Unlawful Activities of City Officials
What activities are "incompatible" with
my service as a City Official?
The City Council has adopted laws regarding incompatible activities that prohibit
City Officials from engaging in activities that interfere or conflict with their
performance of their City duties. These laws prohibit compensated City Officials
from being compensated by another entity if it involves:
- using time for which the City Official is receiving compensation by the
City;
- using the City's facilities, equipment, or supplies;
- the City Official’s use of his or her badge, uniform, or prestige;
- the influence of the City Official's position with the City;
- the City Official receiving compensation from someone other than the City
for performing his or her official duties;
- the performance of an act in other than his or her capacity as a City Official
that may later be subject to the control, inspection, review, audit, or enforcement
of any other City Official;
- the use of the City Official's time in a manner that makes the City Official
less efficient.
What is the general rule regarding the misuse of
a City Official's position?
City law prohibits a City Official from using his or her position or office
to induce or coerce any person to provide anything of value for the private
benefit of the City Official or his or her immediate family (an individual’s
spouse and dependent children). In an extreme example, this law prohibits a
Councilmember from seeking a cash bribe from a developer in exchange for casting
a vote in favor of a particular project. In a more subtle example, this law
would also prohibit a City Official from suggesting that the paperwork on a
project could be accelerated if a permit applicant patronized a store owned
by the official's spouse. Said another way, a City Official engages in an improper
use of his or her official position when he or she engages in activities other
than in the lawful and proper performance of his or her City duties.
What about City Councilmembers who engage in campaign
activities in the middle of a weekday?
Any City Official may engage in campaign-related activities on his or her own
time. Unlike most others holding jobs in the City, Councilmembers perform the
duties of their jobs on weekdays and weekends, and during early mornings and
late evenings. They may engage in campaign activities at times of their own
discretion. When they do engage in campaign activities, they are not "on
the clock" as City Officials. In those situations, they may not use City
facilities, equipment, supplies, or other City resources.
So a Councilmember can't use his or her City office
to make a campaign-related telephone call?
The Ethics Commission recognizes that a prohibition against using City resources
can be taken to absurd extremes. The Commission does not consider a campaign-related
telephone call from a Councilmember's office to be a misuse of the chair the
Councilmember is sitting on or the desk the Councilmember is using. However,
the Commission strongly urges Councilmembers to make campaign-related telephone
calls and fax transmissions on equipment and lines that are not paid for by
the City.
May a Councilmember use his or her City staff for
campaign activities?
Yes, but not when the staff member is being compensated by the City. City staff
who work on a campaign must do so while not on City time and while not using
City facilities, equipment, supplies, or other City resources. The City does
not pay any person for working on a campaign. Persons who choose to participate
in campaign-related activities when they are receiving compensation from the
City are violating the law. Additionally, if campaign activities make a staff member
less efficient with regard to his or her City duties, those campaign activities
may be unlawfully "incompatible" as stated above. It is also
a violation of City law for a Councilmember or any other City Official to induce
or coerce, or attempt to induce or coerce, a staff member to engage in campaign-related
activities while that staff member is being compensated by the City.
May a compensated City Official hold two jobs simultaneously?
No. It is unlawful for any City Official to engage in outside employment during
any hours he or she is receiving compensation to engage in City business. For
example, a City Official may not run a real estate business from his office
or make telemarketing calls during working hours. When a City Official is being
paid by the City to perform City business, that official should exercise absolute
loyalty and undivided allegiance to the best interests of the City.
What prohibitions apply to confidential information?
City law prohibits current and former City Officials from using or disclosing
any confidential information they acquired in the course of their official duties.
There is a practical exception to this rule: when disclosure is a necessary
function of a City Official's official duties, confidential information may
be disclosed. For example, a City Official may discuss a confidential issue
with support staff.
Do the City's laws restrict a City Official's ability
to negotiate future employment with a private entity?
Yes, but only under certain circumstances. The City does not prevent a City
Official from negotiating employment elsewhere unless the potential employer
is involved in a decision and the City Official is in a position to
influence that decision. Under City law, a City Official is prohibited from
using his or her position to influence a decision involving the interests
of a potential employer. This prohibition also applies to any entity seeking
to employ a City Official. An entity that has a matter pending before the City
may not negotiate future employment with a City Official who could influence
a decision concerning that matter.
I still have questions. How do I get help?
The Ethics Commission is available to provide telephonic or written advice with regard to these
matters.
