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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-552 MannJames G. Mann, Esquire Milliron Associates Suite 1500 200 North Third Street Harrisburg, PA 17101 Re: Former Public Employee; Section 1103(g); Policy Director; Staff Counsel; State Senator. Dear Mr. Mann: ADVICE OF COUNSEL May 21, 2003 03 -552 This responds to your letter of April 21, 2003, by which you requested advice from the State Ethics Commission. Issue: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act ( "Ethics Act "), 65 Ha.G.S. § 1101 et seq., presents any restrictions upon employment of a Policy Director and Staff Counsif following termination of service with a Pennsylvania State Senator. Facts: From February 2001 until April 15, 2003, you were employed as a Policy iii recfor and Staff Counsel for an unidentified Pennsylvania State Senator (hereinafter referred to as the "Senator "). Your duties included offering advice and counsel to the Senator and his staff; drafting legislation, correspondence and opinions for the Senator; and generally advancing the Senator's legislative agenda. You state that your contact with other Senators and staff within the Pennsylvania Senate was limited principally to issues regarding the Senator's legislative agenda and advancing legislation sponsored by the Senator. You ask whether the Ethics Act would limit your ability to lobby State government in light of your former employment with the Senator. You specifically ask whether Section 1103(g) of the Ethics Act would limit your contact with all of the State Senators and Senate staff or only with your former employer and his staff. Discussion: It is initially noted that pursuant to Sections 1107(10) and 1107(11) of the Ethics Act, 65 Pa.C.S. §§ 1107(10), (11), advisories are issued to the requestor based upon the facts which the requestor has submitted. In issuing the advisory based upon the facts which the requestor has submitted, the Commission does not engage in an independent investigation of the facts, nor does it speculate as to facts which have Mann, 03 -552 May21, 2003 Page 2 not been submitted. It is the burden of the requestor to truthfully disclose all of the material facts relevant to the inquiry. 65 Pa.C.S. §§ 1107(10), (11). An advisory only affords a defense to the extent the requestor has truthfully disclosed all of the material facts. In the former capacity as a Policy Director and Staff Counsel for the Senator, you would be considered a "public employee" subject to the Ethics Act and the Regulations of the State Ethics Commission. See, 65 Pa.C.S. § 1102; 51 Pa. Code § 11.1. Consequently, upon termination of public service, you became a "former public employee" subject to Section 1103(g) of the Ethics Act. While Section 1103(g) does not prohibit a former public official /public employee from accepting a position of employment, it does restrict the former public official /public employee with regard to "representing" a "person" before "the governmental body with which he has been associated ": § 1103. Restricted activities (g) Former official or employee. - -No former public official or public employee shall represent a person, with promised or actual compensation, on any matter before the governmental body with which he has been associated one year after he leaves that body. 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(g) (Emphasis added). The terms "represent," "person," and "governmental body with which a public official or public employee is or has been associated" are specifically defined in the Ethics Act as follows: § 1102. Definitions "Represent." To act on behalf of any other person in any activity which includes, but is not limited to, the following: personal appearances, negotiations, lobbying and submitting bid or contract proposals which are signed by or contain the name of a former public official or public employee. "Person." A business, governmental body, individual, corporation, union, association, firm, partnership, committee, club or other organization or group of persons. "Governmental body with which a public official or public employee is or has been associated." The governmental body within State government or a political subdivision by which the public official or employee is or has been employed or to which the public official or employee is or has been appointed or elected and subdivisions and offices within that governmental body. 65 Pa.C.S. § 1102. The term "person" is very broadly defined. It includes, inter alia, corporations and other businesses. It also includes the former public employee himself, Confidential Opinion, 93 -005, as well as a new governmental employer. Ledebur, Opinion 95 -007. Mann, 03 -552 May21, 2003 Page 3 The term "representation" is also broadly defined to prohibit acting on behalf of any person in any activity. Examples of prohibited representation include: (1) personal appearances before the former governmental body or bodies; (2) attempts to influence; (3) submission of bid or contract proposals which are signed by or contain the name of the former public official /public employee; (4) participating in any matters before the former governmental body as to acting on behalf of a person; and (5) lobbying. Popovich, Opinion 89 -005. Listing one's name as the person who will provide technical assistance on a proposal, document, or bid, if submitted to or reviewed by the former governmental body, an attempt to influence the former governmental body. Section 1103(g) also generally prohibits the inclusion of the name of a former public official /public employee on invoices submitted by his new employer to the former governmental body, even though the invoices pertain to a contract that existed prior to termination of public