Request By:
Mr. James E. Adkins II
Attorney at Law
2813 Louisa Street
Catlettsburg, Kentucky 41129
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
You represent the Kentucky Farmers Bank of Catlettsburg which is considering appointing the Circuit Court Clerk of Boyd County to its Board of Directors. In his capacity as clerk he maintains several bank accounts with your client and he also deposits state funds at the Kentucky Farmers Bank. See KRS 30A.120 [bank designated as a state depository].
You request our opinion as to whether or not such appointment would create a conflict of interest situation.
The funds the clerk deposits as clerk are not his own. Thus we see no basis for any conflict in interest. The basic principle is that a public official should not make his public business an object of profit to himself. In general, the disqualifying interest must be pecuniary or proprietary by which he stands to gain or lose something. Commonwealth v. Withers, 266 Ky. 29, 98 S.W.2d 24 (1936) 25. Here we cannot reasonably calculate that the bank directorship would affect the proper conduct of his public office.
We therefore are of the opinion, based upon the facts submitted, that the proposed bank directorship appointment would not create a conflict of interest situation and would not be illegal.