A.
CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
CONSULTANT
DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
FAMILY MEMBERS
INTEREST
(1)
(2)
OFFICIAL or EMPLOYEE
TOWN
TOWN BOARD
For
the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
All information that is disclosed to, or acquired by, the
Town, its boards, commissions, agencies, officials, employees, and
consultants, in connection with their activities for or on behalf
of the Town and that may be lawfully withheld from disclosure to the
public under statute, including Freedom of Information Law, Civil
Rights Law, Personal Privacy Law, and Open Meetings Law. Confidential
information shall not include any information which was or becomes
publicly disclosed other than by breach of this Code or is received
independently from a third party free to lawfully disclose such information.
Any individual, group or firm which renders services to the
Town or any official, Town Board, Planning Board, Zoning Board of
Appeals or any other Town agency, board or commission.
Grandparents, parents, stepparents, spouses, domestic partners,
in-laws, children, dependents, grandchildren, siblings, stepsiblings,
and household members of an official, employee, or consultant.
A direct or indirect financial or material benefit, ownership,
claim, right, or privilege, including that arising from a contract,
but not including any benefit, right, or privilege arising from the
provision or receipt of any services generally available to the residents
or taxpayers of the Town, or an area of the Town, or a lawful class
of such residents or taxpayers. Any claim, account, or demand against
or in agreement with the Town, express or implied, including designation
of a depository of public funds and the designation of an official
newspaper, and direct or indirect pecuniary or material benefit accruing
to an official or employee as the result of a business or professional
transaction with the Town. For the purposes of this chapter, an official
or employee shall be deemed to have an interest in:
The affairs of his or her family members;
A property, organization, or legal entity of any kind, including,
but not limited to, a corporation, LLC, partnership, trust or association
of which he or she, a family member, or a donor to his or her election
campaign of more than $2,500 within the preceding 24 months or $5,000
within the preceding 60 months, is a partner, director, officer, employee,
or owns or controls, directly or indirectly, more than 5% of the outstanding
shares of ownership of the property, organization, or legal entity.
Any elected or appointed official or any employee of the
Town, whether paid or not, including members of any governing board,
administrative advisory board, commission or other agency thereof,
including but not limited to Town Board, Planning Board and Zoning
Board of Appeals. For the purpose of this chapter, no person shall
be deemed an official or employee solely by reason of being a volunteer
in any service organization, including but not limited to volunteer
firemen (other than the Chief or Assistant Chief) or employed by the
Town as the result of a contractual agreement other than a collective
bargaining agreement.
The Town of Monroe or any of its boards, commissions or agencies,
whether operated or funded solely by the Town of Monroe or jointly
with one or more other municipalities.
Consists of the Town Supervisor and the Town Councilmen,
and any future additions thereto.
B.
Should
any official, employee, or consultant be subject to another code of
ethics or professional conduct (i.e., Town Justice), he or she shall
be subject to the conditions of both this Code and the other code(s)
and the more stringent standards among them will apply.
A.
Misuse
of office. A general prohibition on the use of municipal office for
private gain. Without proper authorization and prior public disclosure
and only in conformance with this Code, an official or employee shall
not use his or her position or office, or take or fail to take any
action, in a manner which he or she knows or has reason to know may
result in a material personal financial or other benefit for any of
the following:
(1)
Himself or herself;
(2)
His or her outside employer or business or a customer thereof;
(3)
A family member;
(4)
An entity or property in which the official or employee has an interest
or had an interest within the preceding 12 months;
(5)
A person or entity from whom the official or employee has received
a gift or good or services for materially less than fair market value
during the previous 12 months; or
(6)
A person or entity with which the official or employee has had a
material financial relationship, other than one generally available
to the residents or taxpayers of the Town, within the preceding 12
months.
B.
Employment.
(1)
No official or employee shall have any interest, financial or otherwise,
direct or indirect, or engage in any business or transaction or professional
activity or incur any obligation of any nature, which is in conflict
with the proper discharge of his/her duties unless such conflict is
waived by resolution of the Town Board.
(2)
No official or employee shall engage in, solicit, negotiate for,
promise to accept, or accept employment or render services for private
interests when such employment or service creates a conflict with
or impairs the proper discharge of his/her official duties.
(3)
No official or employee shall knowingly acquire, solicit, negotiate
for, or accept any interest, or perform or fail to perform any act
that would result in a violation of this Code.
C.
Disclosure
of confidential information.
(1)
No official or employee shall accept employment or engage in a business
or professional activity which will require him/her to disclose confidential
information gained by reason of official position or authority.
