The chairman of the Peru Select Board has paid a $3,000 civil penalty after state investigators found he helped create a paid Town Hall maintenance job and was then hired for it by his fellow board members. Edward Munch admitted wrongdoing in the case, which centered on a part-time position he advocated for, helped design, and was ultimately hired to fill by his fellow board members while still sitting on the three-member board that oversees Town Hall operations.
The Massachusetts State Ethics Commission determined that Munch violated multiple sections of the state's conflict-of-interest law, according to The Berkshire Eagle. Munch pushed for the town to create a part-time maintenance worker position at Town Hall in December 2024, then helped draft the job description and helped determine its hours and pay, per the newspaper's reporting. He later expressed interest in applying for the very position he had helped shape.
The town publicly posted the maintenance job in June 2025, and the Select Board's two other members hired Munch for the role that August. Under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 268A, Section 21A, members of a municipal board are ineligible for appointment or election by that board to any position under its supervision unless the appointment or election is first approved at the town's annual town meeting. Munch earned $3,120 during his roughly seven months in the maintenance job before resigning in March, according to iBerkshires.com, an amount nearly identical to the fine he ultimately paid.
How the Hiring Process Played Out
Munch was interviewed alongside one other applicant, with the interviews conducted by the board's two remaining members, Samuel Haupt and Verne Leach, per iBerkshires.com's account of the disposition agreement. Munch refrained from voting on Select Board motions related to the maintenance position, but that abstention did not shield him from liability. Massachusetts conflict-of-interest law covers both contracts involving an official's financial interest and positions controlled by that official's own public office.
Munch left the maintenance job in March 2026 after learning he was under investigation. He later waived his right to a public hearing, acknowledged that he violated the law, and paid the commission's $3,000 penalty, according to Gerry Tuoti, deputy chief of public education and communications for the State Ethics Commission.
Why Abstaining From a Vote Wasn't Enough
Tuoti said the definition of participation under the conflict-of-interest law is very broad, and that it includes discussions by a municipal employee about performing an action as a municipal employee. Massachusetts case law backs that reading: in Comtois v. State Ethics Commission (2023), state courts upheld that abstaining from a final vote does not insulate a public official from liability if that official took part in preliminary discussions or planning. Munch participated in the creation and acceptance of the maintenance position well before any formal vote occurred.
The $3,000 penalty falls well under the maximum civil fine available to the commission. Massachusetts law allows the State Ethics Commission to assess civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each individual conflict-of-interest violation, a threshold set when the Massachusetts General Court overhauled the state's ethics framework in 2009, raising the per-violation cap from $2,000. The disposition agreement formally resolved the matter without criminal charges or a public adjudicatory hearing, according to WAMC Northeast Public Radio, which reported on the settlement Thursday.
A Small Town Where Roles Often Overlap
Peru is a rural Berkshire County town of 814 residents, according to the 2020 U.S. Census, and operates under an Open Town Meeting form of government across 26 square miles that includes the highest elevated town center in Massachusetts, per the Massachusetts Municipal Association. In communities that small, the same handful of residents often wear multiple hats at Town Hall, a dynamic that can blur the line between elected oversight and paid town employment.
Munch remains chair of the Select Board. Fellow board members Haupt and Leach have terms expiring in 2027 and 2028, respectively, according to Town of Peru government records. It remains unclear whether the town will pursue additional disciplinary action against Munch beyond the state penalty.
Munch could not be reached for comment, and both Haupt and Leach declined to comment on the situation when contacted by The Berkshire Eagle.
