Ethics Committee: Complaint Against Glen Cummins "Moot"

An ethics committee made up of two Canton Council members and Canton's city attorney have ruled an ethics complaint against City Manager Glen Cummins is "moot."

The committee, made up of attorney Bobby Dyer and Council members Sandy McGrew and Jack Goodwin, met on Tuesday to consider whether the complaint filed by resident Andy Potts should proceed to the city's Ethics Board. 

City Clerk Susan Stanton said the committee ruled the issue is now "moot in that Glen Cummins is no longer a city council member and the ethics ordinance applies only to the governing authority, meaning mayor and council."

Potts submitted an ethics complaint last month against Cummins, who was serving as both interim city manager and Ward 3 councilman. 

Potts notes Cummins should not have been allowed to participate in the city manager search process and the council member should have resigned his seat before tossing his name into the pool of applicants. 

"The fact that Mr. Cummins did not enter his resume into the running from the beginning has a direct impact on his compensation," Potts wrote in his complaint. "This created a situation where Mr. Cummins had influence in the city manager selection process and then financially gained from the disqualification of the sole candidate, Mr. Billy Peppers. Not only did it lengthen the time he was acting city manager, which is more financial gain, but it also opened himself up for the position."

If the complaint had gone forward, the city would have had to appoint an Ethics Board to consider the case, Stanton added. 

Stanton only notified the press at 3 p.m. Tuesday, July 15 of the meeting, which started at 5 p.m. 

For meetings not held on a regular basis, the Georgia Open Meeting Act requires agencies to post the time, place and date of the meeting for at least 24 hours at the meeting location and to give written or oral notice at least 24 hours in advance to the county legal organ or newspaper with equal circulation.

The Act defines meeting as the "gathering of a quorum of the members of the governing body of an agency, any committee of the members of the governing body of an agency, or any committee created by such governing body."

Cummins was tapped to serve as the city manager earlier this month, and resigned from his Ward 3 seat. 

He was named the city's finalist for the position in June. He was the second finalist announced in the last three months for the position. In March, Mayor Gene Hobgood announced former Main Street Woodstock Director Billy Peppers was the city's sole finalist for the role. 

However, Peppers' nomination did not have the backing of the majority of the council, and he withdrew his name from consideration. After Peppers withdrew is name as finalist, Cummins then submitted his name to be considered for the post.

Cummins was compensated no more than $10,000 per month while serving as the interim, the post he was named to after the resignation of Scott Wood.