STATE OF ALABAMA

ETHICS COMMISSIONMAILING ADDRESS

P.O. BOX 4840

MONTGOMERY, AL36103-4840

STREET ADDRESS

RSA UNION

100 NORTH UNION STREETSUITE 104

MONTGOMERY, AL 36104COMMISSIONERS

Linda L. Green, Chair

Nancy Edwards Eldridge, Vice-Chair

John H. Cooper, Esq.Cameron McDonald Vowell, Ph.D.

Michael K.K. Choy, Esq.

James L. Sumner, Jr.Director

TELEPHONE (334) 242-2997

FAX (334) 242-0248WEB SITE www.ethics.alalinc.net

August 2, 2006

ADVISORY OPINION NO. 2006-14

Ms. Jeanette DarbyAssistant PrincipalOak Mountain Elementary School5640 Cahaba Valley RoadBirmingham, Alabama 35242

Use Of Office For Personal Gain/PrincipalAnd Assistant Principal Accepting FreeTrips, Courtesy Of The Shelby CountyEducational Foundation, As Prizes AwardedThrough A County-Wide Coupon Book Sale

A principal and assistant principal employedat Oak Mountain Elementary School, mayaccept free trips, courtesy of the ShelbyCounty Educational Foundation, which werewon through a county-wide coupon booksale, when the opportunity to win thepromotional program/trips was madeavailable to all employees of the schoolsystem, and the program was sanctioned bythe Shelby County Board of Education.

Dear Ms. Darby:

The Alabama Ethics Commission is in receipt of your request for an Advisory Opinion ofthis Commission, and this opinion is issued pursuant to that request.

Ms. Jeanette DarbyAdvisory Opinion No. 2006-14Page two

QUESTION PRESENTED

May the principal and assistant principal of Oak Mountain Elementary School accept freetrips won through a county-wide coupon book sale, courtesy of the Shelby County EducationalFoundation?

FACTS AND ANALYSIS

The facts as have been provided to this Commission are as follows:

Recently, Oak Mountain Elementary School participated in a county-wide coupon booksale. Oak Mountain Elementary School sold over 1,000 books and earned the school almost$10,000.00. Ms. Darby serves as the school's coordinator. This means that she receipts all themoney and distributes the coupon books when sold. Oak Mountain Elementary was notified inMay that they were the County winners for selling the most books county-wide. With thatnotification, the principal, Ms. Jane Hampton, and Ms. Darby received a free trip, courtesy of theShelby County Educational Foundation, one of the coupon book sponsors.

The prize is a three-day, two-night trip to a number of different locations. The trip paysfor accommodations and meals, but not transportation.

Neither the principal nor Ms. Darby is involved in the direct selling of the coupon books.Ms. Darby serves as the Building Coordinator. She has coordinated the book sales for OakMountain Elementary for the past eight years. She makes sure that every homeroom teacher hasthe number of books for each child in his or her classroom. Then, her only responsibility isreceipting the money for the books.

Each child in the building takes home a coupon book. In the following days, thechildren's parents either pay for the book or return the book to the school. Again, her onlyinvolvement is receipting the money daily on a receipt page and turning it in to the school'sbookkeeper.

Ms. Darby states that all students, teachers, principals and local school coordinators areeligible for prizes.

All schools in Shelby County (approximately 35 schools) were involved in the selling ofthe coupon books. Each school can determine how the sale will run in its local building. TheEducational Foundation sets the dates for the contest.

Ms. Jeanette DarbyAdvisory Opinion No. 2006-14Page three

The Alabama Ethics Law, Code of Alabama. 1975, Section 36-25-1(23), defines a publicemployee as:

"(23) PUBLIC EMPLOYEE. Any person employed at the state, county, ormunicipal level of government or their instrumentalities, including governmentalcorporations and authorities, but excluding employees of hospitals or other healthcare corporations including contract employees of those hospitals or other healthcare corporations, who is paid in whole or in part from state, county or municipalfunds. For purposes of this chapter, a public employee does not include a personemployed on a part-time basis whose employment is limited to providingprofessional services other than lobbying, the compensation for which constitutesless than 50 percent of the part-time employee's income."

Section 36-25-1(8) defines a conflict of interest as:

"(8) CONFLICT OF INTEREST. A conflict on the part of a public official orpublic employee between his or her private interests and the officialresponsibilities inherent in an office of public trust. A conflict of interest involvesany action, inaction, or decision by a public official or public employee in thedischarge of his or her official duties which would materially affect his or herfinancial interest or those of his or her family members or any business withwhich the person is associated in a manner different from the manner it affects theother members of the class to which he or she belongs."

Section 36-25-5(a) states:

"(a) No public official or public employee shall use or cause to be used his or herofficial position or office to obtain personal gain for himself or herself, or familymember of the public employee or family member of the public official, or anybusiness with which the person is associated unless the use and gain areotherwise specifically authorized by law. Personal gain is achieved when thepublic official, public employee, or a family member thereof receives, obtains,exerts control over, or otherwise converts to personal use the object constituting suchpersonal gain."

In September of2001, the Commission rendered Advisory Opinions Nos. 2001-44 and2001-45, which were based on a similar situation, in that, the Birmingham Board of Educationparticipated in a promotional program to increase the number of businesses participating in theBirmingham City Schools' Partners in Education Program, and the winners receiving a free tripto Cancun, Mexico.

Ms. Jeanette DarbyAdvisory Opinion No. 2006-14Page four

In those scenarios, principals who were employed by the Board of Education won thetrips.

However, under those scenarios, the program and potential for winning the trips weremade available to all principals, and were sanctioned by both the school system and the schoolboard. The Commission held that:

"A principal employed by the Birmingham Board of Education may accept a freetrip to Cancun, Mexico, won as part of a promotion to increase the number ofbusinesses participating in the Birmingham City Schools' Partners in EducationProgram, when the promotional program was made available to all principals andwas sanctioned by the Birmingham City School System and the BirminghamSchool Board."

In the facts before the Commission, it appears that everyone involved with the ShelbyCounty Schools-students, teachers, principals and local school coordinators-was eligible forprizes, and that the program was sanctioned by the Shelby County Board of Education.

Based on the facts as provided and the above law, a principal and assistant principalemployed at Oak Mountain Elementary School, may accept free trips, courtesy of the ShelbyCountyEducationalFoundation,whichwerewonthrougha county-widecouponbooksale,whenthe opportunity to win the promotional program/trips was made available to all employees of theschool system, and the program was sanctioned by the Shelby County Board of Education.

CONCLUSION

A principal and assistant principal employed at Oak Mountain Elementary School, mayaccept free trips, courtesy of the Shelby County Educational Foundation, which were wonthrough a county-wide coupon book sale, when the opportunity to win the promotionalprogram/trips was made available to all employees of the school system, and the program wassanctioned by the Shelby County Board of Education.

Ms. Jeanette DarbyAdvisory Opinion No. 2006-14Page five

AUTHORITY

By 5-0 vote of the Alabama Ethics Commission on August 2, 2006.

Linda L. GreenChairAlabama Ethics Commission