In this article, the following words have the meanings indicated unless a different definition is adopted for a particular provision or the context clearly requires a different meaning.
(1) "Board", "commission", "authority", "or similar entity" means a body comprised of at least two members, all of whom are appointed by the County Executive, the County Council, or a County employee and serve on a part-time basis.
(2) "Business entity" means a person engaged in business, whether profit or nonprofit, regardless of form.
(3) "Child" or "children" includes a biological child, adopted child, stepchild, foster child, or grandchild, of any age.
(4) "Compensation" means money or any other valuable thing, regardless of form, received or to be received by a person from an employer for services rendered.
(5) "Employee" means an individual elected to, appointed to, or employed in the Executive or Legislative Branch of the County; a member, executive director, or employee of any County board, commission, authority, or similar entity; an employee of the Public Library Association of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County, Inc.; a commissioner, the executive director, or employee of the Housing Commission; or an employee, officer, or director of Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation, Arundel Community Development Services, Inc., or Anne Arundel Workforce Development Corporation. "Employee" includes anyone designated as being in an "acting" capacity. "Employee" does not include an individual who is subject to the provisions of the Maryland Public Ethics Law.
(6) "Employer" means a person who pays or agrees to pay compensation to another person for services rendered.
(7) "Entity doing business with the County" means:
(i) a lobbyist required to register under Title 7;
(ii) a person regulated by the governmental unit of the applicable employee; or
(iii) a person who is a party to one or a combination of sales, purchases, leases, or contracts to, from, or with the County involving consideration:
1. of at least $5,000 on a cumulative basis during a calendar year for which a statement required by Title 6 is filed, regardless of when the consideration is to be paid; and
2. which shall include as of the award or execution of a contract or lease, the total consideration committed to be paid under the contract or lease, to the extent ascertainable when awarded or executed, regardless of the period over which payments are to be made.
(8) "Ethics Commission" means the Anne Arundel County Ethics Commission.
(9) "Executive action" means an act for which the Executive Branch of the County government is responsible and that is taken by an employee of that branch.
(10) "Financial interest" means:
(i) ownership of an interest as the result of which the owner has received within the past three years, is currently receiving, or in the future is entitled to receive, more than $1,000 per year; or
(ii) ownership of more than 3% of a business entity by an employee or the spouse of an employee; or
(iii) ownership of securities of any kind that represent or are convertible into ownership of more than 3% of a business entity by an employee or the spouse of an employee.
(11) "Gift" means the transfer of anything of economic value, regardless of form, without adequate and lawful consideration. "Gift" does not include the solicitation, acceptance, receipt, or regulation of a political contribution that is regulated in accordance with the Election Law Article of the State Code, or any other State law regulating the conduct of elections or the receipt of political contributions.
(12) "Governmental unit" means a department, office, agency, commission, board, council, authority, or other body of County government that is established by law.
(13) "Honorarium" means the payment of money or anything of value for speaking to, participating in, or attending a meeting or other function, or writing an article that has been or is intended to be published. "Honorarium" does not include payment for writing a book that has been or is intended to be published.
(14) "Immediate family" means an individual's spouse and dependent children.
(15) "Interest" means a legal or equitable economic interest that is owned or held wholly or partly, jointly or severally, or directly or indirectly, whether or not the economic interest is subject to an encumbrance or a condition. "Interest" does not include:
(i) an interest held in the capacity of agent, custodian, fiduciary, personal representative, or trustee, unless the holder has an equitable interest in the subject matter;
(ii) an interest in a time or demand deposit in a financial institution;
(iii) an interest in an insurance policy, endowment policy, or annuity contract by which an insurer promises to pay a fixed amount of money in a lump sum or periodically for life or a specified period;
(iv) a common trust fund or a trust that forms part of a pension or a profit- sharing plan that has more than 25 participants and is determined by the Internal Revenue Service to be a qualified trust under § 401 or § 501 of the Internal Revenue Code;
(v) except as to the County Executive, a member of the County Council, or a candidate for the Office of County Executive or County Council, an interest in a mutual fund, exchange-traded fund, or similar commingled investment vehicle, the investments of which the employee does not control or manage; or
(vi) an interest in a County pension plan or a County deferred compensation plan.
