Cobb Commission Chair announces husband’s resignation
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At the top of what was to be her first State of the County address to the Cobb Chamber, Cobb Chair Lisa Cupid had to pivot to address the elephant in the room – accusations of a conflict of interest and an ethics violation filed by a fellow lawmaker, Representative Jenny Ehrhart.
A few weeks ago, Ehrhart lodged a complaint which centered on Cupid’s vote to award millions in federal pandemic relief dollars, along with a hefty management fee, to several county nonprofits which included one in which Cupid’s husband, Craig Cupid, was a member of the board. Most citizens who we spoke to agree with Ehrhart and wondered why Cupid didn’t disclose and recuse herself from the vote; a vote which many believe would have passed successfully without her vote. Instead, Cupid elected not to mention her conflict and voted on the matter before the BOC. Ehrhart immediately cried foul, citing a similar situation where then Commissioner Cupid stood in condemnation of then Commission Chair Tim Lee. Lee’s wife worked for a nonprofit in 2016 that was coming before the BOC for funding. The difference in the two Chairs is that Lee disclosed and recused himself from the vote. Ignoring his forthrightness as well as his recusal, Cupid took Lee to task and provided what many described as a verbal tongue lashing about the ethically challenges of providing funding to a nonprofit that employed his wife.
As she came before those gathered at the luncheon, Cupid announced that her husband had decided to resign from the board of the nonprofit. Many say Craig Cupid’s resignation is noble, but immaterial, as it does not address, nor does it eliminate the ethics accusations Ehrhart launched against his wife.
Even though she said she consulted the County Attorney regarding the concerns raised about her vote, many who were in the room described Cupid’s opening comments as either naïve, oblivious to the issues of ethics, operating above reproach, or all three. None are preambles for good government as it appears the position Cupid is taking is that she did nothing wrong by not disclosing or recusing herself. Her position stands in contrast to the one she took a few years earlier and overshadows any commitment she made to the community regarding transparency when she ran for office.
Here is an excerpt from Cupid’s comments to the luncheon attendees:
“And I just wanted to share that I am not necessarily in agreement with the assertion that I was required to abstain from voting on the item,” she said. “Whether it was necessary for me to disclose that my husband sits on the board of the Center for Family Resources prior to discussion on the matter and my vote is debatable, especially since neither me (nor) my family have any financial, fiduciary or employment interests in the Center for Family Resources. For that matter, any of the four (other) recipients of the emergency rental assistance grant funds, we also did not have any financial, fiduciary or employment interests in. Nevertheless, I do want to make sure I do operate above board and operate in a way that establishes and builds trust with our community, and if I’ve given the impression of partiality, it was not my intent, and I do want to apologize for that. The Board of Commissioners do have discretion to refrain or acknowledge when there could be a conflict or perceived conflict of interest, and because my husband and I care about this county, and he cares about his service, and we want to make sure we do not cause such an impression in the future, my husband has actually resigned from the board of the Center for Family Resources, as we do not want to have any stain mar the good work of that organization or the Board of Commissioners.”
Given her background, many citizens struggle with reconciling her comments that suggest disclosing conflicts of interest while holding public office is an option, suggesting Cupid is wrong on this front. In this case, transparency, accountability and honesty obligated Cupid to disclose her husband’s position on the board prior to the vote; not after. Transparency at its best is not only avoiding conflict but avoiding the “appearance of impropriety”.
In most governments, it is a mandatory requirement that elected officials and their senior staff complete a disclosure report at the start of each year – which will clearly reflect any conflicts that person may have as they conduct government business at the highest level. If during the year something arises that was not previously disclosed, they must make the appropriate officials aware of these new conflicts in real time. It is never optional. Where are the conflicts of interest documents for Cobb County government?
Many describe Cupid’s failure to recuse herself as a “rookie mistake” as she has only been Chair for a few weeks; while others say Cupid should have known better, not only as an attorney but one with 8 years of prior county government experience as a member of the BOC before running for Chair. Questions linger as to what advice Cupid received from both the County Attorney and County Manager on this issue – which has not yet been revealed. It is vitally important for the community to understand their positions on conflicts of interest, recusals, and ethics, which should be clear to all. What advice is being provided to Cupid and others on ethics and conflicts of interest?
Members in the community have asked why Craig Cupid resigned if his wife did nothing wrong. Citing that Craig was not the Cupid they elected, they point out that it is not his job to observe County ethics, it is his wife’s job and her responsibility.
Following her opening statement, Cupid would go on to share with the luncheon attendees the status of the county including a recap of what took place during 2020. She would share similar remarks at an evening meeting.
The community should know what is happening in their county government and we will continue to monitor this issue and others on their behalf. In addition to an ethics violation complaint, SPOTLIGHT has been made aware of a rift and ongoing friction among Commissioners related to board appointments as Cupid attempts to alter the appointment rules. SPOTLIGHT will bring you the latest on these developments as they occur.