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2. If Part {b7{S? of of Bill ~G ie. pa=_.sed, it will: {a? stretch to the breaKing point the already eroded public confidence in the Ethics Board, and {b? encourage and promote a further deterioration in the ethical standards of coun#y officials by intimidating those members of the public into not bringing forth charges far fear of having to defend them=_.eives in a lawsuit should the Board of Ethics seeK to da sa. 3. The Board or Ethics Rules already has a provision that it can reject frivolous suits. Therefore, part {bi{3? of #hi=_ bill is totally unnece=_.sary excep# to intimidate the public from bringing alleged ethical misconduct to the a#ter~tian of the Ethics Board. 4. Even if there should be a so called "frivolous case" Cwhich the Board can refuse to hear according to its pre=_.ent rule=_.i it is well worth i# if it means that a justified case is.n't thwarted because a citizen feels intimidated by legal and court casts if the Board calls the case "frivolous." Who i=_. to say whether ar not its "frivolous" far someone to bring charges of ethical misconduct against the Planning Director and staff and members of the Planning Commission ar~d their family members for free hotel rooms at the Four Sea=_.ons Resort last month {six free rooms for every one paid for? since #his ethicall>• disgusting practice has been going on for same time and now seems to be standard operating procedure. One can't help wonder if the Four Sea=_.ons "generosity" was a pay off for favor=_. already done, ar favors yet to be awarded. There'=_. not a chance in the i•aorld that the Ethics Board will de#ermine that an ethics violation has occurred in this case so who will dare bring it to their attention if, after cleared 6;.' the Ethics Board, the P1ar~.Director and Planning Gommission member=_ can turn around and =_.ue the citizen who has brought this matter to #heir atter~tian and has to hire an attorne>~ to defend him ar herself for being an e#hical citizen in :an ethical wasteland. Under the influence of a "hear no evil see no evil" Count>~ Board of Ethics, r_oun#;r officials apparently can no longer distinguish between right and wrong. Thi=_. bill itself is a glaring example of the ethical sewer that this coun#y lives in. 4. Since Councilperson Leithead was chair obi the Ethics Board, - - -and deeply involved in the is=_.ues driving Part {b?{:~? of ~ 11 3G, I asK that Councilpersans Leithead excuse ~r from voting an thi=_ bill to avoid a conflict of interest and It is after all, the ethical thing to do.