(a) There shall be established an Office of State Ethics. Said office shall consist of an executive director, general counsel, ethics enforcement officer and such other staff as hired by the executive director. Within the Office of State Ethics, there shall be the Citizen’s Ethics Advisory Board that shall consist of nine members, appointed as follows: One member shall be appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one member by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one member by the majority leader of the Senate, one member by the minority leader of the Senate, one member by the majority leader of the House of Representatives, one member by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, and three members by the Governor. Members shall be appointed to serve a four-year term commencing on October first of the year in which the prior four-year term expires. Any member may be reappointed. No more than five members shall be members of the same political party.

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(b) All members shall be electors of the state. No member shall be a state employee. No member or employee of said board shall (1) hold or campaign for any public office; (2) have held public office or have been a candidate for public office for a three-year period prior to appointment; (3) hold office in any political party or political committee or be a member of any organization or association organized primarily for the purpose of influencing legislation or decisions of public agencies; or (4) be an individual who is a registrant as defined in subdivision (17) of section 1-91. For purposes of this subsection, “public office” does not include the offices of justice of the peace or notary public.

(c) Any vacancy on the board shall be filled by the appointing authority having the power to make the original appointment within thirty days.

(d) The board shall elect a chairperson who shall, except as provided in subsection (b) of section 1-82 and subsection (b) of section 1-93, preside at meetings of the board and a vice-chairperson to preside in the absence of the chairperson. Six members of the board shall constitute a quorum. Except as provided in subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of section 1-81, subsections (a) and (b) of section 1-82, subsection (b) of section 1-88, subsection (e) of section 1-92, subsections (a) and (b) of section 1-93 and subsection (b) of section 1-99, a majority vote of the members shall be required for action of the board. The chairperson or any three members may call a meeting.

(e) Any matter before the board, except hearings held pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b) of section 1-82 or subsection (b) of section 1-93, may be assigned by the board to two of its members to conduct an investigation or hearing, as the case may be, to ascertain the facts and report thereon to the board with a recommendation for action. Any hearing held pursuant to this subsection shall be held in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54.

(f) Members of the board shall be compensated at the rate of two hundred dollars per day for each day they attend a meeting or hearing and shall receive reimbursement for their necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their official duties.

(g) The board shall not be construed to be a board or commission within the meaning of section 4-9a.

(h) The members and employees of the Citizen’s Ethics Advisory Board and the Office of State Ethics shall adhere to the following code of ethics under which the members and employees shall: (1) Observe high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the Citizen’s Ethics Advisory Board and the Office of State Ethics may be preserved; (2) respect and comply with the law and conduct themselves at all times in a manner which promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the board and the Office of State Ethics; (3) be faithful to the law and maintain professional competence in the law; (4) be unswayed by partisan interests, public clamor or fear of criticism; (5) maintain order and decorum in proceedings of the board and Office of State Ethics; (6) be patient, dignified and courteous to all persons who appear in board or Office of State Ethics proceedings and with other persons with whom the members and employees deal in their official capacities; (7) refrain from making any statement outside of a board or Office of State Ethics proceeding, which would have a likelihood of prejudicing a board or Office of State Ethics proceeding; (8) refrain from making any statement outside of a board or Office of State Ethics proceeding that a reasonable person would expect to be disseminated by means of public communication if the member or employee should know that such statement would have a likelihood of materially prejudicing or embarrassing a complainant or a respondent; (9) preserve confidences of complainants and respondents; (10) exercise independent professional judgment on behalf of the board and Office of State Ethics; and (11) represent the board and Office of State Ethics competently.

(i) No member or employee of the board or Office of State Ethics may make a contribution, as defined in section 9-601a, to any state employee, public official, candidate for state-wide office or candidate for the office of representative or senator in the General Assembly.

(j) Members of the board shall recuse themselves from participating in any proceeding or matter undertaken pursuant to this chapter that involves the person who appointed such member to the board.

(k) No former member of the board may represent any business or person, other than himself or herself, before the board for a period of one year following the end of such former member’s service on the board. No business or person that appears before the board shall employ or otherwise engage the services of a former member of the board for a period of one year following the end of such former member’s service on the board.

(l) No member of the board may hold any other position in state employment for a period of one year following the end of such member’s service on the board, including, but not limited to, service as a member on a state board or commission, service as a judge of the Superior Court or service as a state agency commissioner. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to prohibit any former board member from holding a volunteer or unpaid position in state service within one year of the end of his or her service on the board.

(m) Upon request of any aggrieved party, the board may delay the effect of any decision rendered by the board for a period not to exceed seven days following the rendering of such decision.