Advisory Opinion No. 2003-15
Application Of
The Code To The Hiring Of The Spouse
Of The Director Of Farmland Preservation
The
Director of Farmland Preservation, under the auspices of the Commissioner of
Agriculture, administers the State’s program for the preservation of
agricultural land. See, Conn.
Gen. Stat. Chapter 422a. In essence, the
Program provides for the State, through the Department of Agriculture with the
approval of the SPRB, to purchase the development rights to agricultural lands
for the purpose of preservation of such lands for both commercial use and
conservation. As the
State Ethics Commission has held on several occasions, the provisions of the Ethics
Code do not, in general, prohibit relatives, including spouses, from working
for the same state agency. See, e.g.,Ethics
Commission Advisory Opinion No. 94-18, 56 CLJ 11, p. 5B ( To
enumerate these restrictions as applicable to the question posed, the potential
hiring of the Director’s spouse as an independent contractor triggers the
application of Provided
the Commissioner of Agriculture is willing and able to implement these required
restrictions, the hiring in question is permissible under the Ethics Code. By order of the Commission, Rosemary Giuliano
Chairperson