Ethics panel to consider building inspectors

Adrienne Packer

Tuesday, Sept. 14, 1999 | 11:34 a.m.

They duck in and out of new construction sites mostly unnoticed by the average resident, but building inspectors -- especially in booming Clark County -- might wield more power than any other crew of county employees.

Skeptics are now questioning whether the influential inspectors have unfairly used their authority to coerce companies they regulate into contributing money to their nonprofit organization, the International Conference of Building Officials.

The Nevada Ethics Commission -- once again called upon to determine whether county employees have violated ethics laws -- is scheduled to hold a hearing on the allegations Friday.

Government watchdogs were miffed last spring when a former building inspector, Marcus McAnally, accused his colleagues of using the county's time to hit up contractors and developers for contributions to the ICBO.

"Inspectors would say, 'We're handing out fliers -- would you like to sign up for something? Now, what would you like us to look at?' " said McAnally, reciting an inspector's typical sales pitch.

County officials and construction industry insiders dispute McAnally's claims. They point to the fact that McAnally was fired from the county last spring and indicted on 13 counts of falsifying inspections as proof of his unreliability.

But regardless of McAnally's legal problems, his accusations have prompted questions about why county employees are soliciting money for a private group while on the job.

McAnally's story caught the attention of Clark County Manager Dale Askew, who delivered memos in July to department heads directing them to remind their employees of county policy regarding conflicts of interest.

The accusations also prompted Las Vegas resident Robert Rose to submit the allegations to the Ethics Commission. Rose has built a reputation as a government critic by filing multiple ethics complaints against Clark County officials in the last three years.

"The unethical solicitations are to allow them to put on a golf tournament and a four-day training course, every year," Rose's complaint claims. "Large sums of money are provided by some contributors in exchange for special treatment."

McAnally said managers in the building division directed inspectors during staff meetings to collect money for the local chapter of the International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO).

The money either goes toward seminars sponsored by the ICBO -- a nonprofit organization whose membership includes officials in the construction industry -- or toward golf tournaments that are held as fund-raisers.

Companies that pitched in for golf tournaments paid $260 per foursome; firms that contributed to the seminar donated anywhere from $500 to $1,500. McAnally claims that inspectors raised $21,200 through the on-the-job solicitations. But some companies that McAnally cites as contributors say they donated the funds on their own.

McAnally, who spent most of his tenure with the county regulating Las Vegas Strip casinos, contends he refused to solicit funds. He said Building Director Robert Weber, a past president of the local ICBO chapter, retaliated against him.

"I refused to do it," McAnally said. "They were looking to get contributions by getting people to sign up for golf tournaments. Managers gave the supervisors sign-up sheets."

Rita Mincavage, spokeswoman for the building division, said Weber could not discuss the issue because of the pending ethics hearing.

Randy Provdiwy, a superintendent with the Las Vegas company AF Construction, contributed $500 to the ICBO in January to support an "Educode" seminar -- a conference held to brief inspectors on the latest building codes.

Provdiwy acknowledged that a county building inspector asked for a donation while he was on assignment, but added that he never felt intimidated or bullied into contributing.

"The inspectors told me the story and what it's about and it was up to me," Provdiwy said. "It was never pressed upon me that we wouldn't get an inspection if I didn't give the money.

"He would do it in the course of an inspection, he wouldn't come out especially (to solicit)."

McAnally, although he can provide no proof, said the flyers for ICBO events are created with county equipment and the contact number lists a county inspector.

Whether or not county equipment is being used, the fact that inspectors are spending county time to collect money for the ICBO raises serious ethics concerns among experts.

UNLV ethics professor Craig Walton agrees with McAnally and Rose's contention that the inspectors' behavior violates a state law.

According to state law: "A public officer or employee shall not seek or accept any gift, service, favor, employment, engagement, emolument or economic opportunity, which would tend improperly to influence a reasonable person in his position to depart from the faithful and impartial discharge of his public duties."

Walton says the law is not ambiguous.

"It's clear as hell." he said. "There cannot be financial transactions between public or appointed officials and those they regulate. The idea of sending building inspectors who have people's lives in their hands to collect money is a blatant violation."

Walton did not accuse building inspectors of bribery -- although he said he has heard stories of expensive bottles of alcohol being slipped under inspectors' driver-side seats in return for positive inspections -- but the contributions might give that appearance.

"The excuse has been they were acting as agents of the ICBO, not agents of the county," Walton said. "But they're county inspectors, so they can't shed that hat."

County spokesman Doug Bradford said the county's ethics policy goes further than prohibiting employees from soliciting funds on the job -- if they're raising funds, they can't even represent themselves as a county worker off hours.

"At no time can they represent themselves as an employee of the county and solicit funds," Bradford said.

McAnally provided a list of companies he said county inspectors solicited. But not all of the firms gave their ICBO contributions to county building inspectors.

The list, for example, says Schirmer Engineering donated $500 to the ICBO Educode program. Schirmer Manager Brian Woodward said his company donated directly to the organization because most of its employees are members.

"It has nothing to do with the county building department," he said. "I'm surprised it's even being brought up as a conflict of interest."

Nobody is questioning whether the ICBO is a sound organization. The group has existed for more than 75 years and is the leading source of building and construction codes. Along with its training seminars and manuals, it offers a certification program.

"Its purposes are perfectly legitimate -- technology keeps changing," Walton said. "Since they're legitimate, why not fund them legitimately."

While most of the complaints about the inspectors' behavior has come from outside the industry, those involved in the construction and development industry simply shrug off McAnally's allegations.

Several representatives of companies named on McAnally's list of contributors wished to remain anonymous but said they saw nothing wrong with the inspectors asking them to contribute to ICBO events.

"I'm surprised by the whole story to be honest with you," Provdiwy said. "In my dealing with them, I have never felt I had to give them anything."

McAnally is also unable to name contractors or developers that might talk publicly about being coerced into donating money.

Irene Porter, executive director of the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association, said her organization has never received a complaint from anybody in the industry who felt that county building inspectors were bullying them.

"Nobody has ever talked about it," said Porter, who added that her organization also solicits funds for ICBO. "The money has never gone to the building department."

Three years ago the Ethics Commission heard a similar case. Reno City Manager Charles McNeeley was brought before the board after soliciting money from private sources for a City Council retreat at Donner Lake, Calif.

According to Rob Bony, the Ethics Commission's newly appointed counsel, the panel ruled that McNeeley could accept donations from the Chamber of Commerce and the Reno Downtown Improvement District.

Bony said the reasoning was that the money went toward the general fund, not to McNeeley or any of the council members. Also, he said in relaying the decision, the retreat would have gone forward with or without the donations.