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Committee recommends ethics-ordinance edits, pulls affidavit for separate adoption
Summary
The Administrative Committee reviewed attorney feedback on the proposed code of ethics, removed the affidavit from the ordinance for separate council adoption, and recommended the ordinance (version with edits) to council while leaving remaining technical issues to be finalized.
The Isle of Palms Administrative Committee on the record reviewed attorney feedback and recommended forwarding a revised code-of-ethics ordinance to city council while removing the affidavit from the ordinance text and adopting it separately.
Bev, leading the review, said the packet contained an incomplete affidavit and that a complete version had been circulated outside the packet. She told the committee that attorney James Ward advised referencing South Carolina law for gift rules rather than embedding specific dollar thresholds because the $25-per-occurrence and $200-per-year amounts in state statute function as reporting triggers, not de minimis exceptions: "Any gift intended to influence official action is prohibited," Bev said, relaying the attorney's guidance.
Committee members discussed procedural elements including a 75-day period related to elections, a recommended approach to appointing hearing officers, and suggested timeframes for council action. Bev said the attorney estimated administrative hearing costs could run roughly "$3,000 to $10,000" and recommended that council pre-authorize a list of attorneys for hearings so costs and administration can be managed.
The committee debated whether council action on a hearing officer's findings should read "may" or "shall" and agreed to an attorney-proposed provision that if council fails to act within 45 days after receipt of a hearing officer report, the complaint will be deemed dismissed. Members also discussed language asking that a mayor or council member who is the subject of a complaint "should" disqualify themselves from votes or deliberations, noting the phrase ties the rule to "applicable state law".
After agreeing to remove the affidavit from the code so the form could be adopted separately by council, a motion was made and seconded to recommend the ethics ordinance as amended; the committee approved the recommendation by voice vote to send the matter onward for council consideration. Staff will return with a consolidated "version five" that incorporates attorney edits and the committee's direction for final consideration.
The committee did not adopt a final ordinance tonight and left several technical and drafting clarifications for the next meeting.
