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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6574
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 4407
Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
AND ELECTIONS
Introduced by:
(GAE)
AN ACT CONCERNING RE VISIONS TO THE STATE CODES OF
ETHICS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subdivision (5) of section 1-79 of the general statutes is 1
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 2
1, 2021): 3
(5) "Gift" means anything of value, which is directly and personally 4
received, unless consideration of equal or greater value is given in 5
return. "Gift" does not include: 6
(A) A political contribution otherwise reported as required by law or 7
a donation or payment as described in subdivision (9) or (10) of 8
subsection (b) of section 9-601a; 9
(B) Services provided by persons volunteering their time, if provided 10
to aid or promote the success or defeat of any political party, any 11
candidate or candidates for public office or the position of convention 12
delegate or town committee member or any referendum question; 13 Raised Bill No. 6574
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(C) A commercially reasonable loan made on terms not more 14
favorable than loans made in the ordinary course of business; 15
(D) A gift received from (i) an individual's spouse, [fiance or fiancee] 16
fiancé or fiancée, (ii) the parent, grandparent, brother or sister of such 17
spouse or such individual, or (iii) the child of such individual or the 18
spouse of such child; 19
(E) Goods or services (i) that are provided to a state agency or quasi-20
public agency (I) for use on state or quasi-public agency property, or (II) 21
that support an event or the participation by a public official or state 22
employee at an event, and (ii) that facilitate state or quasi-public agency 23
action or functions. As used in this subparagraph, "state property" 24
means property owned by the state or a quasi-public agency or property 25
leased to a state agency or quasi-public agency; 26
(F) A certificate, plaque or other ceremonial award costing less than 27
one hundred dollars; 28
(G) A rebate, discount or promotional item available to the general 29
public; 30
(H) Printed or recorded informational material germane to state 31
action or functions; 32
(I) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars in the 33
aggregate per recipient in a calendar year, and consumed on an occasion 34
or occasions at which the person paying, directly or indirectly, for the 35
food or beverage, or his representative, is in attendance; 36
(J) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars per person 37
and consumed at a publicly noticed legislative reception to which all 38
members of the General Assembly are invited and which is hosted not 39
more than once in any calendar year by a lobbyist or business 40
organization. For the purposes of such limit, (i) a reception hosted by a 41
lobbyist who is an individual shall be deemed to have also been hosted 42
by the business organization which such lobbyist owns or is employed 43 Raised Bill No. 6574
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by, and (ii) a reception hosted by a business organization shall be 44
deemed to have also been hosted by all owners and employees of the 45
business organization who are lobbyists. In making the calculation for 46
the purposes of such fifty-dollar limit, the donor shall divide the amount 47
spent on food and beverage by the number of persons whom the donor 48
reasonably expects to attend the reception; 49
(K) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars per person 50
and consumed at a publicly noticed reception to which all members of 51
the General Assembly from a region of the state are invited and which 52
is hosted not more than once in any calendar year by a lobbyist or 53
business organization. For the purposes of such limit, (i) a reception 54
hosted by a lobbyist who is an individual shall be deemed to have also 55
been hosted by the business organization which such lobbyist owns or 56
is employed by, and (ii) a reception hosted by a business organization 57
shall be deemed to have also been hosted by all owners and employees 58
of the business organization who are lobbyists. In making the 59
calculation for the purposes of such fifty-dollar limit, the donor shall 60
divide the amount spent on food and beverage by the number of 61
persons whom the donor reasonably expects to attend the reception. As 62
used in this subparagraph, "region of the state" means the established 63
geographic service area of the organization hosting the reception; 64
(L) A gift, including, but not limited to, food or beverage or both, 65
provided by an individual for the celebration of a major life event, 66
provided any such gift provided by an individual who is not a member 67
of the family of the recipient does not exceed one thousand dollars in 68
value; 69
(M) Gifts costing less than one hundred dollars in the aggregate or 70
food or beverage provided at a hospitality suite at a meeting or 71
conference of an interstate legislative association, by a person who is not 72
a registrant or is not doing business with the state of Connecticut; 73
(N) Admission to a charitable or civic event, including food and 74
beverage provided at such event, but excluding lodging or travel 75 Raised Bill No. 6574
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expenses, at which a public official or state employee participates in his 76