service. Shay, Opinion 91 -012. However, if such a pre- existing contract does not involve the unit where the former public employee worked, the name of the former public employee may appear on routine invoices if required by the regulations of the agency to which the billing is being submitted. Abrams/Webster, Opinion 95 -011. A former public official /public employee may assist in the preparation of any documents presented to his former governmental body. However, the former public official /public employee may not be identified on documents submitted to the former governmental body. The former public official /public employee may also counsel any person regarding that person's appearance before his former governmental body. Once again, however, the activity in this respect should not be revealed to the former governmental body. The Ethics Act would not prohibit or preclude making general informational inquiries to the former governmental body to secure information which is available to the general public, but this must not be done in an effort to indirectly influence the former governmental body or to otherwise make known to that body the representation of, or work for the new employer. Section 1103(g) only restricts the former public official /public employee with regard to representation before his former governmental body. The former public official /public employee is not restricted as to representation before other agencies or entities. However, the "governmental body with which a public official /public employee is or has been associated" is not limited to the particular subdivision of the agency or other governmental body where the public official /public employee had influence or control but extends to the entire body. See, Legislative Journal of House, 1989 Session, No. 15 at 290, 291; Sirolli, Opinion 90=006; Sharp, Opinion 90- 009 -R. The governmental body with which you have been associated upon termination of public service is the Pennsylvania State Senate in its entirety including, but not limited to, the office of the Senator by whom you were employed. See, Sharp, supra (wherein the Commission determined that a former legislative assistant to a State Senator was not merely restricted to that particular Senator, but to the entire Senate as his former governmental body). Therefore, for the first year following termination of service with the Pennsylvania State Senate, Section 1103(g) of the Ethics Act would apply and restrict "representation" of "persons" before the Pennsylvania State Senate. Based upon the facts that have been submitted, this Advice has addressed the applicability of Section 1103(g) only. It is expressly assumed that there has been no use of authority of office for a private pecuniary benefit as prohibited by Section 1103(a) of the Ethics Act. Further, you are advised that Sections 1103(b) and 1103(c) of the Ethics Act provide in part that no person shall offer to a public official /public employee and no public official /public employee shall solicit or accept anything of monetary value based upon the understanding that the vote, official action, or judgment of the public official /public employee would be influenced thereby. Reference is made to these Mann, 03 -552 May21, 2003 Page 4 provisions of the law not to imply that there has been or will be any transgression thereof but merely to provide a complete response to the question presented. Lastly, the propriety of the proposed conduct has only been addressed under the Ethics Act; the applicability of any other statute, code, ordinance, regulation, or other code of conduct other than the Ethics Act has not been considered in that they do not involve an interpretation of the Ethics Act. Conclusion: In the former capacity as a Policy Director and Staff Counsel for a Mate Senator (hereinafter referred to as the "Senator "), you would be considered a "public employee" as defined in the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act ( "Ethics Act "), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq. Upon termination of public service, you became a "former public employee" subject to Section 1103(g) of the Ethics Act. The former governmental body is the Pennsylvania State Senate in its entirety including, but not limited to, the office of the Senator by whom you were employed. The restrictions as to representation outlined above must be followed. The propriety of the proposed conduct has only been addressed under the Ethics Act. Further, should service be terminated, as outlined above, the Ethics Act would require that a Statement of Financial Interests be filed by no later than May 1 of the year after termination of service. Pursuant to Section 1107(11), an Advice is a complete defense in any enforcement proceeding initiated by the Commission, and evidence of good faith conduct in any other civil or criminal proceeding, provided the requestor has disclosed truthfully all the material facts and committed the acts complained of in reliance on the Advice given. This letter is a public record and will be made available as such. Finally, if you disagree with this Advice or if you have any reason to challenge same, you may appeal the Advice to the full Commission. A personal appearance before the Commission will be scheduled and a formal Opinion will be issued by the Commission. Any such appeal must be in writing and must be actually received at the Commission within thirty (30) days of the date of this Advice pursuant to 51 Pa. Code § 13.2(h). The appeal may be received at the Commission by hand delivery, United States mail, delivery service, or by FAX transmission (717 -787 -0806. Failure to file such an appeal at the Commission within thirty (30) days may result in the dismissal of the appeal. Sincerely, Vincent J. Dopko Chief Counsel