Palm Beach County Commission on Ethics briefs council on advisory opinions, training and complaint process

Gina Levesque, intake and compliance manager for the Palm Beach County Commission on Ethics, spoke to the council about the commission’s advisory and educational role during the March 18 meeting.

Levesque described the Commission on Ethics as an independent body created after a 2009 grand jury recommendation. She told the council the commission oversees ethics and disclosure rules for more than 12,000 public officials, employees and advisory board members across the county and provides advisory opinions and training. She said the commission emphasizes prevention and education, has issued roughly 560 advisory opinions to date, and makes opinions and forms publicly available online at palmbeachcountyethics.com.

Levesque explained the current formal-complaint requirement: the commission can no longer open investigations on its own without a filed complaint and encourages officials to “ask first, act later” so advisory guidance is available before decisions are made. She noted the commission can assess fines (up to $500 per violation noted) but that its primary focus is education and advisory work.

Sunshine law overview: Town Attorney Jeffrey Torcivia followed with a condensed reminder of the Florida Sunshine Law and public-records obligations. Torcivia told council members they must avoid discussing town business privately outside public meetings — including verbal conversations, email, texts and social media — and he highlighted that intermediaries can create Sunshine-law exposure. He explained that any document related to town business may be a public record and recommended use of town email accounts for town business or forwarding personal emails to the clerk so the town maintains custody of the records.

Torcivia also summarized quasi-judicial proceedings expectations (deciding on evidence presented in hearings), the need for a physical quorum for meetings (pre-COVID quorum rules returned), and the risk of legal consequences for violations. He urged council members with questions to contact the town attorney before taking action.

Training requirements: Levesque and Torcivia noted training expectations: newly sworn councilors must complete county ethics training within 90 days; the commission provides online and live training; and some state 4-hour training events are scheduled regionally. Torcivia noted that council members should be careful about attending and speaking at advisory committee meetings because frequent participation can create perceived influence.

Ending: Both presenters encouraged proactive questions and training; Levesque left resources and contact information for advisory opinions and training requests.