Norwich — Norwich Public Utilities officials are renewing claims that the Ethics Commission violated its own regulations, acted in a biased manner and has failed to address the accusations made in the wake of complaints pertaining to controversial trips to the Kentucky Derby.

NPU officials expressed frustration that the questions raised over the ethics review process last winter have not been addressed, while the Ethics Commission earlier this week discussed making recommendations to strengthen its authority. The utilities commission is spending the summer reviewing the Ethics Commission's report that found four NPU officials violated the city's ethics code in participating in the Kentucky Derby trips and made several disciplinary recommendations.

Attorney Paul McCary, who represented NPU General Manager John Bilda, NPU Division Manager Steve Sinko, former utilities commission Chairwoman Dee Boisclair and former Vice Chairman Robert Groner in ethics complaints filed against them for attending the all-expenses-paid trips to the Kentucky Derby in May 2016, raised some issues alleging the commission violated its procedures.

Commission Chairwoman Carol Menard filed the complaint against Sinko after city residents had filed complaints against the other three NPU officials and Mayor Deberey Hinchey for her participation in the derby trip. McCary claimed the ethics ordinance does not give the commission authority to file its own complaints and said Menard participated in the executive session review of the Sinko complaint, and only later recused herself from voting on the finding of probable cause.

In January, McCary complained that the Ethics Commission violated the city ordinance when it failed to notify the complainants within five days of finding of probable cause and again when it scheduled a public hearing beyond the 60-day time period allowed for in the ordinance.

“The Ethics Commission has never responded to — or even acknowledged — the very serious procedural issues raised by Paul McCary,” NPU spokesman Chris Riley said in a written statement following the Ethics Commission’s meeting Monday, when the commission discussed strengthening the city ordinance.

“The Commission is required to follow the specific ordinances that govern their process — and they failed to do so, over and over again,” Riley said Thursday.

Menard said Thursday she has no comment on NPU’s claims.

City Corporation Counsel Michael Driscoll said the Ethics Commission does have language in its rules and procedures allowing for self-generated complaints.

“The Commission may itself initiate a complaint regarding a possible violation of the Code,” the section of the rules and procedures reads. “A majority vote of the Ethics Commission on an alleged violation of the Code is required to result in an investigation. An affirmative vote of three (3) members of the Ethics Commission is required to initiate an investigation on such a possible violation of the Code.”

Driscoll said the other procedural issues raised by NPU officials could be considered less jurisdictional than the binding clause that complaints can only be generated for incidents within the past 18 months.

NPU also again raised an allegation that former Ethics Commission member Greg Schlough never publicly disclosed a conflict of interest he faced in reviewing the complaints against NPU officials. Bilda first raised that issue in a March 9 letter to Ethics Commission Chairwoman Menard.

Bilda claimed in March that Schlough was a vendor with a “long-standing and extensive business relationship with NPU,” and that Schlough had questioned and complained to NPU about bidding practices. Bilda said Schlough was “aggressively advocating for additional contracts and suggesting that the city’s established bidding process be circumvented for his advantage.”

Schlough resigned from the Ethics Commission on April 4, citing health reasons and also referring to the allegations, saying they had caused him stress and that he did not want the allegations to “cast a cloud” on the Ethics Commission.

On Thursday, Schlough said Bilda mischaracterized their verbal interactions over the contracts and his role with the company. Schlough said he worked first as a supervisor and later as a project manager for his brother’s company, Baltic Roofing, but at no time owned the company.

NPU records show Baltic Roofing did dozens of contracted jobs for NPU from 2004 through 2016, and Riley said the projects totaled $144,000.

Schlough said Thursday he did question NPU’s bidding practice after his brother had become frustrated that Baltic Roofing was not contacted for potential jobs although the company was on a list of contractors to be informed of pending jobs.

Schlough said he disclosed his business relationship with NPU during an executive session discussion the Ethics Commission held with Driscoll at the start of its review of the ethics complaints. He also told Driscoll he was chairman of the Connecticut State Firefighters Convention coming to Taftville in the fall and had obtained corporate sponsorship by NPU.

“I told them that I had done work at NPU and that I knew of Mr. Bilda and got NPU to be a corporate sponsor to the firefighters convention. The corporation counsel told me that if I could be fair and unbiased toward NPU and Bilda and everyone else, I could participate. I felt I could be fair and balanced, so that’s how I based my decision,” Schlough said.

Driscoll on Thursday recalled that Schlough’s business relationship was not the only potential conflict raised at the start of the ethics review. Schlough and Bilda both are Taftville volunteer firefighters — Schlough is a retired firefighter — and also Ethics Commission member Kathryn Lord and Bilda both were members of the Chelsea Gardens Foundation.

“The ordinance talks about disqualifications if you have an interest, and if it’s significant, then you don’t take part,” Driscoll said. “The question becomes: What is significant?”

c.bessette@theday.com