2019 -- H 5493

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LC000987

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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A N   A C T

     RELATING TO PUBLIC OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES - CODE OF ETHICS

     Introduced By: Representatives Lyle, Roberts, Filippi, Price, and Place

     Date Introduced: February 14, 2019

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 36-14-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 36-14 entitled "Code of

Ethics" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     36-14-5. Prohibited activities.

     (a) No person subject to this code of ethics shall have any interest, financial or otherwise,

direct or indirect, or engage in any business, employment, transaction, or professional activity, or

incur any obligation of any nature, which is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his

or her duties or employment in the public interest and of his or her responsibilities as prescribed

in the laws of this state, as defined in § 36-14-7.

     (b) No person subject to this code of ethics shall accept other employment which will

either impair his or her independence of judgment as to his or her official duties or employment

or require him or her, or induce him or her, to disclose confidential information acquired by him

or her in the course of and by reason of his or her official duties.

     (c) No person subject to this code of ethics shall willfully and knowingly disclose, for

pecuniary gain, to any other person, confidential information acquired by him or her in the course

of and by reason of his or her official duties or employment or use any information for the

purpose of pecuniary gain.

     (d) No person subject to this code of ethics shall use in any way his or her public office or

confidential information received through his or her holding any public office to obtain financial

gain, other than that provided by law, for him or herself or any person within his or her family,

any business associate, or any business by which the person is employed or which the person

represents.

     (e) No person subject to this code of ethics shall:

     (1) Represent him or herself before any state or municipal agency of which he or she is a

member or by which he or she is employed. In cases of hardship, the ethics commission may

permit such representation upon application by the official provided that he or she shall first:

     (i) Advise the state or municipal agency in writing of the existence and the nature of his

or her interest in the matter at issue;

     (ii) Recuse him or herself from voting on or otherwise participating in the agency's

consideration and disposition of the matter at issue; and

     (iii) Follow any other recommendations the ethics commission may make to avoid any

appearance of impropriety in the matter.

     (2) Represent any other person before any state or municipal agency of which he or she is

a member or by which he or she is employed.

     (3) Act as an expert witness before any state or municipal agency of which he or she is a

member or by which he or she is employed with respect to any matter the agency's disposition of

which will or can reasonably be expected to directly result in an economic benefit or detriment to

him or herself, or any person within his or her family, or any business associate of the person, or

any business by which that person is employed or which the person represents.

     (4) Shall engage in any of the activities prohibited by subsection (e)(1), (e)(2), or (e)(3)

of this section for a period of one year after he or she has officially severed his or her position

with said state or municipal agency; provided, however, that this prohibition shall not pertain to a

matter of public record in a court of law.

     (f) No business associate of any person subject to this code of ethics shall represent him

or herself or any other person, or act as an expert witness before the state or municipal agency of

which the person is a member or by which the person is employed unless:

     (1) He or she shall first advise the state or municipal agency of the nature of his or her

business relationship with the person subject to this code of ethics; and

     (2) The person subject to this code of ethics shall recuse him or herself from voting on or

otherwise participating in the agency's consideration and disposition of the matter at issue.

     (g) No person subject to this code of ethics, or spouse (if not estranged), dependent child,

or business associate of the person, or any business by which the person is employed or which the

person represents, shall solicit or accept any gift, loan, political contribution, reward, or promise

of future employment based on any understanding that the vote, official action, or judgment of

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the person would be influenced thereby.

     (h) No person subject to this code of ethics, or any person within his or her family or

business associate of the person, or any business entity in which the person or any person within

his or her family or business associate of the person has a ten percent (10%) or greater equity

interest or five thousand dollars ($5,000) or greater cash value interest, shall enter into any

contract with any state or municipal agency unless the contract has been awarded through an open

and public process, including prior public notice and subsequent public disclosure of all proposals

considered and contracts awarded; provided, however, that contracts for professional services

which have been customarily awarded without competitive bidding shall not be subject to

competitive bidding if awarded through a process of public notice and disclosure of financial

details.

     (i) No person shall give or offer to any person covered by this code of ethics, or to any

candidate for public office, or to any person within his or her family or business associate of any

person, or to any business by which the person is employed or which the person represents, any

gift, loan, political contribution, reward, or promise of future employment based on any

understanding or expectation that the vote, official action, or judgment of the person would be

influenced thereby.