or her official capacity, provided such admission is provided by the 77
primary sponsoring entity; 78
(O) Anything of value provided by an employer of (i) a public official, 79
(ii) a state employee, or (iii) a spouse of a public official or state 80
employee, to such official, employee or spouse, provided such benefits 81
are customarily and ordinarily provided to others in similar 82
circumstances; 83
(P) Anything having a value of not more than ten dollars, provided 84
the aggregate value of all things provided by a donor to a recipient 85
under this subdivision in any calendar year does not exceed fifty dollars; 86
(Q) Training that is provided by a vendor for a product purchased by 87
a state or quasi-public agency that is offered to all customers of such 88
vendor; 89
(R) Travel expenses, lodging, food, beverage and other benefits 90
customarily provided by a prospective employer, when provided to a 91
student at a public institution of higher education whose employment 92
is derived from such student's status as a student at such institution, in 93
connection with bona fide employment discussions; or 94
(S) Expenses of a public official, paid by the party committee of which 95
party such official is a member, for the purpose of accomplishing the 96
lawful purposes of the committee. As used in this subparagraph, "party 97
committee" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision (2) of 98
section 9-601 and "lawful purposes of the committee" has the same 99
meaning as provided in subsection (g) of section 9-607. 100
Sec. 2. Subdivision (12) of section 1-79 of the general statutes is 101
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 102
2021): 103
(12) "Quasi-public agency" means Connecticut Innovations, 104
Incorporated, the Connecticut Health and Education Facilities 105 Raised Bill No. 6574
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Authority, the Connecticut Higher Education Supplemental Loan 106
Authority, the Connecticut Student Loan Foundation, the Connecticut 107
Housing Finance Authority, the State Housing Authority, the Materials 108
Innovation and Recycling Authority, the Capital Region Development 109
Authority, the Connecticut Lottery Corporation, the Connecticut 110
Airport Authority, the Connecticut Health Insurance Exchange, the 111
Connecticut Green Bank, the Connecticut Retirement Security 112
Authority, the Connecticut Port Authority, the Connecticut Municipal 113
Redevelopment Authority, [and] the State Education Resource Center 114
and the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Authority. 115
Sec. 3. Section 1-79 of the general statutes is amended by adding 116
subdivision (21) as follows (Effective October 1, 2021): 117
(NEW) (21) "Confidential information" means any information in the 118
possession of the state, a state employee or a public official, whatever its 119
form, which (A) is required not to be disclosed to the general public (i) 120
under any state or federal statute, regulation, policy or provision, or (ii) 121
pursuant to a state contract or the order of any court of competent 122
jurisdiction; or (B) falls within a category of permissibly nondisclosable 123
information under the Freedom of Information Act, as defined in section 124
1-200, and which the appropriate agency, state employee or public 125
official has decided not to disclose to the general public. 126
Sec. 4. Subsection (c) of section 1-81 of the general statutes is repealed 127
and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 128
(c) The Office of State Ethics shall employ an executive director, 129
general counsel and ethics enforcement officer, each of whom shall be 130
exempt from classified state service. The ethics enforcement officer shall 131
be a member of the bar of this state. The salary for the executive director, 132
general counsel and the ethics enforcement officer shall be determined 133
by the Commissioner of Administrative Services in accordance with 134
accepted personnel practices. No one person may serve in more than 135
one of the positions described in this subsection. The Office of State 136
Ethics may employ necessary staff within available appropriations. 137 Raised Bill No. 6574
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Such necessary staff of the Office of State Ethics shall be in classified 138
state service. 139
Sec. 5. Subsection (g) of section 1-81 of the general statutes is repealed 140
and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 141
(g) There shall be an enforcement division within the Office of State 142
Ethics. The enforcement division shall be responsible for investigating 143
complaints brought to or by the board. The ethics enforcement officer, 144
described in subsection (c) of this section, shall supervise the 145
enforcement division. The ethics enforcement officer may represent the 146
Office of State Ethics before the Superior Court in an appeal of any 147
ruling or finding pursuant to, or any matter arising under, section 1-82, 148
as amended by this act, 1-93, as amended by this act, or 1-101nn, 149
provided the board is not a party in such appeal. The enforcement 150
division shall employ such attorneys and investigators, as necessary, 151
within available appropriations, and may refer matters to the office of 152
the Chief State's Attorney, as appropriate. 153
Sec. 6. Subsection (b) of section 1-82 of the general statutes is repealed 154
and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 155
