2005 Connecticut Code - Sec. 1-80. State Ethics Commission. Members; appointment; qualifications; vacancies; compensation. Hearings.

      Sec. 1-80. State Ethics Commission. Members; appointment; qualifications; vacancies; compensation. Hearings. (a) There shall be a State Ethics Commission consisting of nine members to be appointed with the advice and consent of the General Assembly. One member shall be appointed by the speaker of the House, one member by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one member by the majority leader of the Senate, one member by the minority leader of the Senate, one member by the majority leader of the House of Representatives, one member by the minority leader of the House of Representatives and three members by the Governor. Members of the commission shall serve for four-year terms which shall commence on October first, except that members first appointed shall have the following terms: The Governor shall appoint two members for a term of three years and one member for a term of four years; the majority leader of the House or Representatives, minority leader of the House of Representatives and the speaker of the House of Representatives shall each appoint one member for a term of two years; the president pro tempore of the Senate, the majority leader of the Senate and the minority leader of the Senate shall each appoint one member for a term of four years. No individual shall be appointed to more than one four-year term as a member of such commission, provided that members may continue in office until a successor has been appointed and qualified. No more than five members shall be members of the same political party. The members appointed by the majority leader of the Senate and the majority leader of the House of Representatives shall be selected from a list of nominees proposed by a citizen group having an interest in ethical government. The majority leader of the Senate and the majority leader of the House of Representatives shall each determine the citizen group from which each will accept such nominations. On and after October 1, 2004, one member appointed by the Governor shall be selected from a list of nominees proposed by a citizen group having an interest in ethical government. The Governor shall determine the citizen group from which the Governor will accept such nominations.

      (b) All members shall be electors of the state. No member or employee of such commission shall (1) hold or campaign for any public office; (2) have held public office or have been a candidate for public office for a three-year period prior to appointment; (3) hold office in any political party or political committee or be a member of any organization or association organized primarily for the purpose of influencing legislation or decisions of public agencies; or (4) be an individual who is a registrant as defined in subsection (q) of section 1-91.

      (c) Any vacancy on the commission shall be filled for the unexpired portion of the term by the appointing authority having the power to make the original appointment. An individual selected by the appointing authority to fill a vacancy shall be eligible for appointment to one full four-year term thereafter. Any vacancy occurring on the commission shall be filled within thirty days.

      (d) The commission shall elect a chairperson who shall, except as provided in subsection (b) of section 1-82 and subsection (b) of section 1-93, preside at meetings of the commission and a vice-chairperson to preside in the absence of the chairperson. Six members of the commission shall constitute a quorum. Except as provided in subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of section 1-81, subsections (a) and (b) of section 1-82, subsection (b) of section 1-88, subdivision (5) of section 1-92, subsections (a) and (b) of section 1-93 and subsection (b) of section 1-99, a majority vote of the quorum shall be required for action of the commission. The chairperson or any five members may call a meeting.

      (e) Any matter before the commission, except hearings held pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b) of section 1-82 or subsection (b) of section 1-93, may be assigned by the commission to two of its members to conduct an investigation or hearing, as the case may be, to ascertain the facts and report thereon to the commission with a recommendation for action.

      (f) Members of the commission shall be compensated at the rate of fifty dollars per day for each day they attend a meeting or hearing and shall receive reimbursement for their necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their official duties.

      (g) The commission shall not be construed to be a board or commission within the meaning of section 4-9a.

      (h) The members and employees of the State Ethics Commission shall adhere to the following code of ethics under which the members and employees shall: (1) Observe high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the State Ethics Commission may be preserved; (2) respect and comply with the law and conduct themselves at all times in a manner which promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the commission; (3) be faithful to the law and maintain professional competence in the law; (4) be unswayed by partisan interests, public clamor or fear of criticism; (5) maintain order and decorum in proceedings of the commission; (6) be patient, dignified and courteous to all persons who appear in commission proceedings and with other persons with whom the members and employees deal in their official capacities; (7) refrain from making any statement outside of a commission proceeding, which would have a likelihood of prejudicing a commission proceeding; (8) refrain from making any statement outside of a commission proceeding that a reasonable person would expect to be disseminated by means of public communication if the member or employee should know that such statement would have a likelihood of materially prejudicing or embarrassing a complainant or a respondent; (9) preserve confidences of complainants and respondents; (10) exercise independent professional judgment on behalf of the commission; and (11) represent the commission competently.

      (P.A. 77-600, S. 2, 15; 77-605, S. 2, 21; P.A. 79-493, S. 2, 9; P.A. 83-249, S. 2, 3, 14; 83-586, S. 1, 14; P.A. 84-52, S. 5; 84-334, S. 1, 3; P.A. 86-390, S. 3, 4; 86-403, S. 93, 132; P.A. 88-139, S. 4; P.A. 92-149, S. 9, 12; P.A. 03-19, S. 1; P.A. 04-204, S. 1, 2.)

      History: P.A. 77-605 changed method for making initial appointments and qualifications for members and placed commission in the office of secretary of the state for administrative purposes only; P.A. 79-493 changed provisions concerning quorum, introduced provisions for fact-finding investigations and hearings and excluded commission from Sec. 4-9a; P.A. 83-249 amended Subsec. (a) to clarify that terms commence on October first and that members may continue in office until successors are appointed and qualify and made technical changes in Subsec. (d); P.A. 83-586 added Subsec. (h) allowing appointment of executive director and general counsel upon concurring vote of five members and dismissal upon concurring vote of four members; P.A. 84-52 made technical changes in Subsecs. (d) and (e) to reflect relettering of subsections in sections 1-82 and 1-93; P.A. 84-334 increased members' compensation from twenty-five to fifty dollars per day; P.A. 86-390 deleted provision in Subsec. (a) placing commission within the office of the secretary of the state for administrative purposes only; P.A. 86-403 made technical change in Subsec. (d); P.A. 88-139, S. 4 which was codified as Subsec. (i) established a code of ethics for members and employees of the ethics commission; P.A. 92-149 amended Subsec. (d) to make technical corrections, deleted Subsec. (h) re appointment of executive director and general counsel, but see Sec. 1-81(b), and relettered remaining Subsec. accordingly; P.A. 03-19 made a technical change in Subsec. (d), effective May 12, 2003; P.A. 04-204 amended Subsec. (a) to increase members from seven to nine, one appointed each by majority leaders of House and Senate, specify terms of initial appointees, add method of selection for such additional members, add method of selection for one member appointed by Governor on and after October 1, 2004, and increase limit on members from same political party from four to five, and amended Subsec. (d) to increase quorum from five to six members and number of members necessary to call a meeting from four to five, effective June 3, 2004.

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