CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- After losing its chairman and CEO to a scandal, the Mecklenburg County Alcoholic Beverage Control Board tried to restore public confidence by voting in sweeping new ethics rules.
The NewsChannel 36 I-Team broke the story in November 2009 of top ABC staff being "wined and dined" at a $12,000 dinner paid for by liquor sales reps.
In the last month, the Mecklenburg ABC chair, Parks Helms, and the CEO, Calvin McDougal, stepped down.
Tuesday afternoon, the ABC Board banned any gifts from the liquor industry to the board or staff, specifically including meals. The board spelled out that staff could not accept sample mini-bottles of liquor meant to be hung around the necks of larger bottles as "point-of-sale" or promotional items.
Board members say the new rules mean staff and board members cannot accept so much as a key chain or any other trinket from a liquor sales rep.
"There has been a little shade of gray on that in the past," said acting Chair Elton Shoemaker.
Related Documents:
ABC Board Ethics Policy | Gift Ban
Ethics Resolution Part 1 | Part 2
The board also voted unanimously to limit expenses on travel for staff and the board to rates based on the North Carolina Office of Budget and Management for all state employees. The move effectively eliminates junkets like the one documented by the I-Team in May 2003, where a board member, CEO and former CEO flew to Palm Springs, Calif.
"I think it will go a long way to solving any problems we've had in the past," said Shoemaker.
But board member Angeles Ortega-Moore quibbled with the state's per diem for food, set at about $35 per day, and successfully amended the new travel expenses to allow $99 per day for hotels with the option to spend more with the permission of the county manager or county commissioners. The per diem lodging rate for state employees is about $65 per night.
Ortega-Moore said the new per-diem travel limits and the gift ban will limit the liquor board's ability to do business. At one point in the board meeting she turned to Shoemaker and said, "But come on -- you've been in retail." Shoemaker responded, "I was in private retail. This is public."
Shoemaker convinced fellow board members Ortega-Moore and Mary Richardson to vote for the ethics reforms unanimously, at one point noting, "There's a new sheriff in town."
Board members said the gift ban coupled with the travel restrictions effectively eliminate junkets such as one planned for Marco Island, Fla., in May.
