AGO 85-07.

• Case Date: March 12, 1985
• Court: Maine

Maine Attorney General Opinions 1985. AGO 85-07. State of Maine Opinion No. 85-7March 12, 1985Honorable Judy C. KanyMaine Senate State House Station #3 Augusta, Maine 04333 Dear Senator Kany: You have inquired whether Mr. John P. Richards, Jr., a member of the Land Use Regulation Commission (the "Commission"), would violate 5 M.R.S.A. s 18 (Supp. 1984) were he to participate in the pending application of the Great Northern Nekoosa Corporation ("Great Northern") for a permit from the Commission to construct a hydroelectric dam on the West Branch of the Penobscot River, pursuant to the Maine Waterway Development and Conservation Act, 38 M.R.S.A. s 630 - 636 (Supp. 1984). Specifically, you ask whether either Mr. Richards' past business relations with Great Northen or the current business relations of a corporation owned by his son would require his disqualifying himself from the proceeding to avoid violating the statute. For the reasons which follow, it is the opinion of this Department that neither of these circumstances requires such a disqualification. As long as Mr. Richards has not engaged and does not engage in business relations with Great Northern during the pendancy of its application, the statute is not violated. Further, the statute does not apply at all to the actions of his children who are no longer his dependents. The facts, as we understand them, are as follows. Mr. Richards, who recently joined the Commission, is the owner of J. P. Richards & Sons, Inc., a logging contractor. While this company has had frequent contracts with Great Northern in the past, it completed the last of these contracts in January of 1984, prior to Mr. Richards' joining the Commission and prior to the filing of the company's application for a hydroelectric dam. The company currently has no contract or other business relations with Great Northern. However, Great Northern does have a current logging contract with Evergreen Forests Products, Inc., a corporation owned by Mr. Richards' son. 5 M.R.S.A. s 18, in pertinent part, provides: 2. Executive employee. An executive employee (fn1) commits a civil violation if he personally and substantially participates in his official capacity in any proceeding in which, to his knowledge, any of the following have a direct and substantial financial interest: A. Himself, his spouse or his dependent...