This Advisory Opinion concerns the following issue as formulated from facts and/or circumstances turnished by a requestor. The Commission approved this opinion on December 6, 1996, basing its approval solely on the facts and circumstances stated herein.

May an individual simultaneously serve as a part-time deputy justice courtclerk, part-time E-911 commission clerk and as a county receiving clerk?

The pertinent conflict of interest laws to be considered here are:

Code Section 25-4-101 states:

"The legislature declares that elective and public office and employment is a public trust and any effort to realize personal gain through official conduct, other than as provided by law, or as a natural consequence of the employment or position, is a violation of that trust. Therefore, public servants shall endeavor to pursue a course of conduct which will not raise suspicion among the public that they are likely to be engaged in acts that are in violation of this trust and which will not reflect unfavorably upon the state and local governments."

Code Section 25-4-103(a), (f)(i)(ii), (g)(i)(v), (h) and (p)(i)(ii)(iii) states:

"(a) 'Authority' means any component unit of a governmental entity.

(f) 'Contract' means:

(i) Any agreement to which the government is a party; or

(ii) Any agreement on behalf of the government which involves the payment of public tunds.

(g) 'Governmental' means the state and all political entities thereof, both collectively and separately, including but not limited to:

(i) Counties; and

(v) Any department, agency, board, commission, institution, instrumentality, or legislative or administrative body of the state, counties or municipalities created by statute, ordinance or executive order including all units that expend public tunds.

(h) 'Governmental entity' means the state, a county, a municipality or any other separate political subdivision authorized by law to exercise a part of the sovereign power of the state.

(p) 'Public servant' means:

(i) Any elected or appointed official of the government;

(ii) Any officer, director, commissioner, supervisor, chief, head, agent or employee of the government or any agency thereof, or of any public entity created by or under the laws of the State of Mississippi or created by an agency or governmental entity thereo~ any of which is tunded by public tunds or which expends, authorizes or recommends the use of public tunds; or

(iii) Any individual who receives a salary, per diem or expenses paid in whole or in part out of funds authorized to be expended by the government."

Code Section 25-4-105(3)(a) and (4)(h) states:

"(3) No public servant shall:

(a) Be a contractor, subcontractor or vendor with the governmental entity of which he is a member, officer, employee or agent, other than in his contract of employment, or have a material financial interest in any business which is a contractor, subcontractor or vendor with the governmental entity of which he is a member, officer, employee or agent.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, a public servant or his relative:

(h) May be employed by or receive compensation from an authority of the governmental entity other than the authority of the governmental entity of which the public servant is an officer or employee."

As attorney for the Board of Supervisors, I request your opinion on the following factual circumstances.

An individual has been appointed a part4ime deputy justice court clerk. He also works part-time as a clerk for the E911 Commission. Can he also serve as receiving clerk for the Board of Supervisors?

The Commission formally adopts Advisory Opinions No. 96-087-E, No.95-156-E and No. 95-003-E in response to this request and by attachment incorporates them into this opinion.

Based solely on the facts and circumstances presented by the requestor, the Commission's opinion is as follows.

As set forth in the attached Advisory Opinion No. 95-003-B, a county officer or employee may simultaneously serve as an employee of the county B91 1 commission without violating the above cited Code Section 25-4-105(3)(a). There is no violation because the county B91 1 commission is a separate authority of the county for purposes of the conflict of interest laws. Since the B9 11 commission is a separate authority, the exception set forth in Code Section 25-4-105(4)(h), cited above, is applicable.

Code Section 31-7-118, a statute in the Implementation of Central Purchasing by Counties Law, specifically allows current county employees to also serve as a purchase clerk, receiving clerk or inventory clerk. The requestor is referred to the attached Advisory Opinion No. 96-087-E. [Emphasis added]

The Commission is of the opinion that under most circumstances the holding of two positions in the same authority of government by one individual, such as deputy justice court clerk and receiving clerk, is prohibited by Code Section 25-4-105(3)(a).

However, in this instance, the Commission must consider the effect of Code Section 31-7-

118. Code Sections 25-4-105(3)(a) and 31-7-118 are to be read inpari materia. The case law in this state consistently supports the tundamental principle of statutory construction that specific statutes control over general statutes. For example, McCoryv.State, 210 So. 2d 877 (Miss. 1968) and Lincoln County v. Entrican, 230 So. 2d 801 (Miss. 1970).

Specifically, in McCaffrey's Food Market., Inc. v. Mississippi Milk Commission, 227 So.2d 459, Miss. 1969), the State Supreme Court stated, "The rule is well established that where a special and particular statute deals with a special and particular subject its particular terms as to that special subject control over the general statutes dealing with the subject generally."

The application of the specific statute rule when considering the conflict of interest laws is consistent with the finding in the attached Advisory Opinion No. 95-156-E.

Based on the above, the Commission finds that the simultaneous employment of an individual by the county board of supervisors as a part-time deputy justice court clerk and as a receiving clerk as anticipated and authorized in Code Section 31-7-118 does not as such violate the conflict of interest laws.

Therefore, for the above stated reasons, an individual may simultaneously serve as a part-time deputy justice court clerk, part-time E-911 commission clerk and as a county receiving clerk without violating the conflict of interest laws.

The issue presented by the requestor also must be viewed as it relates to Code Section 25-4-101, set forth above. This code section sets the tone for the conflict of interest laws as the Legislature's "Declaration of Public Policy." This public policy can be summarized as any circumstance having the potential of creating suspicion among the public and reflecting unfavorably upon the state or local government should be closely reviewed by public servants with the intent to reduce or eliminate any suspicion on the part of the public which detracts from the public's trust in state or local government.

Clearly, one individual serving in three different capacities for the county government has the potential of creating suspicion among the public and reflecting unfavorably upon the county government.

Ronald B. Crowe Executive Director