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HomeMy WebLinkAbout691 StephensMr. Alan Stephens c/o Empire Landfill P.O. Box 28 Taylor, PA 18517 Re: 87 -003 -C STATE ETHICS COMMISSION 308 FINANCE BUILDING HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA 17120 ORDER OF THE COMMISSION ORDER NO. 691 DATE DECIDED: April 19, 1989 DATE MAILED: April 28, 1989 Dear Mr. Stephens: The State Ethics Commission received a complaint regarding you and a possible violation of the State Ethics Act, No. 170 of 1978, 65 P.S. 401 et. seq. You were notified in writing as to the commencement of the investigation and as to the specific allegation(s). The investigation has now been completed and a Findings Report was issued to you which constituted the Complaint by the Investigation Division of the State Ethics Commission. An Answer was filed and a hearing was deemed waived. The record is now completed. This Order of the Commission is hereby issued which sets forth the individual allegations, findings, discussion and conclusion as follows: - I. Allegation: That you, former Solid Waste Specialist with the Department of Environmental Resources, violated the following provisions of the Ethics Act (Act 170 of 1978), in that you assisted in the preparation of permit amendments submitted to the Department of Environmental Resources, Bureau of Solid Waste, by Martin & Martin and Alan Stephens - Empire Landfill, Incorporated in 1986: Section 3. Restricted activities. (e) No former official or public employee shall represent a person, with or without compensation, on any matter before the governmental body with which he has been associated for one year after he leaves that body. 65 P.S. 5403. A. Findings: 1. You currently serve as the operations manager of the Empire Landfill Incorporated, Taylor, Pennsylvania. a. You have been employed in this position since May, 1986. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 2 2. You formerly served as an employee of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources as a Solid Waste Specialist. a. You served in that position from 1969 until May of 1986. In your position with the Department of Environmental Resources (DER) you were assigned to the Wilkes -Barre office of the Department's Bureau of Solid Waste Management. 3. The official classification specification and job description for the position of Solid Waste Specialist indicates that individuals serving in such positions have the following responsibilities and duties: a. An employee in this class performs a variety of assignments within an assigned geographical area of the Commonwealth regarding the regulation of facilities to insure compliance with the Commonwealth's rules and regulations governing solid waste management. Work requires the application of these rules and regulations during the conduct of inspections, investigations, enforcement, plan review and permit compliance activities. Work involves inspecting municipal waste disposal sites, demolition waste landfills, sewage sludge disposal sites,, industrial waste treatment and disposal sites, demolition waste landfills, sewage sludge disposal sites, industrial waste treatment and disposal facilities; and investigation complaints involving homeowner garbage problems, agricultural waste disposal sites, open dumps, demolition waste landfills, sewage sludge disposal sites, open dumps, demolition waste landfills, sewage sludge disposal areas, and industrial and hazardous waste facilities. Work includes determining violations of rules and regulations, preparing violation letters, preparing and filing citation forms, preparing departmental orders, negotiating settlement of violations and attending enforcement conferences. Work also includes reviewing permits including plans for hazardous waste disposal sites, demolition waste disposal sites, industrial or commercial transfer sites, and sewage sludge disposal sites. Work involves providing information to governmental officials, architects, engineers, facility operators on the disposal of hazardous waste, development of plans, Solid Waste Management Act requirements, Resource Recovery Act requirements, and how to solve operational problems. Work is assigned in the form of specific goals and objectives and the employee exercises considerable freedom in scheduling and completing the work. Work may be reviewed in progress on new or difficult assignments and is reviewed upon completion by a professional superior for completeness, technical accuracy, and quality. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 3 b. In addition to the foregoing, Mr. Stephens job description also indicates that he served on the Solid Waste Safety Committee in order to formulate safety procedures in relation to Solid Waste Management and Disposal. 4. