Related Link:

• Special Report Main Page

Answer:

In general, a member of the Maryland General Assembly may not accept any gift if he or she knows it is from a lobbyist, a lobbyist's employer or a person who has a financial interest that might be affected by an action of the General Assembly.

But there are certain gifts that are exempt from this general rule. One of these exempted gifts is the cost of attending conferences. If the member is a scheduled panel member or speaker at a conference and if the expenses are reasonable, it is OK to accept this class of gift, the law says.

Since the price tag for this conference is more than $500, however, and since it is being paid by a group that lobbies the Legislature, the member would have to notify the Joint Ethics Committee prior to the conference, the law says.

As with all of the exempted class of gifts, if the gift would impair the member's impartiality or gives the appearance of impairing the member's impartiality, the gift should not be accepted, the law says.

So which answer is right in this instance? William G. Somerville, ethics counsel for the Joint Committee on Legislative Ethics, says the best answer is B. He says the ethics law recognizes this gift as appropriate, and notes that legislators often attend conferences to speak on legislative issues.