Monroe County Legislator Rachel Barnhart (District 17) has filed a formal ethics complaint with the Monroe County Board of Ethics requesting an advisory opinion regarding a private consulting business operated by Monroe County Sheriff Todd Baxter.
Baxter co-owns and operates Baxter & Barnes Leadership (BBL), a for-profit consulting firm registered as an LLC with the state. BBL markets leadership training to jail administrators, law enforcement agencies, and other organizations. BBL’s flagship program, “Transforming Jail Culture,” is a paid program designed for jail leadership. Sheriff Baxter administers the Monroe County Jail.
“Sheriff Baxter is selling his office and personally profiting from his operation of the jail,” said Barnhart. “Every client who writes a check to Baxter & Barnes Leadership is paying the Monroe County Sheriff for something that belongs to the public. The Monroe County Board of Ethics found a violation on facts far less direct than these. I am asking them to do their job.”
Public records and social media document that BBL has delivered paid programs to other counties. Erie County vendor records reflect a $1,800 payment to BBL coded to Jail Management. BBL’s Facebook page documents a training delivered to Jefferson County’s command staff. A program flyer shows a session held at the Seneca County Law Enforcement Center at $700 per person, hosted by the Seneca County Sheriff.
BBL’s Facebook page opens with the words “Sheriff Todd Baxter” and describes the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office — its 1,100 personnel, five bureaus, and $177,000,000 budget — as the basis for his qualifications. The page has featured photographs of Sheriff Baxter in his law enforcement uniform as promotional content.
In November 2023, the Monroe County Board of Ethics found a violation of Section 45-13.A of the County Ethics Code in connection with Sheriff Baxter’s appearance in a television commercial. The Board found a violation despite the fact that he appeared without his uniform, without his title, and without any reference to his official position. None of those mitigating facts are present here.
Legislator Barnhart’s complaint raises questions under Sections 45-4, 45-8, and 45-13.A of the Monroe County Code of Ethics, as well as the principles reflected in Public Officers Law § 74. The complaint asks the Board to open a formal inquiry, issue an advisory opinion, and consider whether Sheriff Baxter has an obligation to disclose the identity of BBL’s clients and recuse himself from matters involving those clients in his official capacity.
“Sheriff Baxter is currently withholding records related to a jail trust and legal fees spent out of that fund. The fact he has a business promoting jail culture gives him an incentive to hide information that could hurt his revenue stream. This is what a conflict of interest looks like – we never know if he’s acting on behalf of the public or his side business. He cannot do both at the same time,” Barnhart said.