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Maryland Sen. Ron Watson (D-Prince George’s) said Monday that he has resigned from a job with the Prince George’s County school system, amid ethical concerns.
Under state ethics law, members of the General Assembly are generally not permitted to receive income from secondary jobs in state or local government because of the potential for conflicts of interest.
Watson asked that an exemption be made for his role as interim senior adviser to the Prince George’s superintendent of schools. But the Joint Committee on Legislative Ethics, which considers such requests, determined that state law prohibited Watson from holding the job, according to an Oct. 27 letter from the committee chairs, obtained by Maryland Matters.
Watson said Monday he resigned Dec. 1. He said he considered pursuing a legal challenge to the committee’s decision, but decided against it, saying “the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze.”
Prince George’s County Schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday. Watson was still listed on the school system’s website as an interim senior adviser to the president Monday afternoon, but that page had been taken down by Monday evening.
Watson said he assisted new Prince George’s County Interim Superintendent Shawn Joseph, who was appointed June 13 by County Executive Aisha Braveboy, giving him a just over two months to get ready for the Aug. 26 start of school in the county. Watson was appointed July 25.
“It was a great period of chaos and uncertainty,” said Watson, a former school board member in Prince George’s. “To be there with the superintendent and help guide him through this, as he was able to formulate his team and get these cabinets set up, I think was very valuable.”
In his role, Watson advised the superintendent on “policy, strategy, advocacy, and operational matters,” and designed and implemented the superintendent’s “priorities and initiatives,” according to the ethics committee letter.
Deadra Daly, the legislature’s ethics counsel, is not authorized to speak publicly about specific ethics cases, but said the committee generally expects a “prompt and quick response,” after a letter is issued to a lawmaker. Some time is allotted, however, for lawmakers to make any necessary changes.
“The committee recognizes that, as a member, you’ve got to weigh your options,” Daly said. “The committee usually asks the member: ‘Hey, you need to make a decision, and we’re going to follow up in a couple weeks.’ The committee is not going to say: ‘You got my letter today. Clean out your office in five minutes.’”
There are some exceptions in state law, allowing certain lawmakers to hold secondary jobs with state or local governments, Daly said. For example, lawmakers who held a government job before they filed for election are allowed to keep such positions.
Additionally, lawmakers may work as “a nonelected law enforcement officer or a fire or rescue squad worker” without needing approval from the ethics committee, according to the state ethics guide.
The committee can also grant exemptions for teaching positions, for “human services” positions such as social worker, and for positions that are subject to a standardized “merit system hiring process,” according to the ethics guide. The panel can also approve logical promotions or career changes for elected officials who held their government job before their election.
“A member should contact the Ethics Committee before accepting employment that requires an exemption,” reads the guide.
Daly said handling lawmakers’ secondary jobs is “always a balancing act.”
“We’re a citizen legislature, and we think that’s helpful because we think people have real-world experience they can apply, and we can get better work product,” Daly said.
But problems arise when legislators could benefit from holding a particular job and being a member of the General Assembly at the same time, Daly said.
“When we look at local governments, the General Assembly provides substantial funding, the General Assembly makes decisions on bills that would impact them,” Daly said. “There is that inherent tension, and those government entities are substantially reliant on the goodwill of the General Assembly.”