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, Waste Management Division, Wilkes- Barre, Pennsylvania indicate that Empire Sanitary Landfill Incorporated submitted an application for permit management seeking to alter Empire's current landfill permit. a. The application was dated June, 1986. b. The application is stamped as having been received by DER's Solid Waste Management Bureau, Wilkes -Barre office on July 7, 1986. c. The application was prepared and submitted in book form and consisted of several hundred pages. d. The cover sheet to the application indicates that it was prepared by Martin and Martin, Incorporated, 149 East Queen Street, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania; Miser and Earl, Incorporated, 1512 West College Avenue, State College, Pennsylvania and Empire Sanitary Landfill, Incorporated. e. The engineer for Martin and Martin is identified as Richard M. Bodner. f. Module No. 9 of the application regarding general environmental, social and economic information indicates that it was prepared by R.N. Bodner - Martin and Martin, Incorporated and Allen Stephens - Empire Sanitary Landfill, Incorporated. 5. Module No. 9 is the only place in the application where your name is noted. The application also contained a letter dated July 1, 1986 from Kaufman & Hughes to Phillip Medico, Counsel for the Lower Lackawanna Valley Sewer Authority, which lists your name as a person receiving a copy of that letter. 6. On July 1, 1986, John G. Kaufman, Esquire forwarded a letter to the State Ethics Commission advising of Mr. Stephen's association with Empire Sanitary Landfill, Incorporated. a. This letter outlined Mr. Stephen's position with the Department of Environmental Resources and further outlined his position with Empire Sanitary Landfill, Incorporated. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 4 c. Specifically, the letter indicated as follows: The letter outlined several items which describe the type of conduct in which Mr. Stephens would participate while employed by Empire Sanitary Landfill, Incorporated. (1) He will make no personal appearance before the Bureau for any purpose, except the submission of technical data for Bureau review. This is not a contract case, but the upgrading of an existing permit. (2) The technical data which support the plans and permit filed with DER is in accordance with their regulations and far in excess of their minimal requirements for a double lined landfill. The question before the Bureau will not be the propriety of the submission, but the explanation of techniques and methods of installation. The employee never had any contact with Empire or any phase of the permit issued in 1973 while in the employ of the Bureau. (3) ( The employee's present employment calls for administration and upgrading of an existing management of a landfill site as opposed to for a new permit. The advice of counsel involved the question State Ethics Act presented any restrictions individual's potential employment following of service with the Pennsylvania Department Resources. the permit and application 7. The letter forwarded by John Kaufman was treated by a request for an opinion and as a result, on August 15, 1986, an Advice of Counsel was issued by the State Ethics Commission's General Counsel (No. 86- 594). of whether the upon an his termination of Environmental b. The advice of counsel outlined the duties performed by Mr. Stephens in his public position (See Finding 3). c. The advice of counsel also indicated the functions that Mr. Stephens would be performing as an employee of Empire Sanitary Landfill, Incorporated. d. The advice noted that the Commission had been informed that Mr. Stephens would not be officially involved in Empire's application to upgrade their landfill permit. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 5 e. The advice of counsel indicated that Mr. Stephens, as a former public employee, was subject to the one year representation restrictions imposed by Section 3(e) of the State Ethics Act. f. The advice of counsel indicated in part as follows: "The Commission has also said that preparing and signing a proposal, document or bid, or listing his name as the person who will provide technical assistance on such proposal, document or bid, if submitted to or reviewed by the Bureau, the Office and the Committee constitutes an attempt to influence the former governmental body. See Kilareski, 80 -054. Therefore, within the first year after Mr. Stephens leaves the Department, he should not engage in the type of activity outlined above. He may, assist in the preparation of any documents presented to the Bureau, the office or the Committee so long as he is not identified as the preparer." 8. By letter dated September 18, 1986 to the State Ethics Commission's General Counsel, John G. Kaufman, Esquire, Counsel for Empire Sanitary Landfill, requested a further clarification of the Advice of Counsel that had been issued regarding the activities of Mr. Stephens. a. That request for clarification was subsequently withdrawn as a result of a telephone contact on October 16, 1986 and subsequently confirmed by way of letter dated November 6, 1986. 9. David J. Lamereaux provided the following information in relation to the instant situation: a. He serves as the DER Regional Waste Manager for the Wilkes - Barre office. b. Mr. Stephens previously worked as . a Solid Waste Specialist for this office from 1969 to 1986. c. Shortly after leaving his position with DER, Mr. Stephens obtained employment as a site manager at the Empire Landfill. d. Shortly after leaving DER, Mr. Stephens would return to the Wilkes -Barre office of DER on frequent occasions to question co- workers on work related matters. