HomeMy WebLinkAboutExecutive Order 1-2013: Amending the City of South Bend Ethics Code le fir,n a
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CITY OF SOUTH BEND
PETE BUTTIGIEG, MAYOR
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR
EXECUTIVE ORDER 12013.
City of South Bend Ethics Code of January 1,2012
As Amended April 1`� 2013
An executive order having becii issued January 1, 2013 which established an Ethics Code
for the City of South Bend,Indiana(the City),this Executive Order hereby amends the original
Ethics Code and is made effective this �` day of April, 2013.
This Ethics Code as amended will ensure that residents of the City continue to have officers,
appointees, and employees adhering to an ethical standard that is consistent,transparent,
understood, and most importantly, followed, in the Mayor's office and in the Departments and
agencies throughout the city.New city employees are expected to read and acknowledge this
Code during the hiring process.
1. An appointee or employee shall not knowingly solicit, accept, or receive a gift,favor,
service, entertainment, food, drink,travel expense, or registration fee from a person who
has a business relationship or seeks a business relationship with the appointee's or
employee's agency or department, or is seeking to influence an action by the appointee or
employee in his or her official capacity, or is regulated by the appointee or the employee's
agency.
2. Notwithstanding section(1), an appointee or employee may accept:
a. Any gift, favor, service, entertainment, food, drink,travel expense,or registration
fee that has a value of less than Nifty Dollars ($50.00),provided that the appointee
or employee does not knowingly solicit, accept, or receive gifts,favors;services,
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entertainment, food, drink,travel expenses or registration fees from the same
person or his or her employer that has a cumulative value of more than fifty dollars
($50.00).in any calendar year.
b. Gifts,favors, services, entertainment, food, drink,travel expenses or registration
fees from public agencies or public institutions;however, such gifts, favors,
services, entertainment,food, drink,travel expense, or registration fees shall be
utilized for the benefit of the city, and not solely for the benefit of one's self or
relatives;
C. Mementos or souvenirs with a cumulative value of$25.00 or less;
d. Food-or drink consumed at.a public meeting-to which at least ten(10) individuals
are invited; a meeting will be considered public if
L The event°is a reception to which at least ten(10)individuals are invited or
other gathering that is not arranged to solicit government procurement of goods
or services from anyone Who holds:a public office at the federal, state, or local
level;
ii. The appointee or employee is giving a speech or participating in a presentation
in his or her official capacity; or
iii. The meeting has a formal educational program that the appointee or employee is
attending to assist him or her in performing Official duties;
e. Food, drink, entertainment, travel expenses, or registration fees accepted in'
furtherance of activities to benefit the city or region related to an economic
development effort, including job retention, expansion or attraction,reduction of
blight, and securing convention and visitor business, dppzoyed in advance by the
mayor or his or her director of economic development;
f. Gifts,favors, services, entertainment, load;or drinks from relatives, or a person
with whom the individual has an ongoing social relationship that existed before the
appointee or employee was appointed or employed by the agency, so long as:
L The gifts or other items of value are paid for personally by the giver,rather than
a business entity, and not deducted as a business expense; and
I The giver is not seeking to influence action or inaction by the individual in that
person's official capacity;
g. Gifts of free attendance at certain widely attended gatherings, and food or
refreshments served at such gatherings provided that the corporation counsel has
determined that the attendance is in the best interest of the agency;
h. Property accepted as a gift to the city or county and logged by the corporation
counsel; and
i. Any item of value for which face.-value or reasonable fair market value is promptly
paid and for which a record.of the transaction is filed with the corporation counsel.
j, The fallovving..areyexaf41es of items that are not considered gifts and-that may be
accepted-by an employee':.
i. Modest refreshments(such as coffee and doAuts), greeting cards,plaques and
other similar items of little intrinsic value
ii. Discounts available to the public or to all City employees and rewards or prizes
connected with competitions open to the general public or open to all persons at
widely attended gatherings under subpart(g) above.
k. The corporation counsel may waive application of subsection(a) of this rule in
individual cases when consistent with the public interest. The waiver shall be in
writing, shall be made available to the public, and include:
i. The name ofthe appointee or employee;
ii. The nature and estimated value'of'that which is being provided;
iii. The name of any person who paid a portion of that which is being.provided; and
iv. An explanation of.why accepiancejs consistent with the public interest.
