HomeMy WebLinkAbout05.11.26 Re_ Complaint Ritter Federal 700.ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening
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From:Andrew Merkel
To:Pickett, Andy; Clerk of the Board; Ritter, Tami; zeldin.lee@epa.gov; mike.mcguire@senatormikemcguire.com
Subject:Re: Complaint Ritter Federal 700
Date:Monday, May 11, 2026 9:20:26 PM
1. The Incompatibility Trap
Under California law, two positions are legally
incompatible if one office has supervisory, auditory, or
budget removal power over the other. [1]
The Conflict: If his elected office votes on the
budget that funds his public salary, it creates a
"clash of loyalties."
The "Automatic" Forfeiture: Theoretically,
under Section 1099(b), if a person accepts a second
office that is incompatible with the first, they are
"deemed to have forfeited" the first office
automatically.
2. Why the FPPC Doesn't Matter
The FPPC handles conflicts of interest (money-based
bias in specific decisions) under the Political Reform
Act. [1, 2, 3]
The Salary Exception: The FPPC generally ignores
"government salary" as a conflict of interest because
of a legal exception that says a public official's
government pay isn't "income" for conflict purposes.
The Real Authority: To challenge this, a citizen or
the Attorney General would have to file a Quo
Warranto action—a specific court procedure to
remove someone from an office they are holding
illegally. [1, 2]
3. Office vs. Employment
The "loophole" often used is the distinction between
a Public Office and Mere Employment.
If his public job is categorized as "employment"
(staff level) rather than an "office"
(management/executive with independent authority),
the Attorney General has often ruled that the
doctrine doesn't apply.
However, if he has direct budget control over the
department that pays him, he is walking a very thin
line that usually requires him to recuse
himself from any vote involving that department's
funding or his own division's personnel costs to
avoid Section 1090 (contract-based conflicts). [1]
Sincerely
Andrew A Merkel
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