Cantor adds more pressure on MDC, urges adoption of anti-corruption policy. Candidates for mayor of Hartford remain silent as crisis of confidence grows.
West Hartford Mayor Shari Cantor continues to urge reform-resistant members of the MDC to act on the crisis of confidence they have created at the regional water and sewer authority. On Wednesday, Cantor wrote to the board members Wednesday and called upon them to enact an anti-corruption policy that could disqualify Chairman William DiBella from continuing his decades-long domination of the quasi-public agency.
Cantor wants the board to adopt and enforce a policy “prohibiting anyone from serving as an officer or attorney for the MDC who has been found civilly or criminally liable for public corruption – including violations of the state ethics code or participating in a scheme to defraud public funds.” An op-ed by Cantor published in Tuesday’s edition of The Hartford Courant called for DiBella’s removal in the aftermath of an independent attorney’s report on DiBella’s attempt to steer MDC legal business to a friend. DiBella initially refused to cooperate with the investigation.
As Cantor continues to place herself on the side of action, others continue to maintain a public silence, including the three leading candidates for the Democratic nomination for mayor, state Senator John Fonfara, former state senator and retired judge Eric Coleman and former lobbyists and Lamont administration official Arunan Arulampalam. Supporters of both Fonfara and Arulampalam on the commission’s board voted with DiBella to shutdown debate on the independent investigation.
Here is Cantor’s letter:
Re: Adoption of anti-corruption policy
Dear Commissioners of the Metropolitan District Commission:
Like many of you, I was deeply disturbed to read the investigation report issued by the independent counsel for the MDC.
The MDC takes in hundreds of millions of dollars annually from consumers, as well as the state and federal governments. Despite cynical claims to the contrary, member municipalities do in fact have a vested interest in ensuring good governance of the MDC. I write to you on behalf of the 63,000 West Hartford residents I represent, as well as the countless West Hartford businesses and nonprofits who rely on the MDC to provide affordable, reliable, and clean water and sewer services.
The investigation report concludes that serious violations of the MDC’s charter and bylaws have occurred, and the findings of fact raise grave concerns about the possibility of fraud and misuse of public funds at the MDC.
For these reasons, I am calling on the MDC Board to immediately adopt an anti-corruption policy prohibiting anyone from serving as an officer or attorney for the MDC who has been found civilly or criminally liable for public corruption – including violations of the state ethics code or participating in a scheme to defraud public funds. Any such person should not be allowed to serve in a position of power and trust for a public utility like the MDC.
While other reforms of the MDC are also needed, this simple policy would have likely prevented many of the abuses outlined in the investigation report.
All of you are stewards of a public asset that provides critical services to hundreds of thousands of people, and I trust that you will act in the interest of the public you serve.
Published April 20, 2023.