3. The appointed chief administrative officer of an ageiicy or departTent, appointees, and
employees with final-purchasing authority shall not solicit political contributions from
persons with a business relationship with his or.her- agency on behalf of any candidate for
elected office.
4. Any civilian full-time city employee who is considering entering an agreement to work or
consult, in addition to his or her city employment, for financial compensation will seek
approval from corporation counsel prior to entering into a financial agreement. If
corporation counsel determines that the additional work would not be a conflict of interest,
he or she will issue a letter to this effect and maintain a record of the name of the person
or business compensating the employee, and the annual amount paid.
S. An appointee or employee may not solicit or receive compensation:
a. For the sale or lease of any property or service to a person with a business
relationship with the appointee or employee or an official's, appointee's, or
employee's agency or department that substantially exceeds the amount that the
official, appointee, or employee would charge in the ordinary course of business;
or
b. For the performance of official duties other than as.provided by law.
6. An appointee, employee, former appointee; or former employee shall not disclose or
materially benefit from confidential information, as defined in Section 7 below, and shall
use such confidential information only in the course of his or her performancc of official
responsibilities.
7. For purposes of this Code of Ethics, "confidential information" includes any and all data
and information,whether in written., electronic or spoken form,to which an appointee,
employee or official has access by reason of his or her employment and which is not
generally known to or readily ascertainable by others or otherwise subject to public access
or disclosure bylaw. Any and all records; copies of records,.and other property(including,
but not limited to e-mails and electronic records) containing such confidential information
are and shall remain the property of the.City of South Bend and must be returned promptly
to the applicable agency or department of the City upon any termination of appointment,
employment or engagement of the appointee,.employee or.official.
8. For the purposes of this Code of Ethics, "relative"means any person related as
grandfather, grandmother, father,mother, stepfather, stepmother, brother, sister,
stepbrother, stepsister, uncle, aunt,.husband,wife, son, daughter, stepchild, father-in-law,
mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandchild, step-grandchild, niece, or
nephew.
9. An official, appointee, or employee, or a member of an.official's, appointee's, or
employee's immediate family, may not knowingly have a financial interest in a contract
made by that official's, appointee's, or employee's agency.This prohibition does not apply
to:
a. An official, appointee, or employee who does not participate in or have official
responsibility for any of the activities of the contracting agency, if-
i. The contract is made after public notice or,where applicable, through
competitive bidding;
ii. The official, appointee, or employee files with the office of corporation counsel
a statement making full disclosure of all related financial interests in the
contract;
iii. The contract can be performed without compromising the performance of the
official duties and tesponsibilities of the official.-appointee, or employee; and
iv. In the case of a contract-for professional services,the chief administrative .
officer of the.contracting agency makes and files a written certification with the
office of corporation counsel that no other official,appointee; or employee of
that agency is available to perform those services as part of his or her regular
duties; or
b. An official, appointee, or employee who, acting in good faith,learns of an actual
or prospective violation of the prohibition in subsection(a),provided that, not later
than thirty(30) days after learning of the actual or prospective violation,the
official, appointee, or employee makes a full written.disclosure of any financial
interests to the-contracting agency and the office of corporation counsel, and
terminates the financial interest.
10. A relative of an official or employee shall not be employed in the same agency as the
official or employee,if the relative would be hired by, supervised by, or directly supervise
the official or.employee;
11. This code of ethics will apply to the mayor as well as to appoiiitees and employees.
Approved and signed by me on the `� day of April,2013, at o'clock P .m.
Mayor, City of South Bend, Indiana
Attest:
Clerk, City of South Bend,Indiana
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