(A) Complaints alleging the violation of this subchapter shall be filed with the Ethics Commission as follows.
(1) All complaints must be in writing and shall be submitted to the Clerk of the village who shall immediately forward the same to the Chairperson of the Ethics Commission.
(2) The complaint shall not be properly filed until received by the Village Clerk.
(B) Within three business days after the receipt of an ethics complaint, the Commission shall send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice to the respondent that a complaint has been filed against him or her and a copy of the complaint. The Commission shall send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a confirmation of the receipt of the complaint to the complainant within three business days after the submittal to the Commission. The notices to the respondent and the complainant shall also advise them of the date, time and place of the meeting on the sufficiency of the complaint and probable cause.
(C) Upon at least 24-hours’ public notice of the meeting, the Commission shall meet in a closed session to review the sufficiency of the complaint and, if the complaint is deemed to sufficiently allege a violation of this subchapter, to determine if there is probable cause, based on evidence presented by the complainant, to proceed. The Commission shall issue notice to the complainant and the respondent of the Commission’s ruling on the sufficiency of the complaint and, if necessary, on probable cause within seven business days after receiving the complaint. If the complaint is deemed to sufficiently allege a violation of this subchapter and there is a determination of probable cause, then the Commission’s notice to the parties shall include a hearing date scheduled within four weeks after the complaint’s receipt. If the complaint is deemed not to sufficiently allege a violation or if there is no determination of probable cause, then the Commission shall send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice to the parties of the decision to dismiss the complaint and that notice shall be made public.
(D) On the scheduled date and upon at least 24-hours’ public notice of the meeting, the Commission shall conduct a closed meeting on the complaint and allow both parties the opportunity to present testimony and evidence.
(E) (1) Within six weeks after the complaint’s receipt, the Commission shall:
(a) Dismiss the complaint; or
(b) Issue a preliminary recommendation to the alleged violator and to the violator’s ultimate jurisdictional authority or impose a fine upon the violator, or both.
(2) The particular findings in the instant case, the preliminary recommendation and any fine shall be made public.
(F) Within seven business days after the issuance of the preliminary recommendation or imposition of a fine, or both, the respondent may file a written demand for a public hearing on the complaint. The filing of the demand shall stay the enforcement of the preliminary recommendation or fine. Within two weeks after receiving the demand, the Commission shall conduct a public hearing on the complaint after at least 24 hours’ public notice of the hearing and allow both parties the opportunity to present testimony and evidence. Within five business days, the Commission shall publicly issue a final recommendation to the alleged violator and to the violator’s ultimate jurisdictional authority or impose a fine upon the violator, or both.
(G) If a complaint is filed during the 60 days preceding the date of any election at which the respondent is a candidate, the Commission shall render its decision as required under division (E) above within seven days after the complaint is filed, and during the seven days preceding that election, the Commission shall render such decision before the date of that election, if possible.
(H) The Commission may levy a fine of up to $5,000 against any person who knowingly files a frivolous complaint alleging a violation of this subchapter, said fine to be deposited in the village’s General Revenue Account.
(I) A complaint alleging the violation of this subchapter must be filed within one year after the alleged violation.
(2007 Code, § 1-5-10)