Under the Code of Ethics, an employee or official may not participate in any matter in which he has an interest, financial or otherwise, which is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his duties in the public interest. Additionally, the Code of Ethics prohibits a person subject to the Code or any person within his or her family from entering into a contract with the state unless the contract had been awarded through an open and public process. After considering the restrictions placed on the interested contractee and the relevant provisions of the Code of Ethics, we conclude that the implemented program addresses potential conflicts of interest created by the contractee's employment and ensures that the Program Manager will be notified of any future conflicts. According to the Petitioner, local offices of the Rhode Island Housing, Mortgage and Finance Corporation identify and select the homes needing lead abatement. Provided that the bidding process complied with the state's bidding specifications, homeowners are entitled to select the company to perform the work in their home.
Homeowners receive a list of all contractors who are qualified to bid on a job.
The state's biding process requires that a contract be re-bid if two bids submitted fall outside of twenty percent of each other.