(b) If a judge trial referee determines that probable cause exists for 156
the violation of a provision of this part, section 1-101bb or section 1-157
101nn, the board shall initiate hearings to determine whether there has 158
been a violation of this part, section 1-101bb or section 1-101nn. Any 159
such hearing shall be initiated by the board not later than thirty days 160
after the finding of probable cause by a judge trial referee and shall be 161
concluded not later than ninety days after its initiation, except that such 162
thirty or ninety-day limitation period shall not apply if the judge trial 163
referee determines that good cause exists for extending such limitation 164
period. A judge trial referee, who has not taken part in the probable 165
cause determination on the matter shall be assigned by the Chief Court 166
Administrator and shall be compensated in accordance with section 52-167
434 out of funds available to the Office of State Ethics. Such judge trial 168
referee shall preside over such hearing and rule on all issues concerning 169 Raised Bill No. 6574
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the application of the rules of evidence, which shall be the same as in 170
judicial proceedings. The judge trial referee shall have no vote in any 171
decision of the board. All hearings of the board held pursuant to this 172
subsection shall be open. At such hearing the board shall have the same 173
powers as the Office of State Ethics under subsection (a) of this section 174
and the respondent shall have the right to be represented by legal 175
counsel, to compel attendance of witnesses and the production of books, 176
documents, records and papers and to examine and cross-examine 177
witnesses. Not later than ten days prior to the commencement of any 178
hearing conducted pursuant to this subsection, the Office of State Ethics 179
shall provide the respondent with a list of its intended witnesses. The 180
judge trial referee shall, while engaged in the discharge of the duties as 181
provided in this subsection, have the same authority as is provided in 182
section 51-35 over witnesses who refuse to obey a subpoena or to testify 183
with respect to any matter upon which such witness may be lawfully 184
interrogated, and may commit any such witness for contempt for a 185
period no longer than thirty days. The Office of State Ethics shall make 186
a record of all proceedings pursuant to this subsection. During the 187
course of any such hearing, no ex-parte communication shall occur 188
between the board, or any of its members, and: (1) The judge trial 189
referee, or (2) any staff member of the Enforcement Division of the Office 190
of State Ethics, concerning the complaint or the respondent. The board 191
shall find no person in violation of any provision of this part, section 1-192
101bb or section 1-101nn except upon the concurring vote of two-thirds 193
of its members present and voting. No member of the board shall vote 194
on the question of whether a violation of any provision of this part has 195
occurred unless such member was physically present for the duration 196
of any hearing held pursuant to this subsection. Not later than [fifteen] 197
forty-five days after the public hearing conducted in accordance with 198
this subsection, the board shall publish its finding and a memorandum 199
of the reasons therefor. Such finding and memorandum shall be deemed 200
to be the final decision of the board on the matter for the purposes of 201
chapter 54. The respondent, if aggrieved by the finding and 202
memorandum, may appeal therefrom to the Superior Court in 203
accordance with the provisions of section 4-183. 204 Raised Bill No. 6574
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Sec. 7. Subsection (a) of section 1-83 of the general statutes is repealed 205
and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 206
(a) (1) All state-wide elected officers, members of the General 207
Assembly, department heads and their deputies, members or directors 208
of each quasi-public agency, members of the Investment Advisory 209
Council and such members of the Executive Department and such 210
employees of quasi-public agencies as the Governor shall require, shall 211
file electronically with the Office of State Ethics using the software 212
created by the office, under penalty of false statement, a statement of 213
financial interests for the preceding calendar year [with the Office of 214
State Ethics] on or before the May first next in any year in which they 215
hold such an office or position. If, in any year, May first falls on a 216
weekend or legal holiday, such statement shall be filed not later than the 217
next business day. Any such individual who leaves his or her office or 218
position shall file electronically a statement of financial interests 219
covering that portion of the year during which such individual held his 220
or her office or position. The Office of State Ethics shall notify such 221
individuals of the requirements of this subsection not later than sixty 222
days after their departure from such office or position. Such individuals 223
shall file such statement electronically not later than sixty days after 224
receipt of the notification. 225
(2) Each state agency, department, board and commission shall 226
develop and implement, in cooperation with the Office of State Ethics, 227
an ethics statement as it relates to the mission of the agency, department, 228