(16) "Legislative action" means an official action or inaction relating to a bill, resolution, amendment, nomination, appointment, report, or other matter within the jurisdiction of the County Council or to an ordinance or resolution presented to the County Executive for signature or veto. "Legislative action" includes introduction, sponsorship, consideration, debate, amendment, passage, defeat, approval, and veto.
(17) "Lobbying" means performing any act that requires registration under Title 7.
(18) "Lobbyist" means any person who communicates with any employee in the Legislative or Executive Branch of County government for the purpose of influencing any executive action or legislative action, and who, for that purpose:
(i) incurs personally, or through a representative, expenses of $100 or more, or receives $100 or more as compensation, exclusive of personal travel or subsistence expenses, during a reporting period;
(ii) expends cumulatively $50 or more during a reporting period on one or more employees in the Executive or Legislative Branch for meals, beverages, special events, or gifts;
(iii) expends $1,000 or more, including postage, in a reporting period for the express purpose of soliciting others to communicate with any employee to influence any legislative or executive action; or
(iv) spends at least $500 to provide compensation to one or more persons required to register under this article.
(19) "Member of household" means, if sharing an individual's legal residence, the individual's spouse, child, ward, financially dependent parent, or other financially dependent relative; or an individual's spouse, child, ward, parent, or other relative over whose financial affairs the individual has legal or actual control.
(20) "Person" means an individual, partnership, firm, association, corporation, business trust, limited liability company, or other entity of any kind and, except as used in Title 8 with respect to the imposition of criminal penalties, a governmental entity or an instrumentality or unit of a governmental entity.
(21) "Political contribution" means a contribution as defined in the Election Law Article of the State Code.
(22) "Qualifying relative" means a spouse, parent, child, brother, or sister.
(23) “Quasi-governmental entity” means an entity that is created by State or County statute, that performs a public function, and that is supported in whole or in part by the State but is managed privately.
(24) “Relative” means an individual’s spouse, parents, grandparents, great- grandparents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, children, grand-children, and great- grandchildren, and their spouses.
(25) “Respondent” means any person who is the subject of a complaint before the Ethics Commission.
(26) (i) “Usual and customary constituent services” means actions taken by County Councilmembers or their designees on behalf of an Anne Arundel County resident or a business entity that is located in the County or that contributes to the well-being of the County, and includes:
1. requesting information from a governmental agency relating to active or potential legislation or the governmental agency's processes, procedures, or similar matters;
2. providing opinions relating to information received from a governmental agency for the purpose of considering or taking legislative action;
3. scheduling and participating in meetings for purposes of inquiry with a governmental agency, with or without the presence of the resident or business entity;
4. inquiring about an issue on behalf of a resident relating to a governmental agency or a County employee; and
5. writing letters of recommendation for employment or admission to an educational institution.
(ii) For the purposes of this definition, a Councilmember or a Councilmember's designee may not:
1. engage in an action if the Councilmember, a qualifying relative of the Councilmember, or a business associate of the Councilmember has an interest in the matter that is different from that of the public in general;
2. advocate for or represent a resident or business entity in a judicial or quasi-judicial proceeding or communicate with a decision-making employee of a judicial or quasi-judicial body off the record and out of the presence of the parties;
3. directly or indirectly threaten reprisal or promise favoritism for the performance or nonperformance of an employee's duties or request an employee to abuse or exceed the discretion available to that employee under law; or
4. exhibit favoritism for one resident over another in the same or similar circumstances.
(1985 Code, Art. 9, § 1-101) (Bill No. 13-89; Bill No. 95-94; Bill No. 10-96; Bill No. 28-97; Bill No. 115-97; Bill No. 84-01; Bill No. 38-03; Bill No. 23-04; Bill No. 58-05; Bill No. 59-07; Bill No. 70-12; Bill No. 18-17; Bill No. 80-18; Bill No. 93-20; Bill No. 16-23)
State Code reference – General Provisions Article, §§ 5-101, 5-702(a).