GROTON —Town Manager Mark Haddad has been publicly censured and suspended from membership for three years by the International City Management Association, following an ethics review by the association’s Committee on Professional Conduct.
According to a press release from the ICMA, the actions stem from Haddad’s public endorsement of two Select Board candidates in 2020 and his financial support of another candidate in 2018 in the town of Grafton, where he lives.
In an interview Tuesday, Haddad confirmed for The Sun his support of 2020 candidates Mathew Often and Colleen Roy, as well as 2018 candidate Dennis Perron. The ICMA statement said members are expected to “refrain from any political activities that could undermine public confidence such as candidate endorsements and financial contributions.”
Haddad said his support for those candidates was as a friend of the candidates and a Grafton resident, not as the town manager of Groton.
Additionally, the ICMA felt that Haddad’s position on the Grafton Finance Committee was a conflict of interest given his position in Groton. The Committee on Professional Conduct suggested his position could “to contact and work with the incumbent town administrator’s employees as well as provide recommendations and budgetary amendments that could serve to publicly undermine his colleague’s budget proposals that would reflect poorly on the local government management profession.”
Haddad said he had spoken with the state Ethics Commission. According to Haddad, he was told that his position on Grafton’s Finance Committee did not violate the state’s conflict of interest laws, otherwise he would have resigned from his position in Grafton immediately.
“I take ethics very, very seriously. I take it more seriously than I take anything about my job,” Haddad said. “If I don’t perform my job to the highest ethical standards then I can’t serve in the role of town manager and the Select Board wouldn’t keep me in the role as town manager if I didn’t.”
Haddad added the Groton Select Board is aware of his role as chair of the Grafton Finance Committee and said he has never hid his desire to give back to the town he lives in. He added that he immediately contacted Select Board members about the ICMA review and they are aware of the situation.
The Groton Select Board released a statement Wednesday morning that was very supportive of the town’s chief executive.
“It is important to realize that Grafton is located almost 40 miles away from Groton, and there are no legal connections, agreements, or shared services between the two towns,” the statement read. “Mr. Haddad’s volunteer participation in Grafton’s government has no impact on Groton’s civic affairs.”
New board member Peter Cunningham, in an email, said: “At least for me, it is not a major issue and in no way reflects on his work in Groton.”
In addition to his role on the Finance Committee, Haddad added he also serves on Grafton’s Sustainability Commission and has previously served on the town’s Charter Review Committee. Additionally, Haddad said he is a regular participant in town meeting and only misses one if there is a scheduling conflict with his duties in Groton.
“My entire adult life, since I was 21 years old, I have worked in municipal government,” Haddad said. “I love municipal government and unfortunately I violated the [ICMA’s] ethics act, I feel bad that I did that. But I did that unwittingly and I don’t think I did anything wrong and the Massachusetts ethics commission has confirmed that I have not violated the Massachusetts Conflict of Interest law.”
Haddad told The Sun he has never been paid for his work in Grafton and pointed to a provision in Groton’s charter which prohibits him from taking additional paid work without Select Board approval. He said previously the Select Board granted him approval to serve as both Groton town manager and as interim town administrator in Dunstable for a period of six months.
“I don’t do anything with the Groton Select Board knowing what I’m doing because I am the town’s representative and I never want to embarrass my board ever,” Haddad said. “I’m embarrassed right now, honestly embarrassed, that I have violated the code of ethics for the ICMA. I don’t want to bring any embarrassment to my board because they’re my bosses and I work for the town of Groton and I think I’ve done a great job for the town of Groton for the last 13 years.”
Haddad said he has resigned from both the ICMA and the Massachusetts Municipal Association. He stated that he never received notification from the organization that he may be committing ethical violations. Haddad feels resigning from both associations will have no impact on his ability to do his job.
“I don’t want to be part of an organization that penalizes me for supporting local government,” he said.
Unless instructed otherwise by the Select Board, Haddad said he intends to continue serving on the Finance Committee in Grafton.