board or commission. The executive head of each such agency, 229
department, board or commission shall be directly responsible for the 230
development and enforcement of such ethics statement and shall file a 231
copy of such ethics statement with the Department of Administrative 232
Services and the Office of State Ethics. 233
Sec. 8. Subsection (o) of section 1-84 of the general statutes is repealed 234
and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 235
(o) If (1) any person (A) is doing business with or seeking to do 236 Raised Bill No. 6574
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business with the department or agency in which a public official or 237
state employee is employed, or (B) is engaged in activities which are 238
directly regulated by such department or agency, and (2) such person or 239
a representative of such person gives to such public official or state 240
employee anything [of value which is subject to the reporting 241
requirements pursuant to subsection (e) of section 1-96] having a value 242
of more than ten dollars, such person or representative shall, not later 243
than ten days thereafter, give such recipient and the executive head of 244
the recipient's department or agency a written report stating the name 245
of the donor, a description of the item or items given, the value of such 246
items and the cumulative value of all items given to such recipient 247
during that calendar year. The provisions of this subsection shall not 248
apply to a political contribution otherwise reported as required by law. 249
Sec. 9. Subsections (c) to (e), inclusive, of section 1-84b of the general 250
statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 251
(Effective October 1, 2021): 252
(c) The provisions of this subsection apply to present or former 253
executive branch public officials or state employees who hold or 254
formerly held positions which involve significant decision-making or 255
supervisory responsibility. [and are] Such positions shall be designated 256
as such by the agency concerned, in consultation with the Office of State 257
Ethics, [in consultation with the agency concerned] except that such 258
provisions shall not apply to members or former members of the boards 259
or commissions who serve ex officio, who are required by statute to 260
represent the regulated industry or who are permitted by statute to have 261
a past or present affiliation with the regulated industry. [Designation] 262
On or before November 1, 2021, and not less than annually thereafter, 263
the head of each agency concerned, or his or her designee, shall submit 264
the designation of all positions in existence on such date that are subject 265
to the provisions of this subsection [shall be by regulations adopted by 266
the Citizen's Ethics Advisory Board in accordance with chapter 54] to 267
the office electronically, in a manner prescribed by the Citizen's Ethics 268
Advisory Board. If an agency creates such a position after its annual 269
submission under this subsection, the head of such agency, or his or her 270 Raised Bill No. 6574
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designee, shall submit the designation of the newly created position not 271
later than thirty days after the creation of such position. As used in this 272
subsection, "agency" means the Health Systems Planning Unit of the 273
Office of Health Strategy, the Connecticut Siting Council, the 274
Department of Banking, the Insurance Department, the Department of 275
Emergency Services and Public Protection, the office within the 276
Department of Consumer Protection that carries out the duties and 277
responsibilities of sections 30-2 to 30-68m, inclusive, the Public Utilities 278
Regulatory Authority, including the Office of Consumer Counsel, and 279
the Department of Consumer Protection and the term "employment" 280
means professional services or other services rendered as an employee 281
or as an independent contractor. 282
(1) No public official or state employee in an executive branch 283
position designated [by the Office of State Ethics] pursuant to the 284
provisions of this subsection shall negotiate for, seek or accept 285
employment with any business subject to regulation by his agency. 286
(2) No former public official or state employee who held such a 287
position in the executive branch shall, within one year after leaving an 288
agency, accept employment with a business subject to regulation by that 289
agency. 290
(3) No business shall employ a present or former public official or 291
state employee in violation of this subsection. 292
(d) The provisions of subsection (e) of this section apply to (1) present 293
or former Department of Consumer Protection public officials or state 294
employees who hold or formerly held positions which involve 295
significant decision-making or supervisory responsibility. [and are] 296
Such positions shall be designated as such by the agency concerned, in 297
consultation with the Office of State Ethics, [in consultation with the 298
agency concerned,] and (2) present or former public officials or state 299
employees of other agencies who hold or formerly held positions which 300
involve significant decision-making or supervisory responsibility 301
concerning the regulation or investigation of (A) any business entity (i) 302 Raised Bill No. 6574
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engaged in Indian gaming operations in the state, and (ii) in which a 303
federally-recognized Indian tribe in the state owns a controlling interest, 304
