The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About1st Qtr 2022 INDEX State Ethics Commission Quarterly Rulings for First Quarter 2022 ADVICES (Ethics): 21-568 CL: Re: This responds to your email received \[DATE REDACTED\], by which you requested clarification of Confidential Advice of Counsel 21-568, regarding the applicability of the Conflicts of Interests restrictions of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq. 22-500 (Haigh): Re: As a Member of Council for Mount Joy Borough (Borough) and/or as a Member of a Borough Committee, would you have a conflict of interest under Section 1103(a) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(a), with regard to participating in stormwater- related matters involving a business named “Gary Schatz Garage LLC” (Schatz Garage) or members of the Arbor Rose Community Association, when: (1) you are the President of Whittemore and Haigh Engineering, Inc. (WHEI); and (2) you and WHEI provided professional engineering consulting services to Schatz Garage and members of the Arbor Rose Community Association on stormwater-related issues prior to your election to Borough Council in November 2021? 22-501 (Mozer): Re: Would an individual serving as the Mayor of the City of Monessen (City), who in a private capacity has a business named “Crystalline Technology, LLC,” have a conflict of interest under Section 1103(a) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(a), with regard to volunteering his services to correct issues involving the City’s video surveillance camera system at no charge to the City? 22-502 (Jones-Rodak): Re: Would an individual employed as the Chief 7y6u*9-5326Mechanic/Plant Process Chief for the Lower Bucks County Joint Municipal Authority (LBCJMA) be considered a “public employee” subject to the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics - 1 - Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., and the Regulations of the State Ethics Commission, 51 Pa. Code § 11.1 et seq., and particularly, the requirements for filing Statements of Financial Interests? 22-503 (Passarella): Re: Whether, pursuant to Section 1103(a) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(a), your wife would have a conflict of interest in her capacity as a Member of Council for Carrolltown Borough (Borough) with regard to nominating you, in your capacity as a Member of Borough Council, for the office of Borough Council President or Borough Council Vice President and/or voting in favor of your election to either office, where the Borough Council President and the Borough Council Vice President do not receive any compensation in addition to the standard stipend of $50.00 per month which is paid to all Borough Council Members? . 22-504-(Presto): Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose prohibitions or restrictions upon an individual employed as the Township Road Foreman of a First Class Township with regard to seeking election or simultaneously serving as a Commissioner for the Township? 22-505 (Hafner): Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose prohibitions or restrictions upon a State Legislator serving in the Pennsylvania Senate with regard to receiving payment for teaching a course on the subject of “How to Run for Public Office” as a part- time faculty member of the Temple University School of Law? 22-506 (Taiclet): Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose restrictions upon you with regard to performing work as a consultant for Big Beaver Borough (Borough), Beaver County, Pennsylvania, following termination of your service as a Member of Borough Council? 22-507: Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose restrictions upon you with regard to - 2 - performing work for \[PRIVATE BUSINESS ENTITY\] following termination of your employment as the \[DIRECTOR\] for \[GOVERNMENTAL BODY\]? 22-507-S: Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose restrictions upon you with regard to performing work for clients of \[PRIVATE BUSINESS ENTITY\] on \[MATTER 1\] or \[MATTER 2\] following termination of your employment as the \[DIRECTOR\] for \[PUBLIC OFFICIAL\], where such \[MATTERS\] would be: (1) directed to the public or \[PARTICULAR PERSONS\], without you engaging in any behavior to identify yourself as the planner or organizer of the \[MATTERS\]; or (2) directed to the \[GOVERNMENTAL BODY\], without you engaging in any behavior to identify yourself as the planner or organizer of the \[MATTERS\]? 22-508 (Stapleford): Re: Would an individual serving as the Mayor of the City of Warren (City), who is employed as a Vice President of the United Refining Company (URC), have a conflict of interest under Section 1103(a) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(a), with regard to voting on matters related to the installation of a roundabout in the City, when URC opposes the roundabout for safety-related concerns? 22-509-21-505-CL Dunn): Re: This responds to your email received January 19, 2022, by which you requested clarification of Dunn, Advice of Counsel: 21-505, regarding the applicability of the Conflicts of Interests restrictions of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq. 22-510 (Hoke): Re: As the former Director of the Enterprise Project Management Office for the Pennsylvania Office of Administration, are you subject to any restrictions pursuant Section 1103(g) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq.? 22-511 (Parrish): Re: Would the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act prevent a Borough Council Member, who also holds a Board position with a Municipal Authority, from voting on matters related to the proposed sale of the Borough Sanitary Sewer System to the Authority? - 3 - 22-512 (Collins): Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose restrictions upon you with regard to accepting full-time employment with or serving as an independent contractor to an entity following termination of your employment as the Senior Director of the Office of Corporate Relations of the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED)? 22-513 (Steltz): Re: Would the post-employment restrictions of Section 1103(g) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(g), prohibit you, as a former Chief of Staff for the Commerce Department of the City of Philadelphia (City), from serving on both the Board of Directors of Philadelphia Works, Inc. (Philadelphia Works) and a committee of the Board of Directors that is chaired by an employee of the City Commerce Department? 22-514 (Sweat): Re: Whether, pursuant to Section 1103(a) of the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (Ethics Act), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(a), an individual who is a newly- elected Supervisor for Union Township (Township), Washington County, Pennsylvania, would have a conflict of interest with regard to participating in settlement negotiations, deliberations, executive sessions, votes, or other actions of the Township Board of Supervisors involving two lawsuits between the Township and the Peters Creek Sanitary Authority (Authority), where prior to being elected as a Township Supervisor, the individual executed a sworn affidavit which could be adversarial to the Township’s legal position in those lawsuits? 22-515 (Dawson): Re: Would the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., prohibit an individual serving as a county commissioner from performing work as an independent contractor to a law firm, where a partner in that law firm serves as solicitor for the county? 22-516 (Kishbaugh): Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would impose restrictions upon you with regard to working as a consultant to the Pennsylvania Department of State (“Department of State”) following - 4 - termination of service with the Department of State as an annuitant under the 95-day “return to state service” provision at 71 Pa.C.S. § 5706(A.1)? OPINIONS (ETHICS): 22-001: Re: Would the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., impose any restrictions upon a former executive-level State employee from accepting employment with an entity who was the recipient of grant funding specific to the opening or expansion of a plant or facility within the Commonwealth, where the former executive-level State employee’s actions were limited to signing a letter addressed to the entity, acknowledging the awarding of the grant? 22-002 (Deery): Re: Whether student loans forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program are reportable as a direct or indirect source of income for purposes of 65 Pa.C.S. §1105(b)(5) when the amount forgiven is in excess of the aggregated threshold of $1,300.00? 22-003 (Corey-Mann): Re: Whether the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act (“Ethics Act”), 65 Pa.C.S. § 1101 et seq., would prohibit Pennsylvania State Representatives (“State Representatives”) from using public funds to pay expenses for the following: ORDERS (Ethics): 1796- (Ayers): Re: This is a final adjudication of the State Ethics Commission 1797- (Updyke): Re: This is a final adjudication of the State Ethics Commission 1798- (Complainant A): Re: This is a final adjudication of the State Ethics Commission - 5 -