CEO 88-45 -- July 28, 1988

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

D.H.R.S. DISTRICT CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILY COUNSELOR

OWNING DAY CARE CENTER AND LEASING IT TO DAUGHTER

To: (Name withheld at the person's request.)

SUMMARY:

A prohibited conflict of interest would be created were a children, youth, and family counselor who licenses, inspects, and supervises day care centers for a district of the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services to own a day care center and to lease it to her daughter, where the counselor will have no connection with the day care center other than the ownership of the property and where the daughter would be applying for the license from the Department. Section 112.313(7)(a), Florida Statutes, prohibits a public employee from having a contractual relationship with a business entity which is subject to the regulation of his agency. Here, the employee's agency regulates the day care center with which the employee would have a contractual relationship through the lease of the property.

QUESTION:

Would a prohibited conflict of interest be created were a children, youth, and family counselor who licenses, inspects, and supervises day care centers for a district of the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services to own a day care center and to lease it to her daughter, where the counselor will have no connection with the day care center other than the ownership of the property and where the daughter would be applying for the license from the district?

Your question is answered in the affirmative.

Through your letter of inquiry and additional information provided by the District Legal Counsel for District 11 of the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services, we have been advised that .... is employed as a Senior Children, Youth, and Family Counselor within the District. In that position, she is employed within the Child Care Licensing Unit and is responsible for licensing, inspecting, and supervising day care centers.

We also have been advised that the subject employee has purchased a day care center and is renting it to her daughter, who has applied for a license from the Child Care Licensing Unit. Other than the lease, the employee would have no connection with the day care center. Because the center is not in the geographic area assigned to the employee, the employee would not be responsible for licensing, inspecting, or supervising the day care center or for making referrals to the center.

The Code of Ethics for Public Officers and Employees provides in relevant part:

CONFLICTING EMPLOYMENT OR CONTRACTUAL RELATIONSHIP. -- No public officer or employee of an agency shall have or hold any employment or contractual relationship with any business entity or any agency which is subject to the regulation of, or is doing business with, an agency of which he is an officer or employee . . . ; nor shall an officer or employee of an agency have or hold any employment or contractual relationship that will create a continuing or frequently recurring conflict between his private interests and the performance of his public duties or that would impede the full and faithful discharge of his public duties. [Section 112.313(7)(a), Florida Statutes (1987).]

This provision prohibits a public employee from having a contractual relationship with a business entity which is subject to the regulation of his agency.

Here, the employee's agency clearly regulates her daughter's day care center. Through the lease of the property, the employee would have a contractual relationship with that business which, we note, would present the employee with an interest in seeing that a business which is regulated by her coworkers does well.

Accordingly, we find that a prohibited conflict of interest would be created were the subject Children, Youth, and Family Counselor to own a day care center and to lease it to her daughter, where the center would be licensed by the District of the Department which employs her.