Ethics panel wants office in LV

Tuesday, June 8, 2004 | 10:02 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- The state Ethics Commission wants to set up an office in Las Vegas to handle Southern Nevada's growing number of complaints and requests for opinions about the conduct of public officials.

The commission is proposing an emergency allocation of $101,908 to start the office and fill a full-time paralegal position.

The commission recently finished a two-day hearing into a complaint against Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman, finding that his support for his son's business violated state rules. The commission also has a pending hearing involving charges levied against Clark County Recorder Fran Deane.

The commission request comes before the state Board of Examiners today and, if approved, goes to the Legislative Interim Finance Committee for a final vote.

Stacy Jennings, executive director of the commission, said that since the elimination of the Las Vegas City Ethics Commission in December 2002, the state group has seen a 61 percent increase in requests for opinions.

There has not been an increase in staff to handle these requests. Jennings said she has to travel to Las Vegas two to eight times per month to conduct meetings.

She said there is no office space so she must ask other agencies to use their offices. But she is "frequently bumped" when the agency needs the room for its own use.

That has left her to meet with complainants in public places, such as restaurants, and that has potentially compromised the confidentiality of such meetings.