WASHINGTON STATE
EXECUTIVE ETHICS BOARD
Via GoToMeeting
November 13, 2020
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 9:02 a.m. In attendance were Vice Chair Gerri Davis and
Members Lisa Marsh and Jan Jutte. Member Anna Dudek Ross was absent. Board
staff in attendance included: Executive
Director Kate Reynolds, Assistant Attorney General Michelle Carr, Investigators
David Killeen and Bobby Frye and Administrative Officer Ruthann Bryant.
2. Approval of Agenda
Motion 20-053 Moved by Member Marsh, seconded
by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board approved the November
13, 2020 agenda as presented.
The motion passed unanimously.
3. Approval of the September 11, 2020 Meeting Minutes
Member Jutte noted a typo on page 2 under
Enforcement Matters.
Motion 20-054 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board approved the September 11, 2020 minutes as amended.
The motion passed
unanimously.
B. Enforcement Matters
Stipulations
EEB
Case 2019-036 (Harada)
Investigator Bobby Frye briefed the
Board on a proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Mitch Harada, former
Administrative Law Judge with the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals. Mr. Harada
agreed that he may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by using
state resources for his private benefit and gain. Evidence indicated that he
stored over 500 personal documents on his state computer, created and/or saved
over 300 documents during work hours including letters regarding personal legal
issues and property and used the office address for personal deliveries. The
Board levied a civil penalty of $3,500.
EEB
Case 2019-038 (Stewart)
Senior Investigator David Killeen
briefed the Board on a proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Courtney
Stewart, a Sergeant with the Washington State Patrol. Ms. Stewart agreed that
she may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by using state resources
to participate in a political advertisement in opposition to Washington State
Initiative I-976. The Board levied a civil penalty of $1,500 with $500
suspended.
EEB
Case 2020-014 (Merrill)
Mr. Killeen also
briefed the Board on a proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Jeff
Merrill, former President of the Washington State
Patrol Trooper Association. Mr. Merrill agreed that he may have violated the
Ethics in Public Service Act by using state resources for a political campaign
when he asked two troopers to participate in a political advertisement in
opposition to Washington State Initiative I-976. The Board levied a civil
penalty of $2,500.
EEB
Case 2020-032 (King)
Mr. Killeen briefed the Board on a
proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Nick King, a Trooper with the
Washington State Patrol. Mr. King agreed that he may have violated the Ethics
in Public Service Act by using state resources to participate in a political
advertisement in opposition to Washington State Initiative I-976. The Board
levied a civil penalty of $1,500 with $500 suspended.
EEB
Case 2019-043 (Rogers)
Mr. Frye briefed the Board on a proposed
stipulation and order in the matter of Hahli Rogers, former Executive Director
of Corporate & Continuing Education at Lower Columbia College. Ms. Rogers
agreed that she may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by using
state resources for her private benefit or gain. Evidence indicated that she
used college grant funds to purchase gift cards and then later accompanied her
son to the bookstore where he used the gift cards to purchase his books for the
fall quarter. In addition, Ms. Rogers failed to submit leave for time taken off
work and used the college credit card for personal purchases. The Board levied
a civil penalty of $4,500.
EEB
Case 2019-045 (Pagel)
Mr. Frye briefed the Board on a proposed
stipulation and order in the matter of Debra Pagel, a Social and Health Program
Consultant with the Department of Social and Health Services. Ms. Pagel agreed
that she may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by using state
resources for her private benefit and gain by receiving pay for time not
worked. Evidence indicated that she was routinely late for work and failed to
submit leave for full days off. The Board levied a civil penalty of $3,000 with
$500 suspended.
EEB
Case 2020-001 (Addams)
Mr. Frye also briefed the Board on a
proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Michael Addams, former Local
Government Liaison for the Division of Child Support at the Department of
Social and Health Services. Mr. Addams agreed that he may have violated the
Ethics in Public Service Act by securing special privileges for himself when he
accepted employment with an agency that he managed a contract for while
employed at the Division of Child Support. The Board levied a civil penalty of
$2,500.
EEB
Case 2020-003 (Gordon)
Mr. Killeen briefed the Board on a
proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Beth Gordon, an Administrative
Assistant for the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges. Ms. Gordon
agreed that she may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by giving
herself a special privilege in the form of a hotel room upgrade. The Board
levied a civil penalty of $500 with $100 suspended.
EEB
Case 2020-018 (Baskett)
Mr. Killeen also briefed the Board on a
proposed stipulation and order in the matter of Michael Baskett, former Technical Services Manager at the
University of Washington. Mr. Baskett agreed that he may have violated the
Ethics in Public Service Act by using state resources for his private benefit
and gain when he received pay for time not worked. Evidence indicated that he
failed to submit leave totaling more than 271 hours. The Board levied a civil penalty
of $3,500.
