Commissioner, thank you for your appearance.
I want to drill down, setting the stage for Ms. Verschuren's appearance, on the issue of her knowledge of recusal versus abstention. She said quite proudly, when she testified on December 12 and December 14, 2023, that she had been a board member on various boards since she was 38 years of age. She's extremely familiar with conflict of interest policies. She recused herself on numerous occasions. Then, she said very proudly, “I am sure that I didn't break ethics laws.” That was on December 14, 2023, before the release of your report.
I know that she spoke with a compliance officer in your office on June 4, 2019. Obviously, the issues of recusal and abstention were discussed. Clearly, Commissioner, you weren't the compliance officer she spoke with. Is that accurate?