Conflict of Interest?

Kathy Woolsey is my wife.   She is one of seven members of the James Island Public Service District Commission.   I am Mayor of the Town of James Island.  Does this create a conflict of interest?

I have had a few people ask me about this, but most of them don't live on James Island.   I can certainly understand how those from off the Island would have little idea about how our Town government relates to the James Island Public Service District.

Still there have been a few Town voters who have asked.   Unfortunately, many James Island voters have little understanding of the James Island Public Service District and its relationship to Town government either.

The JIPSD Commissioners do not select or provide oversight for the Mayor or the Town.  They do not approve the Town's budget or any of its ordinances, regulations, or policies.

The Mayor of the Town of James Island is elected by the voters of the Town and directs the Town's staff.   Oversight is provided by Town Council, which includes the Mayor.   Like the Mayor, the members of Town Council are elected by and work for the voters of the Town.
 
The Mayor's salary is determined by vote of Town Council.  Any increase in salary for Mayor or Town Council that is approved by Town Council can only be paid commencing after the next election for Town Council.   The JIPSD Commissioners have no say regarding the Mayor's salary.

I will vote on any proposed increase in the Mayor's salary, but Kathy will not.   Any approved increase in salary for Mayor will only apply after the next election for Mayor and Council in November 2019.

The Mayor and Town Council provide no formal oversight for the JIPSD Commissioners.   We do not approve the JIPSD budget, taxes or fees.

The Commissioners are elected by and work for the voters of the District, which is larger than the Town.   It includes the entire Town plus the unincorporated areas of James Island.

The JIPSD Commissioners select and provide oversight to the District Manager, who directs the JIPSD staff.    The Mayor and Town Council have no authority over the JIPSD staff which include the fire fighters, sanitation workers, and sewer workers of the district--which, again, is the Town and unincorporated area of James Island.

The salary of the JIPSD Commissioners is set by vote of the Commissioners and  any approved increase can only be paid after the next election for Commissioner.   The Mayor and Town Council have no say in the pay of the JIPSD Commissioners.   Kathy will vote on any proposed increase in her salary as Commissioner, but I will not.   Any increase approved in the next two years would only apply to Commissioners after the November 2018 election.    (Kathy will be up for reelection in November 2020.)

The Town provides no funding to the JIPSD.   The JIPSD provides no funding to the Town.  (The Town does pay a JIPSD sewer bill for Town Hall and  I believe the JIPSD pays the Town's storm water utility for the parcels it owns in the Town.)

The JIPSD collects property taxes in the Town's jurisdiction.  Those taxes make up approximately half of a homeowner's property tax bill.  The JIPSD sets its tax millage without any input from the Town.   The JIPSD also collects sewer bills in the area of the Town's jurisdiction.   They set their sewer charges without any input from the Town.

The Town collects a variety of taxes and fees in the area of its jurisdiction.   All of the Town is within the JIPSD, so we are collecting these taxes and fees within those parts of the  JIPSD that are in the Town.   The JIPSD Commissioners have no input on any of the Town's taxes and fees.

I have proposed that the JIPSD transfer service rights for solid waste to the Town and reduce the property tax millage it collects in the Town's jurisdiction.   I have proposed that the Town obtain solid waste services from the JIPSD by contract, paying them the amount they would have collected from their property taxes in the area of the Town.    (The Town has been collecting a property tax millage since 2015, though we have been providing a municipal property tax credit sufficient to reduce the amount taxpayers in the Town must pay to zero. )

If the JIPSD and Town were to come to this agreement, then the Town would be funding a portion of the JIPSD's budget for solid waste collection.   Superficially, there would be a conflict between the Town and the JIPSD regarding the amount to be paid--the Town seeking to pay less and the JIPSD seeking to receive more.

However, I am Mayor and not the owner of the Town and so receive no personal economic benefit by reducing the amount the Town pays for services from other government entities.   Therefore, Kathy receives no special benefit through me for having the JIPSD receive less money from the Town.  There would be no conflict of interest even if the Town was paying the JIPSD for services.

The only possible economic benefit she and I would receive would be shared by all residents of the Town.   This includes the majority of JIPSD Commissioners.   Starting in January, the only Commissioner that does not live in the Town will be Commissioner Cubby Wilder.   Commissioners McMillan and Waring, who both live in the unincorporated area of Riverland Terrace, lost their seats.  Sandi Engelman and Kathy, both of whom were challengers who won seats, live in the Town.   Commissioner Platt, who was reelected, also lives in the Town.   Commissioners Hollingsworth, Kernodle, and Brown-Crouch all live in the Town.  So it is changing from four residents of the Town and three residents of the unincorporated area to six residents of the Town and one resident of the unincorporated area.

However, my proposal would avoid any conflict because the JIPSD Commissioners would set the millage for solid waste services based upon the cost of providing the service in the whole district, including the Town.   The amount the Town would be charged would be equal to what would have been paid by our property owners based upon that common millage.   The JIPSD would be protected by the agreement since it would collect the same amount of funds in total.   The Town would be protected from excessive cost because Town voters would continue to vote for the Commissioners that set the millage.   This would in no way harm the interests of those residents of the district outside the Town.    Sadly, they would not benefit by having the Town cover the cost of solid waste for them but would continue to pay for their share by property tax.

Of course, the long run solution is to have the Town annex all of the unincorporated area of James Island so that everyone in the JIPSD is also in the Town.   Aside from a small number of residents in a portion of Laurel Park (near Central Park and Folly), this will return us to where we were in 2011.   If we can accomplish this, then my proposal would have the Town cover the cost of solid waste collection for everyone in the JIPSD.

Of course, reuniting the Town is not easy.  The problem is that the City of Charleston has annexed areas that cause breaks in contiguity between the existing area of the Town and the unincorporated areas of James Island.   Representative McCoy filed legislation last session that would allow the Town to annex areas that are in the same public service district as the Town.   But it must pass the SC House, SC Senate, and be signed by the Governor.  If it passes, then we can start petition drives and hold annexation elections in those areas of James Island that used to be in the Town.

Now, what about my secret plan to have the Town take over and close down the JIPSD?    Is Kathy going to side with the Town against the JIPSD?    Is that the conflict of interest?

Of course, that is just a paranoid fantasy.   I have no such plan.

As long as any portion of James Island remains unincorporated, the JIPSD will exist in at least that area.   While residents of the Town will continue to vote for JIPSD Commissioner as long as the Town remains within the JIPSD, residents of the JIPSD in any remaining unincorporated area will not be able to vote for Mayor or Town Council.   That is why I remain very skeptical of the value of any reorganization of tasks between the Town and the JIPSD at this time.

If and when there is no longer any unincorporated area on James Island, then we can have a conversation about a possible reorganization of tasks between two local governments that will have the same territory.   If there is to be any shift of responsibility for the administration of any service from the JIPSD to the Town, I believe candidates favoring such a shift will need to run for JIPSD Commissioner on a platform in favor of such a shift.   Because the JIPSD's charter limits the services it can provide, there is very little room for shifting governmental responsibility from the Town to the JIPSD.

I don't see any of this happening while I am Mayor, so I don't worry about it too much.   I believe that most James Island voters have little interest in shifting responsibilities from the JIPSD to the Town.  In my opinion, it is something that might happen one day.   (And even that is considered an unacceptable threat to some JIPSD Commissioners.)