North Kingstown manager proposes rescinding whistleblower ordinance, replacing it with town policy

Town Manager Ralph told the North Kingstown Town Council he will seek to rescind the town's existing whistleblower ordinance and replace it with an official town policy posted under the residents icon on the town website. He said the change would allow the town to cancel its NavX Global reporting platform, "which is about $5,300 a year and going up," and put a policy in place intended to protect good-faith reporters and explain reporting channels.

Ralph said the current ordinance has seen little use: "That 5 people over 8 years have utilized" the present system, he said, and the audit committee concluded the ordinance was "not operating as intended." Under the proposed approach, employees and others would be encouraged first to raise concerns with the appropriate supervisor, then to the town manager, and if needed to the town solicitor. For ethics complaints he directed reporters to the Rhode Island Ethics Commission and for alleged crimes to the North Kingstown Police Department or the Rhode Island State Police.

Council members welcomed steps to increase transparency but pressed for guardrails. Miss Anderson called the revision a strengthening of the town's approach: "What we are proposing really strengthens and frankly revitalizes the spirit of a good sound whistleblower policy by making it visible," she said. Councillor Mander expressed concern about oversight: "If there is a whistleblower complaint that the person is not comfortable reporting to their supervisor or to you, I think council should be made aware of it," she said; Ralph and others responded that the town charter restricts council involvement in personnel matters and that the town solicitor could bring matters to the council when appropriate.

Councilors also discussed whether the school department should adopt the town policy. Ralph said the policy would be a town policy the council enacts and that the school committee could be offered the document to adopt or adapt; he warned he did not want the town policy to be subject to school-committee revision. The clerk said a first reading could be scheduled for October 28, with a public hearing to repeal the ordinance and adopt the new policy on November 18.

Ralph said the policy aims to ensure confidentiality "to the extent possible" and to protect people from retaliation while also noting that maliciously filed allegations would be treated as a serious disciplinary offense. The council asked members with specific concerns to email Ralph so the language could be refined before the readings and public hearing.

No formal vote was taken at the meeting; council members indicated support for moving forward to readings and a public hearing after additional clarifications.