Several members of the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission failed to file a statement disclosing their financial interests to the Tennessee Ethics Commission, which is imposing civil penalties on two of those members.
Commissioners Barry Payne and Steve Caudle were fined $1,000 by the Ethics Commission at its Aug. 12 meeting for failing to file the disclosure statement form, Ethics Commission General Counsel Lauren Topping said by phone. Payne and Caudle did not respond to requests for comment.
Tennessee state law requires state and local officeholders and appointees to those positions, including regional planning commissioners, to submit a Statement of Disclosure of Interests form to the state Ethics Commission by Jan. 31 of each year.
Officeholders must disclose on the form sources of non-governmental income of $1,000 or more, investments in excess of $10,000 or 5% of the total capital invested, any compensated lobbying activities and any firms in which they hold interest for which compensated lobbying is done.
All of those disclosures must be made for themselves, their spouse and minor children who reside with them.