schiffbauer c/o James T. Davis, Esq. Davis & Davis 99 East Main Street Uniontown. PA 15401 Re: Complaint #82 -05 -C Dear Mr. Schiffbauer: STATE ETHICS COMMISSION 308 FINANCE BUILDING HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA 17120 ORDER OF THE COMMISSION February 25, 1982 No. 108 The State Ethics Commission has received a complaint regarding you and a possible violation of Act 170 of 1978. The Commission has now completed its :;_nvestigation into these allegations and finds a violation of the directive of the State Ethics Commission relating Lo filings under Act 170. The individual allegations and findings on which our conclusion is based are: I. Allegation: That as a member of the School Board in Laurel Highlands School District you took the Oath of Office and voted on Board matters without having filed a Statement of Financial Interest with the State Ethics Couauission as required by the Ethics Act and that you were appointed as Treasurer of the Board and are being paid as Treasurer without making the filing required by the Ethics Act. Findings: 1. You are presently a member of the Laurel Highlands School Board (hereinafter, the Board), having secured re- election in the 1981 general election. 2. You were appointed as Treasurer for the Board in July, 1981 to serve a one - -year term and you are compensated for this service at tide annual salary of $2,000.00. 3. On September 29, 1981, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that School Directors must comply with the financial reporting and disclosure requirements of the Ethics Act. See Snider v. Thornburgh, Pa. , 436 A.2d 593 (1981). Mr. William Schiffbauer Page -2- February 25, 1982 4. By letter dated October 8, 1981, the State Ethics Commission relayed information relating to filing and Financial Interest Statement forms to all School Districts affected by the ruling in Snider and established a deadline for filing of Financial Interest Statements of December 11, 1981. 5. You received a Financial Interest Statement form from the Fayette County Board of Election along with your certificate of election on or about November 24, 1981. 6. Sometime after receiving this form you completed this form and reviewed the instructions on the back of the form relating to the place where this form should be filed. 7. The form indicates: (a) that "candidates" for office must file the original of the form with the State Ethics Commission and a copy with the Secretary of the political subdivision in which the candidate seeks office; and (b) that incumbent public officials serving in School Districts should file the original copy of the form with the Secretary of the School District and retain the other copies as extra copies. 8. On December 2, 1982 at the reorganization meeting of the Board you handed your Financial Interest Statement form to Mr. Lawrence McLaughlin, Secretary for the Board, before you were sworn into office as a School Director. 9. a. You did not file a copy of said Statement with the State Ethics Commission at that time because you did not consider yourself, at that point in time (December 2, 1981) to be a "candidate" subject to filing as set forth in No. 7(a) above, but an incumbent, subject to the filing set forth in No. 7(b) above. b. In performing cross - checks of other counties and school director candidates, the number of such candidates who filed locally but not with the State Ethics Commission based upon a similar reading of the back of the Financial Interest Statement form as yours (see No. 9.a) r_presented a substantial number of the 1189 school - director candidates who were not recorded as having filet:. Statements with the State Ethics Commission on ur before December 11, 1981. 10. a. By letter dated October. 20, 1981 the State Ethics Commission communicated with the Fayette County Board of Elections to determine which persons were candidates for the office of school director in the general election of 1981 so that a cross -check could be made of that list of persons with the index of Financial Interest Statements filed with the State Ethics Commission by "candidates." Mr. William Schiffbauer Page -3- February 25, 1982 b. The Fayette County Board of Elections (Barbara DeCarlo, Acting Director) supplied such a list to us by letter dated December 10, 1981. 11. Upon cross - checking said list supplied by the Fayette County Board of Elections, your name appeared as a "candidate," but the State Ethics Commission had no record of having received a Financial Interest Statement from you as a result of your candidacy. See No. 7(a) above. 12. By letter dated January 11, 1982 the State Ethics Commission wrote to you outlining the fact that we had not received your Financial Interest Statement. 13. Your Attorney (James Davis) responded to this letter of the State Ethics Commission by letter dated January 28, 1982 an'i supplied a copy of your Financial Interest Statement referred to in No. 8 above as well as a second Financial Interest Statement, dated January 28, 1982. 