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 6 e. He believed that most of the questions posed by Mr. Stephens concerned how to properly fill out forms and how to complete certain administrative duties. f. After several of these visits, several DER employees began to question what they could and could not do and what information they could provide to Mr. Stephens during these visits. They were aware of the one year restriction on certain activities pursuant to the Ethics Act. He never observed Mr. Stephens attempting to exert any undo influence on DER employees during these visits. h. Mr. Stephens never personally appeared before the Bureau of Solid Waste on behalf of any proposal submitted by Empire Landfill. g. i. Mr. Stephens was present at two public hearings as an Empire Landfill employee which were held due to the controversy surrounding the landfill. He served as a member of one panel during a public hearing at which time Mr. Stephens attempted to give a presentation on behalf of the Empire Landfill. Because of an unruly crowd, the presentation was not made. k. The Empire Landfill permit application amendment dated June, 1986, was approved in an expeditious manner in DER. 1. The reason that such was done was because, at that time, his office had more staff available to assist in such projects and as such, expeditious handling was possible. 10. You provided the following information in relation to the instant situation: a. You served as a Solid Waste Specialist for the Department of Environmental Resources, Wilkes- Barre office from 1969 until May, 1986. b. In May of 1986, you resigned you position with DER and became the Operation Manager for the Empire Landfill. c. In your position as Operations Manager, you assisted in the preparation of a permit amendment to be submitted to the Department of Environmental Resources and which was identified as Module No. 9. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 7 d. As part of this project you measured distances to recreational areas and a mining museum. You also performed mapping work which mostly related to distances and he reviewed the contents of Module No. 9 and discussed such with company officials. e. You were not aware of the restrictions imposed by the Ethics Act and were not given an exit interview upon termination of your government employment. f. You provided your input with regard to Module No. 9 to Mr. Rick Bodner of Martin and Martin, Incorporated. This information was utilized in drafting Module No. 9. You did not become aware of the listing of your name by Mr. Bodner until you reviewed the application in light of the Advice of Counsel dated August 15, 1986. h. You were unaware that Mr. Bodner was going to list you as a preparer on Module 9 when Empire Landfill, Incorporated submitted its application to DER. i. You were unaware of the fact that this was done until afterwards when you saw something in a local newspaper which questioned your ethics. . After discussing this issue with legal counsel, it was suggested that you contact the Ethics Commission to seek the advice of that agency regarding the situation. k. Since receiving the Advice of the State Ethics Commission you have relied on Empire's legal counsel with regard to any question you may have pertaining to potential conflicts of interests. j 1. The listing of your name on Module 9 of the Empire Landfill, Incorporated permit amendment application was the only known document relating to Empire Landfill, Incorporated, that contained your name as a preparer. m. You note that previous DER employees came into DER within one year of their leaving and no one expressed concern or opposition to those visits. B. Discussion: As a former Solid Waste Specialist with the Wilkes - Barre Office of the Department of Environmental Resources, Bureau of Solid Waste Management, you were a public employee as that term is defined under the Ethics Act. Upon termination of your service in May, 1986, you became a former public employee subject to the provisions of Section 3(e) of the Ethics Act quoted above. Mr. Alan Stephens Page 10 4. This Commission will take no further action in this case. This Order is final and will be made available as a public document fifteen days after issuance. However, you may request reconsideration which will defer public release of this Order pending action on your request by the Commission. A request for reconsideration, however, does not affect the finality of this Order. A reconsideration request must be received at this Commission within fifteen days of issuance and must include a detailed explanation of your reasons as to why reconsideration should be granted in conformity with 51 Pa. Code S2.38. The files in this case will remain confidential in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Ethics Act, 65 P.S. 408(a) during the fifteen day period and no one, including yourself, unless the right to challenge this Order is waived, may violate confidentiality by releasing, discussing or circulating this Order. However, confidentiality does not preclude you from discussing this case with your attorney at law. Any person who violates confidentiality of a Commission proceeding is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year or both, 65 P.S. 409(e). By th Commission elena G. Hughes Chair