Wednesday morning.
Russ Hall filed the complaint requesting that the “appointment of Mr. Miesen to the City Council be reviewed by the State Attorney General (or outside counsel if appropriate).”
The complaint states that Miesen holds a conflict of interest as a councilman while working for Republic Services, the city’s trash and recycle disposal.
“The city attorney was remiss in not looking deeper into the entire relationship that Miesen has been in with the city including but not limited to Miesen’s ownership status in Republic Waste. He is a division manager of Republic Services, the sole provider of trash pick-up, recycling and management of a landfill on public lands. Republic Services is considered a public/private partnership. That means they are a private contractor that has been outsourced to provide a city service.”
The complaint goes on to state that “(City Attorney Glenn) Googins may have neglected to refer to the following: Chapter XIV Code of Ethics Government Code Section 8920, which in part states: E. Potential Conflicts in Duties or Functions. The incompatible offices prohibition does not require proof of an actual clash between the two offices in the context of a particular decision. It is enough that there is potential for a significant clash between two offices at some point in the future.”
The board of ethics has 30 days to hear the complaint.
Hall said he hopes the Ethics Commission reviews his complaint.
“It would seem to me that the Ethics Commission has a duty and responsibility to look at this (appointment) and understand that ethically it was mishandled,” Hall said. “It was mishandled by the mayor and the city attorney.”
Hall’s complaint comes on the heels of Chula Vista resident Jill Galvez’s asking the state attorney general to weigh in on the matter.
At the same time, Chris Shilling, who happens to be a member of the Ethics Commission, is threatening legal action challenging the validity of Miesen’s appointment citing several alleged Brown Act violations.
The city attorney’s office did not return phone messages seeking comment.
