[Adopted 11-22-2004]
In Section 7-148h of the General Statutes, the
Legislature of the State of Connecticut delegates to local government
units the power to establish a commission to investigate allegations
of unethical conduct, corrupting influence or illegal activities levied
against any municipal official, officer or employee. Therefore, the
Town of Old Saybrook, does hereby ordain as follows.
There shall be an Ethics Commission consisting
of five members, each of whom shall be appointed by unanimous vote
of the Board of Selectmen. Members of the Commission shall serve for
a term of four years. No more than three members shall be members
of the same political party.
All members shall be electors of the Town. No
member of such Commission shall be employed by the Town or its Board
of Education nor shall any member hold or be a candidate for any other
municipal office in the Town. A vacancy shall exist when a member
ceases to be an elector of the Town or accepts employment by the Town
or its Board of Education or accepts another municipal office in the
Town or becomes a candidate for any municipal office. For the purpose
of this section, a "candidate" shall be any person who declares himself
as such or is a candidate as defined under the election laws of the
State of Connecticut.
Any vacancy on the Commission shall be filled
for the unexpired portion of the term by the unanimous vote of the
Board of Selectmen. If the Board of Selectmen fails to fill any such
vacancy within 45 days of notice to the Board that a vacancy exists,
then the remaining members of the Commission shall fill such vacancy
by a majority vote of its members within 45 days following the Board
of Selectmen's forty-five-day period.
The Commission shall have the power to:
A.
Amend the Code of Ethics, from time to time, provided
such amendments shall become effective only upon ratification by the
electors and those qualified to vote at Town Meetings.
B.
Establish regulations and procedures regarding distribution
of the Code of Ethics to all Town officials and employees affected
thereby.
C.
Establish regulations and procedures for the initiation
and handling of complaints, including a procedure by which citizens
may file complaints.
D.
Establish regulations and procedures whereby Town
officials, employees and other citizens may request and receive advisory
opinions from the Commission as to whether certain conduct by Town
officials and employees complies with the Code of Ethics.
The Commission shall have all the powers and
protections afforded to a municipal Ethics Commission by Section 7-148h
of the Connecticut General Statutes.
In accordance with Connecticut General Statutes,
Sections 7-148h and 1-82a, and notwithstanding any other provision
of the General Statutes, the Town Charter and Town ordinances, the
provisions of General Statutes Section 1-82a, governing confidentiality
of complaints, evaluations of possible violations, investigations,
and publication of findings, shall apply to the Commission.
If the Commission finds that there has been
a violation of the Code of Ethics:
A.
The Commission shall not have the power to fire, suspend,
fine, or punish any Town official or employee, including, but not
limited to, any Board of Education official or employee. The Commission
may make recommendations as to actions it deems appropriate to whoever
has the power to hire and fire such employee or official; or, in the
case of an appointed official who is not an employee of the Town,
the Commission may make such recommendations to the appointing body;
or in the case of an elected official, the Commission may make such
recommendation to the Board of Selectmen.
B.
The Commission may also report its findings and recommendations
to any other authority the Commission deems appropriate for any action
deemed necessary.