or (B) a governmental agency of a federally-recognized Indian tribe 305
engaged in Indian gaming operations in the state, which positions are 306
designated as such by the agency concerned, in consultation with the 307
Office of State Ethics. [, in consultation with the agency concerned. 308
Designation] On or before November 1, 2021, and not less than annually 309
thereafter, the head of each agency concerned, or his or her designee, 310
shall submit designations of all positions in existence on such date that 311
are subject to the provisions of this subsection [shall be by regulations 312
adopted by the Citizen's Ethics Advisory Board in accordance with 313
chapter 54. As used in subsection (e) of this section, the term 314
"employment" means professional services or other services rendered as 315
an employee or as an independent contractor .] to the office 316
electronically, in a manner prescribed by the Citizen's Ethics Advisory 317
Board. If an agency creates such a position after its annual submission 318
under this subsection, the head of such agency, or his or her designee, 319
shall submit the designation of the newly created position not later than 320
thirty days after the creation of such position. The Office of State Ethics 321
shall prepare a list of all positions designated under this subsection and 322
subsection (c) of this section, post the list on its Internet web site and 323
update such list as necessary. 324
(e) (1) No Department of Consumer Protection public official or state 325
employee or other public official or state employee described in 326
subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of this section [, in a position designated 327
by the Office of State Ethics,] shall negotiate for, seek or accept 328
employment with (A) a business entity (i) engaged in Indian gaming 329
operations in the state, and (ii) in which a federally-recognized Indian 330
tribe in the state owns a controlling interest, or (B) a governmental 331
agency of a federally-recognized Indian tribe engaged in Indian gaming 332
operations in the state. 333
(2) No former Department of Consumer Protection public official or 334
state employee or other former public official or state employee 335
described in subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of this section, who held 336 Raised Bill No. 6574
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such a position shall, within two years after leaving such agency, accept 337
employment with (A) a business entity (i) engaged in Indian gaming 338
operations in the state, and (ii) in which a federally-recognized Indian 339
tribe in the state owns a controlling interest, or (B) a governmental 340
agency of a federally-recognized Indian tribe engaged in Indian gaming 341
operations in the state. 342
(3) As used in this subsection, "employment" means professional 343
services or other services rendered as an employee or as an independent 344
contractor. 345
Sec. 10. Section 1-86e of the general statutes is repealed and the 346
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 347
(a) No person hired by the state as a consultant or independent 348
contractor, and no person employed by such consultant or independent 349
contractor, shall: 350
(1) Use the authority provided [to the person] under the contract, or 351
any confidential information acquired in the performance of the 352
contract, to obtain financial gain for the [person] consultant or 353
independent contractor, an employee of the [person] consultant or 354
independent contractor or a member of the immediate family of any 355
such [person] consultant, independent contractor or employee; 356
(2) Accept another state contract which would impair the 357
independent judgment of the [person] consultant, independent 358
contractor or employee in the performance of the existing contract; or 359
(3) Accept anything of value based on an understanding that the 360
actions of the [person] consultant, independent contractor or employee 361
on behalf of the state would be influenced. 362
(b) No person shall give anything of value to a person hired by the 363
state as a consultant or independent contractor or an employee of a 364
consultant or independent contractor based on an understanding that 365
the actions of the consultant, [or] independent contractor or employee 366 Raised Bill No. 6574
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on behalf of the state would be influenced. 367
Sec. 11. Subsection (a) of section 1-90a of the general statutes is 368
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 369
1, 2021): 370
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 1-84, as amended by 371
this act, 1-84a, 1-85 and 1-86, a public official or state employee of a 372
public institution of higher education whose employment is derived 373
from such official's or employee's status as a student at such institution 374
shall not be subject to the provisions of said sections, if (1) such 375
institution has adopted written policies and procedures to regulate 376
student conduct concerning conflicts of interest relating to student 377
holding of public office or state employment, and (2) such policies and 378
procedures have been approved by the Citizen's Ethics Advisory Board 379
in accordance with subsection (b) of this section. 380
Sec. 12. Subdivision (7) of section 1-91 of the general statutes is 381
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 382
1, 2021): 383
