Water Meter Woes Continues to Spread Across State

In a now familiar story, four more municipal water services employees will pay civil penalties for violating conflict of interest laws.  According to the State Ethics Commission, employees of Danvers, Salem, Southampton, and Sudbury accepted free ski trips and other gifts from a water meter manufacturer and its distributor

Sudbury Water District Executive Director Vincent Roy, former Salem Department of Public Services Director David Knowlton, former Danvers Department of Public Works Water and Sewer Supervisor Aaron Cilluffo, and former Southampton Water Department Superintendent Thomas Gaughan have admitted to violating the conflict of interest law multiple times by accepting valuable gifts, including free ski trips, from a water meter manufacturer and its distributor. They each waived their rights to adjudicatory hearings and paid civil penalties ranging from $6,000 to $18,000.

The Sudbury Water District, Salem DPS, Danvers DPW, and Southampton Water Department all use a brand of water meter throughout their service areas made by an Alabama-based manufacturer and sourced through the manufacturer’s sole authorized New England distributor. Roy drafted bid specifications for a May 2023 water meter contract the Sudbury Water District awarded to the manufacturer’s New England distributor for water meters made by the manufacturer. Knowlton had purchasing authority for the Salem DPS for water meters, and Gaughan had purchasing authority for the Southampton Water Department subject to authorization for major projects by the elected Board of Water Commissioners. Cilluffo too had purchasing authority for water meters, subject to oversight, including by the Danvers DPW Director.

Meter Maker Mastermind

On multiple occasions, the water meter manufacturer and its distributor hosted ski trips, dinners, outings to professional sports games, and other events to which they invited employees of several municipal water districts and departments of public works, including at times, Roy, Knowlton, Cilluffo, and Gaughan. On the ski trips, the manufacturer and distributor paid for lodging, meals, and ski lift tickets for the municipal employees and, in some cases, the employees’ guests.

The conflict of interest law prohibits public employees from receiving anything worth $50 or more that is given to them for or because of their official positions. Roy, Knowlton, Cilluffo, and Gaughan each violated this section of the law by accepting valuable gifts provided to them by the water meter manufacturer and distributor due to their positions with municipal water districts and departments of public works.

• Roy took part in three-day ski trips the manufacturer and distributor hosted at Sugarloaf, Maine, in 2018; Stowe, Vermont, in 2019; and Jay Peak, Vermont, in 2022. In addition, Roy accepted two free tickets from the president of the distributor to a Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees game at Fenway Park in August 2022. In 2021, Roy participated in a water industry golf tournament at which the distributor paid for his greens fees and meals. Roy also attended three free dinners the manufacturer and distributor hosted outside of water industry conferences in 2021 and 2022 as well as an August 2022 event at which the manufacturer and distributor paid for rooftop drinks and dinner at the Envoy Hotel in Boston. Roy paid an $18,000 civil penalty.
• Knowlton took part in the 2018 ski trip to Sugarloaf, the 2019 ski trip to Stowe, and a three-day ski trip the manufacturer and distributor hosted at Okemo, Vermont, in 2020. Knowlton also accepted Boston Red Sox tickets from the manufacturer for two games in 2022. In November 2022, the manufacturer hosted Knowlton at a dinner in Boston’s North End followed by a Boston Celtics game. In addition, Knowlton accepted a free steakhouse dinner from the manufacturer in November 2020 and a free dinner the manufacturer and distributor hosted outside of a water industry conference in September 2022. In August 2022, Knowlton attended the event at which the manufacturer and distributor paid for rooftop drinks and dinner at the Envoy Hotel in Boston. Knowlton, who resigned in 2023 at the Mayor of Salem’s request in connection with his participation in the ski trips, paid a $14,000 civil penalty.
• Cilluffo attended the 2018 ski trip to Sugarloaf, the 2019 ski trip to Stowe, and the 2020 ski trip to Okemo. In addition, Cilluffo accepted a free steakhouse dinner from the manufacturer in November 2020. Cilluffo paid an $8,000 civil penalty.
• Gaughan and his spouse, who had season ski passes to Okemo, went on the 2020 Okemo ski trip, for which the manufacturer and distributor paid for their lodging and meals. Gaughan also attended a 2020 golf outing at which the manufacturer paid for his greens fees and meals. Gaughan paid a $6,000 civil penalty.

“When public employees accept gifts from vendors doing business with their agencies, they give the public cause to question the integrity of their purchasing decisions and their performance of other duties relating to vendors,” said State Ethics Commission Executive Director David A. Wilson. “It is particularly important for those in leadership positions to comply with the conflict of interest law, as they set an example for the public employees they supervise.”

The Department of Public Works director for the Town of Franklin and a GIS Coordinator and Information Management employee for the Natick Water and Sewer Department also recently entered Disposition Agreements with the Commission to resolve similar conflict of interest law violations related to accepting ski trips from the water meter manufacturer and distributor.

The Commission encourages public employees to contact the Commission’s Legal Division at 617-371-9500 for free advice if they have any questions regarding how the conflict of interest law may apply to them.