(2)
No current or former official or employee shall disclose confidential
information acquired by him/her in the course of his/her official
duties or use such information to further his/her personal interests
or the private interests of others.
D.
Misuse
of authority.
(1)
No official or employee shall use or attempt to use his/her official
position to secure unwarranted privileges, benefits, advantages, rights,
or exemptions for himself/herself or others.
(2)
No official or employee shall use or attempt to use his or her official
position to, knowingly and willfully, harass or make false statements
about a resident, applicant or entity doing business with the Town,
official or employee.
(3)
No official or employee shall by his/her conduct provide a reasonable
person with the impression that another can improperly influence him/her
or unduly enjoy his/her favor in the performance of his/her official
duties or that he/she is unduly affected by kinship, rank, position
or influence of any group, party or person.
E.
Non-Town
compensation. No official, employee, or family member shall receive
compensation (financial or otherwise) or enter into any agreement
to receive compensation, express or implied, with respect to any matter
which is, was or will be before the Town for determination by any
official, employee, department, board, agency, or commission of the
Town except as a part of the official responsibilities of the members
of the agency, department, board or commission, or as a function of
the official position of the official or employee.
F.
Gifts.
No official or employee shall accept any gifts or gratuities, in excess
of $50 in value per year. Cash gifts or gratuities are prohibited.
The recipient of any such gift or gratuity shall immediately return
the same to the giver and shall notify the Town of Monroe Board of
Ethics, in writing, of this incident.
G.
Investments.
(1)
Officials and employees shall abstain from involvement in enterprises
which he or she has reason to believe may be directly involved in
decisions to be made or advice to be given by him/her or which will
otherwise create substantial conflict between his/her duty in the
public interest and his/her private interest.
(2)
No official or employee of the Town of Monroe shall invest or hold
any investment, directly or indirectly, in any financial, business,
commercial or other private transaction, which creates a substantial
conflict with his/her official duties.
H.
Business
transactions. No official or employee shall engage in any transaction
as a representative of the Town or a Town agency or department or
other office with any business entity in which he or she or any family
member has an interest.
I.
Future
employment.
(1)
No official or employee shall seek any nonmunicipal employment with
any person or entity he or she is dealing with in his or her Town
position.
(2)
No official or employee, for the two-year period after serving as
an official or employee, may represent or render services to a private
person or organization in connection with any matter involving the
exercise of discretion before the Town office, board, department or
comparable organizational unit for which he or she served.
(3)
No official or employee, at any time after serving as an official
or employee, may represent or render services to a private person
or organization in connection with any particular transaction in which
he or she personally and substantially participated while serving
as a official or employee.
J.
Discrimination.
No official or employee or member of any service or other organization
chartered by or directly or indirectly sponsored or supported by the
Town shall:
(1)
Discriminate or cause voluntary segregation, directly or indirectly,
based upon creed, color, national origin, sex, sexual preference or
disability or allow the preceding to be factors affecting the recruitment,
selection, placement, assignment, compensation, or promotion of any
official, employee, or consultant, or any member of such service or
other organization.
K.
Appearances
and representation. No official or employee shall represent any third
party or entity in any matter that third-party or entity has before
the Town Board or any board, commission or agency thereof, nor represent
any third party or entity in any matter that involves the Town.
L.
Recusal. Unless properly disclosed and authorized, an official or employee shall promptly recuse himself or herself from acting on a matter before the Town when acting on the matter, or failing to act on the matter, may financially benefit any of the persons or entities listed above in § 4-5A, a donor to his or her election campaign of more than $2,500 within the preceding 24 months or $5,000 within the preceding 60 months, or if he or she has, or had within the preceding 12 months, an interest materially affected by the matter. Recusal requires having no involvement in the matter at all - not participating in the voting, deliberations, discussion, or communications, including, but not limited to, emails, telephone conversations, and conference calls concerning the matter. The person who is recused should leave the room when the matter is discussed.
M.
Misuse
of municipal resources. No official or employee shall use municipal
letterhead, personnel, equipment, supplies, or resources for a nongovernmental
purpose nor engage in personal or private activities, including campaigning
or electioneering, when he or she is required to work or is at work
for the Town.
N.
Political
solicitation and coercion of subordinates. No official or employee
shall knowingly request or threaten or knowingly authorize anyone
else to request or threaten any subordinate of the Town official or
employee in order to induce them to participate in an election campaign,
undertake political activity, or contribute to a political committee
or campaign.
O.
Inducement
of others. No official or employee shall induce or aid another official
or employee to violate any of the provisions of the Code.
