Alabama Advisory Opinions July 06, 2004: AGO 2004-172 (July 6, 2004)

AGO 2004-172.

Dear Ms. Frey:

This opinion of the Attorney General is issued in response to your request on behalf of the Alabama Licensure Board for Interpreters and Transliterators.

Is there a conflict of interest in hiring a person to serve as the Board Administrator who is also employed as the Interpreter Referral Coordinator for the Janice Capilouto Center for the Deaf in Montgomery?

According to the information you supplied this Office, the Alabama Licensure Board for Interpreters and Transliterators ("ALBIT") followed the bidding process of the State in seeking a new Board Administrator. The Board sent invitations to bid to fourteen vendors and opened the bids on March 31. The Board received only one completed bid that satisfactorily met the Board's requirements. The successful bidder, however, is also the Interpreter Referral Coordinator for the Janice Capilouto Center for the Deaf ("JCCD") in Montgomery, and a Board member is concerned that hiring this individual could create a possible conflict of interest. The candidate has indicated that her employment at the Center will in no way conflict with her schedule as the Board's Administrator.

The JCCD is a large nonprofit organization serving persons who are deaf or hard of hearing. The successful bidder's full-time duties with the JCCD involve the scheduling of interpreters for requested assignments and handling associated record keeping and payroll. The duties of the part-time Board Administrator's position are detailed in the Invitation to Bid and are all of a clerical or administrative nature. There is no power granted to this individual that would enable her to affect any individual interpreter's or transliterator's license. The bid requirements do call for the successful bidder to provide a meeting room for the quarterly meetings, as well as phone and fax services among other things. This Office understands that the JCCD has been providing this.

The Board has also received a letter from the Alabama Association of the Deaf expressing concern over the potential hiring. The letter states that during a meeting of the Executive Board of the Association, a motion was passed that states, "[t]he AAD strongly recommends to the ALBIT that no interpreter referral agency take responsibility for the operation of ALBIT, in order to avoid [a] conflict of interest. No employees of an interpreter referral agency to be paid to operate any ALBIT function. [sic] Passed." Letter from Judith M. Gilliam, President, Ala. Assoc. of the Deaf, Inc., to Mrs. Cynthia Frey, Chair, Alabama Licensure Board for Interpreters and Transliterators (Apr. 12, 2004).

The Board was formed "to regulate the practice of interpreting and transliterating on behalf of consumers who are hard of hearing, deaf, or speech disabled by licensing and [permit] the providers of interpreting and transliterating services, and [establish] and [monitor] interpreting and transliterating standards in the State of Alabama."

Ala. Code § 34-16-2 (2002). The JCCD falls under the Board's jurisdiction.

The Board is given the following duties under Alabama law:

(i) The board shall have all of the following duties:

(1) Act on matters concerning licensure and permitting, and the process of granting, suspending, reinstating, and revoking a license or permit.

(2) Set a fee schedule for granting licenses and permits, for renewing licenses and permits, for reinstating a lapsed license or permit, and for assessing penalties for late renewal. The fees shall be sufficient to cover the cost of the continued operation and administration of the board.

(3) Develop a mechanism for processing applications for licenses, permits, and renewals.

(4) Establish a procedure to enable the investigation of complaints concerning the violation of ethical practices for licensed or permitted interpreters.

(5) Maintain a current register of licensed interpreters and a current register of permitted interpreters. These registers shall be matters of public record.

(6) Maintain a complete record of all board proceedings.

(7) Submit an annual report detailing the proceedings of the board to the Governor and file a copy with the Secretary of State.

(8) Adopt continuing education requirements no later than October 1 of the year in which the initial board is appointed. These requirements shall be implemented by January 1 of the year following for renewal of a license or permit.

Ala. Code § 34-16-4 (Supp. 2003). According to the Invitation to Bid detailing the Board Administrator's duties, the Administrator is to perform the administrative duties "necessary for the operation of the board" as it performs its duties mandated by statute.

There is nothing in the statutes establishing the Board or in the bid documents that would prevent the hiring. There is, however, at least an appearance of an ethical conflict of interest as demonstrated by the concern voiced by the AAD. There is no legal reason prohibiting the hiring found in either the Board's statutes or the description of the work to be performed by the administrator. This Office does not opine on ethical issues and advises you to seek an opinion from the Alabama Ethics Commission.

There is nothing in the applicable statutes or job description provided that prevent the hiring of a person to serve as the Board Administrator when that person is also employed as the Interpreter Referral Coordinator for the Janice Capilouto Center for the Deaf in Montgomery. This Office, however, advises you to seek an opinion from the Alabama Ethics Commission to determine if there is an ethical conflict of interest.

I hope this opinion answers your question. If this Office can be of further assistance, please contact Ben Albritton of my staff.

Sincerely,

TROY KING

Attorney General

By: CAROL JEAN SMITH

Chief, Opinions Division

TK/BHA

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