Natick School Committee Responds To State Ethics Ruling

NATICK, MA — The Natick School Committee on Friday responded to a recent state Ethics Commission ruling about whether member Catherine Brunell could participate in votes about closing Johnson Elementary.

Last week, the state Ethics Commission notified Brunell that she would have to recuse herself from votes about closing Johnson. That's because Brunell lives near the school, and a closure could affect her property value.

Many local residents questioned the Ethics Commission decision, asking if it would bar other elected officials from voting on the Johnson matter — or anything else that might affect property values.

In a Friday memo, the School Committee said each Ethics Commission ruling is unique and would not necessarily apply to other elected officials.

"Both our attorneys and the Ethics Commission have stated that Ethics Commission opinions are based on the specific facts of a specific individual and do not uniformly apply beyond that situation," the memo said.

Brunell has already recused herself from one Johnson-related vote: last week, the School Committee voted to discuss the closure on Nov. 15. Only one member, Hayley Sonneborn, voted against that measure.

Here's the draft response released by the Natick School Committee on Friday: