Norwich — Any decisions on recommended reimbursement and disciplinary action against the five city officials who participated in a controversial trip to the Kentucky Derby last May are now in the hands of the City Council after the Ethics Commission submitted five official violation reports to the city clerk's office Friday.

The all-expense paid trips were hosted and funded by the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative, which is owned by six municipal utilities, including Norwich Public Utilities.

Ethics Commission Chairwoman Carol Menard delivered the reports to the city clerk's office and to City Manager John Salomone on Friday afternoon, with a cover letter that any media inquiries be directed to those offices. The commission voted on Feb. 13 that all five violated the city's ethics code regarding gifts and favors.

The reports — one each on Mayor Deberey Hinchey, NPU General Manager John Bilda, NPU Division Manager Steve Sinko and utilities commission Chairwoman Dee Boisclair and Vice Chairman Robert Groner — contain tables on how the commission calculated proposed reimbursement to the city for all or portions of each participant's trip costs.

“The Ethics Commission recommends that any reimbursement be given to a fund that helps those in Norwich who are struggling financially,” each report states in the reimbursement section.

The commission recommended that Bilda and Sinko reimburse the city for the entire cost of their trips for themselves and their spouses, minus the $50 gift limit allowed in the city ethics code, for a total of $15,510 each. The commission recommended that Boisclair and Groner pay 25 percent of the cost of the trips for themselves and their spouses, $3,877.62, a percent equal to the percent of NPU's ownership of CMEEC. The commission calculated that percentage of their costs was money that belonged to Norwich.

Hinchey also should pay 25 percent of her $7,7,30.23 trip cost, a total of $1,945, the commission said.

But Bilda and Sinko should pay the full reimbursement, the commission ruled, “due to (their) great level of responsibility and leadership role with NPU,” Menard wrote in each of their reports.

Some of the recommendations in the reports would require action by the Board of Public Utilities Commission, including proposed two-year strict travel scrutiny for Bilda and Sinko, and a request that Sinko work with the utilities commission to write new guidelines for travel reimbursement by the utility for business trips “to reflect prudent financial management of the NPU travel budget,” the report stated.

The Ethics Commission also recommended that Boisclair and Groner not be reappointed by the utilities commission to their officer positions and be removed as the Norwich representatives to the CMEEC board of directors.

In the report on Hinchey, the commission pointed out that in her role as a voting member of the City Council, Hinchey has had to vote on CMEEC matters occasionally, noting that city officials are not allowed to accept gifts valued at over $50 from vendors.

“While CMEEC is not a typical vendor,” the report stated, “the relationship between the City of Norwich and CMEEC is similar to a vendor relationship. Accepting this gift of a free trip could impair her ability to make fair decisions for the citizens of Norwich in future matters with CMEEC."

c.bessette@theday.com