     (j) No person shall use for any commercial purpose information copied from any

statements required by this chapter or from lists compiled from the statements.

     (k) No person shall knowingly and willfully make a false or frivolous complaint under

this chapter.

     (l) No candidate for public office, or any person within his or her family, business

associate of the candidate, or any business by which the candidate is employed or which the

candidate represents, shall solicit or accept any gift, loan, political contribution, reward, or

promise of future employment based on any understanding that the vote, official action, or

judgment of the candidate would be influenced thereby.

     (m) No person subject to this code of ethics shall, either directly or indirectly, through

any government agency, or through a business associate, or through any other person, threaten or

intimidate any complainant or witness or any family member of any complainant or witness in

any proceeding before the state ethics commission.

     (1) In addition to any rights a complainant or witness may have under the Rhode Island

Whistleblowers' Protection Act, chapter 50 of title 28 or under any other statute, a complainant or

witness may bring a civil action in superior court for appropriate injunctive relief, or actual

damages, or both and attorney's fees within three (3) years after the occurrence of the alleged

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violation of subsection (m) above.

     (2) The initiation of litigation by a complainant or witness pursuant to subsection (m)(1)

shall not constitute a violation of any confidentiality provisions of this chapter.

     (n)(1) No state elected official, while holding state office and for a period of one year

after leaving state office, shall seek or accept employment with any other state agency, as defined

in § 36-14-2(8)(i), other than employment which was held at the time of the official's election or

at the time of enactment of this subsection, except as provided herein.

     (2) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit any general officer or the general assembly

from appointing any state elected official to a senior policy-making, discretionary, or confidential

position on the general officer's or the general assembly's staff, and in the case of the governor, to

a position as a department director; nor shall the provisions herein prohibit any state elected

official from seeking or accepting a senior policy-making, discretionary, or confidential position

on any general officer's or the general assembly's staff, or from seeking or accepting appointment

as a department director by the governor.

     (3) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit a state elected official from seeking or being

elected for any other constitutional office.

     (4) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit the Rhode Island ethics commission from

authorizing exceptions to this subsection where such exemption would not create an appearance

of impropriety.

     (o)(1) No department head or person holding a senior policy-making, discretionary, or

confidential position on the staff of any state elected official or the general assembly shall seek or

accept any other employment by any state agency as defined in § 36-14-2(8)(i), while serving as

such policy-making, discretionary, or confidential staff member and for a period of one year after

leaving that state employment as a member of the state elected official's or the general assembly's

senior policy-making, discretionary, or confidential staff.

     (2) Notwithstanding the foregoing, a person holding a senior policy-making,

discretionary, or confidential staff position who has a minimum of five (5) years of uninterrupted

state service shall be exempt from the provisions of this section. "State service" as used herein

means service in the classified, unclassified and nonclassified services of the state, but shall not

include service in any state elective office.

     (3) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit any general officer or the general assembly

from appointing any such senior policy-making, discretionary, or confidential member of the staff

of any state elected official or the general assembly to any other senior policymaking,

discretionary, or confidential position on any general officer's or the general assembly's staff, and

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in the case of the governor, to a position as a department director; nor shall the provisions hereof

prohibit any senior policy-making, discretionary, or confidential member of the staff of any state

elected official or the general assembly from seeking or accepting any other senior policy-

making, discretionary, or confidential position on any general officer's or the general assembly's

staff, or from seeking or accepting appointment as a department director by the governor.

     (4) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit a person holding a senior policy-making,

discretionary, or confidential staff position from seeking or being elected for any constitutional

office.

     (5) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit the Rhode Island ethics commission from

authorizing exceptions to this subsection where such exemption would not create an appearance

of impropriety.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

     RELATING TO PUBLIC OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES - CODE OF ETHICS

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     This act would eliminate a number of exceptions to the "revolving-door rule," so-called,

of the state code of ethics. It would also eliminate the exception given for a person holding a

senior policy making, discretionary, or confidential staff position who has a minimum of five (5)

years of uninterrupted state service.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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LC000987

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