14. After you were sworn into office you voted on matters which came before the Board for consideration. Discussion: There is no question that you are, by law, as interpreted by the Supreme Court required to file a Financial Interest Statement and as a "candidate" in the general election of 1981, the original of this Statement should have been, following the State Ethics Commission's directive of October 8, 1981, filed with the State Ethics Commission. However, prior to the deadline set by the Commission for filing such Statements (December 11, 1981) you did submit your Statement to the Secretary of the Board. While this does not negate the fact that you should have filed the original of that Statement with the State Ethics Commission, pursuant to our directive, we cannot conclude that you have violated the requirements of Section 4(b) of the Ethics Act, 65 P.S. 404(b). This conclusion is particularly pertinent where the intervening ruling of the Court in Snider and implementation of that ruling required the State Ethics Commission to direct an alternative filing process for candidates for the office of School Director. Thus, we would be hard - pressed to strictly apply the requirements of Section 4(b) of the Ethics Act and the sanctions of Section 4(d) of the Act. See 65 P.S. 404(d). In addition, you did file your Statement locally (with the Board Secretary) prior to assuming office so that the main purpose of the Act -- availability of the Statement for public scrutiny -- was achieved prior to the deadline set by the State Ethics Commission for filing and prior to your taking office. Mr. William Schiffbauer Page -4- February 25, 1982 Finally, the State Ethics Commission has adopted and applied a policy for handling complaints relating to candidates who filed their Financial Interest Statements locally on time but with the Commission only after the deadline set for such filing by our directives, as in your case. This policy and procedure was adopted on January 20, 1982 as a general one to be applied to the 2,123 School -Board candidates in the general election, 1981. This procedure entails the cross - checking which was undertaken in your case (See Findings No. 10 and 11) to identify candidates who had not supplied the Commission with a Financial Interest Statement. The process after identifying non - filing candidates (in the case of School -Board candidates some 1189 persons failed to file by December 11, 1981), involved sending letters to these persons advising them of these filing requirements. This process resulted in our letter to you of January 11, 1982 (See Finding No. 12). In the general election, 1981 (dealing with School - Director candidates, according to the policy adopted by the State Ethics Commission, if the State Ethics Cotunnission received a response from the person addressed in which the candidate filed his /her Financial Interest Statement without further communication, the State Ethics Commission would take no further action to seek to remove the candidate from the ballot or the official from office as might be sought under Section 4(d) of the Ethics Act. We can find no reason to undertake any action to remove you from office in these circumstances, particularly where you had filed your Financial Interest Statement with the Board Secretary prior to taking office and prior to December 11, 1981 in compliance with the deadline for filing established by the State Ethics Commission. Conclusion: You did violate the directive of the State Ethics Commission that persons whose name had appeared as candidates for the office of School Director on the general election ballot, 1981, and who secured such election should file a Financial Interest Statement with the State Ethics Commission and the Board to which they were elected prior to December 11, 1981. You did file with the Board prior to December 11, 1981, but filed your Statement with the State Ethics Commission only after that deadline. However, under the circumstances presented and in conformity with the previously established policy of the State Ethics Commission on this subject, the Commission will take no further action in this matter. Mr. William Schiffbauer Page -5- February 25, 1982 Our files in this case will remain confidential in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Ethics Act, 65 P.S. 408(a). However, this Order is final and will become avail- able as a public document within 15 days unless you file documentation with the Commission which justifies recon- sideration and /or challenges pertinent factual findings. During this 15 -day period, no one, including the Respondent unless he waives his right to challenge this Order, may violate this confidentiality by releasing, discussing or circulating this Order. Any person who violates mission proceeding is guilty fined not more than $1000 or one year or both, see 65 P.S. PJS /jc the confidentiality of a Com- of a misdemeanor and shall be imprisoned for not more than 409(e). Sincerely, aul J S ith Chai n