EEB
Case 2020-021 (Dykstra)
Mr. Frye briefed the Board on a proposed
stipulation and order in the matter of Jane Dykstra, a Fiscal Specialist 2 with
the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Ms. Dykstra
agreed that she may have violated the Ethics in Public Service Act by using
state resources for her private benefit and gain when she received pay for time
not worked. Evidence indicated that she failed to submit leave for
approximately 192 hours. The Board levied a civil penalty of $3,000.
Executive Director
Dismissals
Kate Reynolds summarized three Executive Director Dismissals: EEB
Case 2020-026 Tammy Winegar, EEB Case 2020-035 Ray Godin and EEB Case 2020-043
James Duncan.
The Board deferred action on the enforcement matters until after
their closed session.
D. Policy Reviews
Kate Reynolds presented Tacoma Community College’s Affinity Groups
Policy. Ms. Reynolds noting that the policy was patterned after the Office of
the Attorney General’s Affinity Group policy and recommended approval.
The Board requested that the referenced FAQ’s be provided for
review in addition to the policy and will review them together at the next
meeting.
Ruthann Bryant presented the Office of Superintendent of Public
Instruction’s Ethical Standards policy. She noted that the policy was last
reviewed in 2007 and recommended approval.
Motion 20-055 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board approved the Office
of Superintendent of Public Instruction’s Ethical Standards policy as
presented.
The motion passed unanimously.
F. Staff Reports
Executive
Director Kate Reynolds reported that due to the pandemic staff continues to telework
and it has been going well. She also noted that the review period for all
Advisory Opinions was coming up in 2021.
Administrative
Officer Ruthann Bryant reported that she had been working in partnership with
the Department of Enterprise Services on an update to the Ethics in Public
Service training, which is offered through the Learning Management System. She added that the updated training is
expected to launch in January 2021.
No
other staff reports were given.
G. Public Comment/Board Member
Comment
No public
or Board Member comments were given.
H. Closed Session
At 9:35
a.m. the Board moved into Closed Session.
At 10:45 a.m. the Board returned to regular session and reported
the following:
Motion 20-056 Moved by Chair Battan,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2019-030
Mitch Harada.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-057 Moved by Vice Chair Davis,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2019-0038
Courtney Stewart.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-058 Moved by Vice Chair Davis, seconded
by Chair Battan:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2020-014 Jeff
Merrill.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-059 Moved by Vice Chair Davis,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2020-032 Nick
King.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-060 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2019-043
Hahli Rogers.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-061 Moved by Chair Battan,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2019-045
Debra Pagel.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-062 Moved by Member Marsh,
seconded by Member Jutte:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2020-001
Michael Addams.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-063 Moved by Chair Battan,
seconded by Member Jutte:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2020-003 Beth
Gordon.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-064 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2020-018
Michael Baskett.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-065 Moved by Vice Chair Davis,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board approved the
Stipulated Facts, Conclusions of Law and Agreed Order in EEB Case 2020-021 Jane
Dykstra.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-066 Moved by Member Marsh,
seconded by Member Jutte:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2018-053 Jennifer Smith.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-067 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2020-013 Deitra Garrett.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-068 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2020-028 Melanie Nelson.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-069 Moved by Chair Battan,
seconded by Member Jutte:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2020-029 Tamela Merrill.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-070 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2020-033 Rosalba Valdez.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-071 Moved by Member Marsh,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board determined that the
complaint is obviously unfounded or frivolous and dismisses EEB Case 2020-034 David Flynn.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-072 Moved by Chair Battan,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board determined that the
complaint is obviously unfounded or frivolous and dismisses EEB Case 2020-036 Scott Lindquist.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-073 Moved by Vice Chair Davis,
seconded by Chair Battan:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 in EEB Case 2020-037 Robyn Hofstad.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-074 Moved by Member Marsh,
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 further
proceedings would not serve the purposes of this chapter in EEB Case 2020-038
Todd Trepanier.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-075 Moved by Member Marsh,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board found Reasonable
Cause over $500 and added violations of RCW 42.52.070 and RCW 42.52.160 in EEB
Case 2020-042 Roger Millar.
Voting for: Vice Chair Davis and Members Marsh and Jutte
Voting against: Chair Battan
The motion passed.
Motion 20-076 Moved by Chair Battan,
seconded by Member Jutte:
The Board issued a Final
Order of Default in EEB Case 2019-032 Deborah Wentworth.
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion 20-077 Moved by Member Jutte,
seconded by Vice Chair Davis:
The Board issued a Final
Order of Default in EEB Case 2019-035 Anthony Parnell.
The motion passed unanimously.
I. Miscellaneous Matters/Adjournment
There
were no miscellaneous matters and the meeting was adjourned at 10:59 a.m.
Approved by the Board 1/8/2021