(7) "Gift" means anything of value, which is directly and personally 384
received, unless consideration of equal or greater value is given in 385
return. "Gift" does not include: 386
(A) A political contribution otherwise reported as required by law or 387
a donation or payment described in subdivision (9) or (10) of subsection 388
(b) of section 9-601a; 389
(B) Services provided by persons volunteering their time, if provided 390
to aid or promote the success or defeat of any political party, any 391
candidate or candidates for public office or the position of convention 392
delegate or town committee member or any referendum question; 393
(C) A commercially reasonable loan made on terms not more 394
favorable than loans made in the ordinary course of business; 395
(D) A gift received from (i) the individual's spouse, fiancé or fiancée, 396 Raised Bill No. 6574
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(ii) the parent, grandparent, brother or sister of such spouse or such 397
individual, or (iii) the child of such individual or the spouse of such 398
child; 399
(E) Goods or services (i) that are provided to a state agency or quasi-400
public agency (I) for use on state or quasi-public agency property, or (II) 401
that support an event or the participation by a public official or state 402
employee at an event, and (ii) that facilitate state or quasi-public agency 403
action or functions. As used in this subparagraph, "state property" 404
means property owned by the state or a quasi-public agency or property 405
leased to a state or quasi-public agency; 406
(F) A certificate, plaque or other ceremonial award costing less than 407
one hundred dollars; 408
(G) A rebate, discount or promotional item available to the general 409
public; 410
(H) Printed or recorded informational material germane to state 411
action or functions; 412
(I) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars in the 413
aggregate per recipient in a calendar year, and consumed on an occasion 414
or occasions at which the person paying, directly or indirectly, for the 415
food or beverage, or his representative, is in attendance; 416
(J) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars per person 417
and consumed at a publicly noticed legislative reception to which all 418
members of the General Assembly are invited and which is hosted not 419
more than once in any calendar year by a lobbyist or business 420
organization. For the purposes of such limit, (i) a reception hosted by a 421
lobbyist who is an individual shall be deemed to have also been hosted 422
by the business organization which he owns or is employed by, and (ii) 423
a reception hosted by a business organization shall be deemed to have 424
also been hosted by all owners and employees of the business 425
organization who are lobbyists. In making the calculation for the 426
purposes of such fifty-dollar limit, the donor shall divide the amount 427 Raised Bill No. 6574
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spent on food and beverage by the number of persons whom the donor 428
reasonably expects to attend the reception; 429
(K) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars per person 430
and consumed at a publicly noticed reception to which all members of 431
the General Assembly from a region of the state are invited and which 432
is hosted not more than once in any calendar year by a lobbyist or 433
business organization. For the purposes of such limit, (i) a reception 434
hosted by a lobbyist who is an individual shall be deemed to have also 435
been hosted by the business organization which he owns or is employed 436
by, and (ii) a reception hosted by a business organization shall be 437
deemed to have also been hosted by all owners and employees of the 438
business organization who are lobbyists. In making the calculation for 439
the purposes of such fifty-dollar limit, the donor shall divide the amount 440
spent on food and beverage by the number of persons whom the donor 441
reasonably expects to attend the reception. As used in this 442
subparagraph, "region of the state" means the established geographic 443
service area of the organization hosting the reception; 444
(L) A gift, including, but not limited to, food or beverage or both, 445
provided by an individual for the celebration of a major life event, 446
provided any such gift provided by an individual who is not a member 447
of the family of the recipient does not exceed one thousand dollars in 448
value; 449
(M) Gifts costing less than one hundred dollars in the aggregate or 450
food or beverage provided at a hospitality suite at a meeting or 451
conference of an interstate legislative association, by a person who is not 452
a registrant or is not doing business with the state of Connecticut; 453
(N) Admission to a charitable or civic event, including food and 454
beverage provided at such event, but excluding lodging or travel 455
expenses, at which a public official or state employee participates in his 456
or her official capacity, provided such admission is provided by the 457
primary sponsoring entity; 458
(O) Anything of value provided by an employer of (i) a public official, 459 Raised Bill No. 6574
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(ii) a state employee, or (iii) a spouse of a public official or state 460
employee, to such official, employee or spouse, provided such benefits 461
are customarily and ordinarily provided to others in similar 462
circumstances; 463
