WASHINGTON STATE

 EXECUTIVE ETHICS BOARD

2425 Bristol Court SW– 4th Floor Conference Room – Olympia, WA

May 10, 2019

Regular Meeting Minutes

 

 

A.    Preliminary Business

1.     Roll Call

The regular meeting of the Washington State Executive Ethics Board (Board) was called to order by Chair Battan at 9:00 a.m.  In attendance were Vice Chair Gerri Davis and Member John Ladenburg.  Members Lisa Marsh and Anna Dudek Ross were absent. Board staff in attendance included:  Sr. Assistant Attorney General Bruce Turcott, Assistant Attorney General Chad Standifer, Investigators David Killeen and Bobby Frye and Administrative Officer Ruthann Bryant.

 

2.     Approval of Agenda

Ruthann Bryant noted that EEB Case 2018-031 has been removed from Enforcement Matters.

 

Motion 19-031 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board approves the May 10, 2019 agenda as amended.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

3.     Approval of the March 8, 2019 and April  9, 2019 Meeting Minutes

       

Motion 19-032 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board approves the March 8, 2019 and April 9, 2019 minutes as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

B.    Enforcement Matters

Stipulations

EEB Case No. 2018-006 (Jarju)

Investigator Bobby Frye briefed the Board on a proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Edrima Jarju.  Mr. Jarju agreed that he may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act when he used state resources for his outside employment and for his own personal benefit. The Stipulation imposes a penalty of $3,500 with $1,000 suspended.

EEB Case No. 2018-009 (LeBlanc)

Mr. Frye also briefed the Board on a proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Norman LeBlanc. Mr. LeBlanc agreed that he may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by using state resources for his private benefit and gain and for disclosing confidential information to a person not authorized to receive it. The Stipulation imposes a penalty of $4,000 with $1,000 suspended.

EEB Case No. 2018-045 (Karney)

Mr. Frye briefed the Board on a proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Stefanie Karney. Ms. Karney agreed that she may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act when she failed to pay for her daily parking on Capital Campus for approximately one year. The Stipulation imposes a penalty of $1,000 with $500 suspended.

Executive Director Dismissals

Senior Investigator David Killeen summarized one Executive Director Dismissal in EEB Case 2018-050 Patrick Sisneros.

The Board deferred action on the enforcement matters until after their closed session.

 

C.    Policy Reviews

Ruthann Bryant presented Columbia Basin College’s Code of Ethics Policy and recommended approval.

 

Motion 19-033: Moved by Vice Chair Davis, seconded by Member Ladenburg:

 

The Board approved Columbia Basin College’s Code of Ethics Policy as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Ms. Bryant also presented the Office of the Governor’s Guidance Chart. She reported that the chart was created to assist staff of the Governor’s office with campaign questions and was developed with the assistance of the Office of the Attorney General. She recommended approval.

 

Member Ladenburg commented that the layout of the chart was easy to follow and added that it is an excellent example for others to use when developing information.

 

Motion 19-034: Moved by Vice Chair Davis, seconded by Member Ladenburg:

 

The Board approved the Office of the Governor’s Guidance Chart as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Ruthann Bryant also presented Tacoma Community College’s Ethics Policy and recommended approval.

 

Motion 19-035: Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board approved Tacoma Community College’s Ethics Policy as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

D.    Staff Reports

Ruthann Bryant reported that our office was able to take advantage an IT purchase opportunity and recently received both a new standard size and a portable Forensic Recovery Evidence Device (FRED) system for our investigators to use when conducting investigations into computer use.  

No other staff reports were given.

Public Comment/Board Member Comment

Chair Ladenburg noted that his term ends in September 2019, but that this would be his last meeting.

The Board, staff and members of the public thanked him for his service.

E.    Closed Session

At  9:15 a.m. the Board moved into Closed Session. 

At 10:12 a.m. the Board returned to regular session and reported the following:

 

Motion 19-036 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board approved the Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Orders in EEB Case 2018-006 Ebrima Jarju as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-037 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board approved the Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Orders in EEB Case 2018-009 Norman LeBlanc as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-038 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board approved the Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Orders in EEB Case 2018-045 Stefanie Karney as presented.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-039 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board determined that any violation that may have occurred does not constitute a material violation because it was inadvertent and minor, or has been cured, and, after consideration of all of the circumstances, further proceedings would not serve the purposes of the Act and dismisses EEB Case 2018-032 Norman Lewis.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-040 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board found Reasonable Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-037 Derrick Gray.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-041 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board found Reasonable Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-049 Thomas Trebacz.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-042 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board determined that any violation that may have occurred does not constitute a material violation because it was inadvertent and minor, or has been cured, and, after consideration of all of the circumstances, further proceedings would not serve the purposes of the Act and dismisses EEB Case 2018-052 Gregory Henderson.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-043 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board found Reasonable Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-058 Cliff Mass.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-044 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board found Reasonable Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-059 Gregory Spatz.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-045 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board found Reasonable Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-060 Eric Johnson.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-046 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board determined that any violation that may have occurred does not constitute a material violation because it was inadvertent and minor, or has been cured, and, after consideration of all of the circumstances, further proceedings would not serve the purposes of the Act and dismisses EEB Case 2018-062 Wendy Jakobsen.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-047 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board found Reasonable Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-064 Janet Watkins.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-048 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board determined that any violation that may have occurred does not constitute a material violation because it was inadvertent and minor, or has been cured, and, after consideration of all of the circumstances, further proceedings would not serve the purposes of the Act and dismisses EEB Case 2018-065 Dale Durran.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-049 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board determined that any violation that may have occurred does not constitute a material violation because it was inadvertent and minor, or has been cured, and, after consideration of all of the circumstances, further proceedings would not serve the purposes of the Act and dismisses EEB Case 2019-001 Greg Faust.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-050 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board dismissed as not within the jurisdiction of the Board, EEB Case 2019-005 Cheryl Strange.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-051 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board affirmed the Executive Director Dismissal in EEB Case 2018-041 Travis Naillon.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-052 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board issued a Motion for Default in EEB Case 2018-018 Shanna Clark.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

Motion 19-053 Moved by Member Ladenburg, seconded by Vice Chair Davis:

 

The Board issued a Final Order of Default and imposes a penalty of $3,000 in EEB Case 2018-012 Laura Chapman.

 

The motion passed unanimously.

 

F.    Miscellaneous Matters/Adjournment

There being no miscellaneous matters, the meeting was adjourned at 10:20 a.m.

Approved by the Board 7/12/19