(P) Anything having a value of not more than ten dollars, provided 464
the aggregate value of all things provided by a donor to a recipient 465
under this subdivision in any calendar year does not exceed fifty dollars; 466
or 467
(Q) Training that is provided by a vendor for a product purchased by 468
a state or quasi-public agency that is offered to all customers of such 469
vendor. 470
Sec. 13. Subsection (b) of section 1-93 of the general statutes is 471
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 472
1, 2021): 473
(b) If a judge trial referee indicates that probable cause exists for the 474
violation of a provision of this part or section 1-101bb, the board shall 475
initiate hearings to determine whether there has been a violation of this 476
part or section 1-101bb. Any such hearing shall be initiated by the board 477
not later than thirty days after the finding of probable cause by a judge 478
trial referee and shall be concluded not later than ninety days after its 479
initiation, except that such thirty-day or ninety-day limitation period 480
shall not apply if the judge trial referee determines that good cause 481
exists for extending such limitation period. A judge trial referee, who 482
has not taken part in the probable cause determination on the matter 483
shall be assigned by the Chief Court Administrator and shall be 484
compensated in accordance with section 52-434 out of funds available to 485
the board. Such judge trial referee shall preside over such hearing and 486
rule on all issues concerning the application of the rules of evidence, 487
which shall be the same as in judicial proceedings. The judge trial referee 488
shall have no vote in any decision of the board. All hearings of the board 489
held pursuant to this subsection shall be open. At such hearing the 490
board shall have the same powers as the Office of State Ethics under 491 Raised Bill No. 6574
LCO No. 4407 17 of 18
subsection (a) of this section and the respondent shall have the right to 492
be represented by legal counsel, to compel attendance of witnesses and 493
the production of books, documents, records and papers and to examine 494
and cross-examine witnesses. Not later than ten days prior to the 495
commencement of any hearing conducted pursuant to this subsection, 496
the Office of State Ethics shall provide the respondent with a list of its 497
intended witnesses. The judge trial referee shall, while engaged in the 498
discharge of the duties as provided in this subsection, have the same 499
authority as is provided in section 51-35 over witnesses who refuse to 500
obey a subpoena or to testify with respect to any matter upon which 501
such witness may be lawfully interrogated, and may commit any such 502
witness for contempt for a period no longer than thirty days. The Office 503
of State Ethics shall make a record of all proceedings pursuant to this 504
subsection. During the course of any such hearing, no ex-parte 505
communication shall occur between the board, or any of its members, 506
and: (1) The judge trial referee, or (2) any staff member of the 507
Enforcement Division of the Office of State Ethics, concerning the 508
complaint or the respondent. The board shall find no person in violation 509
of any provision of this part or section 1-101bb except upon the 510
concurring vote of two-thirds of its members present and voting. No 511
member of the board shall vote on the question of whether a violation 512
of any provision of this part or section 1-101bb has occurred unless such 513
member was physically present for the duration of any hearing held 514
pursuant to this subsection. Not later than [fifteen] forty-five days after 515
the public hearing conducted in accordance with this subsection, the 516
board shall publish its finding and a memorandum of the reasons 517
therefor. Such finding and memorandum shall be deemed to be the final 518
decision of the board on the matter for the purposes of chapter 54. The 519
respondent, if aggrieved by the finding and memorandum, may appeal 520
therefrom to the Superior Court in accordance with the provisions of 521
section 4-183. 522
Sec. 14. Subsection (b) of section 1-97 of the general statutes is 523
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 524
1, 2021): 525 Raised Bill No. 6574
LCO No. 4407 18 of 18
(b) No person shall employ, or be employed as, a lobbyist for 526
compensation [which] that is contingent upon the outcome of any 527
administrative or legislative action. 528
Sec. 15. Sections 1-80b to 1-80d, inclusive, 1-82b and 1-89a of the 529
general statutes are repealed. (Effective October 1, 2021) 530
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2021 1-79(5)
Sec. 2 July 1, 2021 1-79(12)
Sec. 3 October 1, 2021 1-79
Sec. 4 October 1, 2021 1-81(c)
Sec. 5 October 1, 2021 1-81(g)
Sec. 6 October 1, 2021 1-82(b)
Sec. 7 October 1, 2021 1-83(a)
Sec. 8 October 1, 2021 1-84(o)
Sec. 9 October 1, 2021 1-84b(c) to (e)
Sec. 10 October 1, 2021 1-86e
Sec. 11 October 1, 2021 1-90a(a)
Sec. 12 October 1, 2021 1-91(7)
Sec. 13 October 1, 2021 1-93(b)
Sec. 14 October 1, 2021 1-97(b)
Sec. 15 October 1, 2021 Repealer section
Statement of Purpose:
To make revisions to the State Codes of Ethics concerning the scope of
gift prohibitions, reporting of gifts, authority of the ethics enforcement
officer, activities involving consultants and independent contractors,
findings of ethics violations, permitting certain filings to be electronic
and the repeal of certain provisions.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]