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Boston Overview
City of Boston Municipal Code
CITY OF BOSTON CODE OF ORDINANCES
THE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF BOSTON
CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS
CHAPTER II: FORM OF GOVERNMENT
CHAPTER III: ACQUISITION AND DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY
CHAPTER IV: CONTRACTS
CHAPTER V: ADMINISTRATION
5-1 ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DEPARTMENT.
5-2 ART COMMISSION.
5-3 PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION.
5-4 DEPARTMENT OF FEDERALLY FUNDED AGENCIES.
5-5 BOARDS, DEPARTMENTS: OFFICERS, SUBORDINATES AND EMPLOYEES.
5-5.1 Acceptance of Office.
5-5.2 Residency and Voting Requirements for Certain Officers.
5-5.3 Residency Requirement.
5-5.4 Selection Process for Applicant for Provisional or Temporary Positions.
5-5.5 Suspension of Employees; Order of Suspension.
5-5.6 Bonds of Officers and Subordinates.
5-5.7 Personal Liability of Auditor and/or Collector-Treasurer.
5-5.8 Bonds Not Required by Statute or Ordinance.
5-5.9 Allowance of Premium as Expense.
5-5.10 Salary Categories for Certain Offices.
5-5.10A Boston Compensation Advisory Board.
5-5.11 Provisions Regarding Holdovers.
5-5.12 County Officers.
5-5.13 Temporary Officers.
5-5.14 Vacation and Other Absence.
5-5.15 Boards to Organize First Monday of May.
5-5.16 Office Hours.
5-5.17 Records of Acts and Doings of Departments.
5-5.18 Employment, Compensation and Tenure of Subordinates.
5-5.19 Reimbursement of Legal Expenses to City Employees Incurred Within the Scope of Employment.
5-5.20 Paid Parental Leave for City Employees.
5-5.21 To Expend Gifts as Directed.
5-5.22 Personal Property Not Required by Department.
5-5.23 Inspection and Certificate by Weigher.
5-5.24 Printing and Office Supplies.
5-5.25 Settlement of Claims.
5-5.26 Fees and the Like Received for Services.
5-5.27 Bills and Demands Sent to Auditor.
5-5.28 Certification by City Auditor.
5-5.29 Pay Rolls.
5-5.30 Conditions in License of Permits.
5-5.31 Subordinate Acting Temporarily for Officer.
5-5.32 Mandatory Referral of Capital Improvements.
5-5.33 Estimates of Appropriations and Income.
5-5.34 Annual Reports of Departments.
5-5.35 Notice of Illness of Inmates of Public Institutions.
5-5.36 Equal Opportunity Policy.
5-5.37 Public Access to Computerized Information.
5-5.38 Public Information Officer; Prohibition of.
5-5.39 Comparable Worth Commission.
5-5.40 Notification of Employees Regarding Municipal Ethics Laws.
5-5.41 Reporting Requirements to the City Retirement Board.
5-5.42 Gender Identity Nondiscrimination in Health Care Coverage for City Employees.
5-6 PENSIONS, RETIREMENT ALLOWANCES AND ANNUITIES.
5-7 BOSTON RETIREMENT BOARD.
5-8 LAW DEPARTMENT.
5-9 BOSTON CULTURAL COUNCIL.
5-10 RESIDENCY COMPLIANCE.
CHAPTER VI: GENERAL SERVICES
CHAPTER VII: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
CHAPTER VIII: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER IX: BUILDING REGULATIONS
CHAPTER X: HOUSING SERVICES
CHAPTER XI: PUBLIC SERVICES
CHAPTER XII: PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
CHAPTER XIII: NATURAL GAS
CHAPTER XIV: LICENSING AND CONSUMER BOARDS, COMMITTEES AND OFFICERS
CHAPTER XV: DIVISIONS OF THE MAYOR’S OFFICE
CHAPTER XVI: PROHIBITIONS, PENALTIES AND PERMITS
CHAPTER XVII: LICENSES AND REGULATIONS AFFECTING CERTAIN TRADES
CHAPTER XVIII: FEES AND CHARGES
CHAPTER XIX: SCHOOLS
CHAPTER XX: CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS
CHAPTER XXI: MISCELLANEOUS PUBLIC BUILDINGS
CHAPTER XXII: SUFFOLK COUNTY
CHAPTER XXIII: TRASH AND REFUSE DISPOSAL
CHAPTER XXIV: BOSTON JOBS, LIVING WAGE AND PREVAILING WAGE ORDINANCE
PARALLEL REFERENCES
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5-5.18   Employment, Compensation and Tenure of Subordinates.
   Every Officer in charge of a Department shall to the best of his or her ability cause all statutes, ordinances, regulations and orders relating to the duties of his or her Department to be observed and enforced, and subject to the Civil Service laws and rules, when applicable, shall employ, fix the compensation of and may discharge for such cause as he or she shall deem sufficient and cause to be recorded in the records of his or her Department, all subordinates in this Department; [provided, however, that none but citizens shall be employed in any capacity except that alien physicians and nurses may be employed in a hospital or other health care institution under the charge of the Board of Health and Hospitals;] and provided further, that no emergency, provisional, temporary, intermittent, permanent or other appointment, transfer or promotion nor any reinstatement except upon the expiration of a suspension or a valid leave of absence, nor any increase in the compensation, nor any change in the title or rating, of any subordinate shall take effect until approved in writing by the Director of Administrative Services except in cases where the Mayor by a writing orders otherwise. The Director of Administrative Services shall file each day with the Mayor a copy of all approvals given by him or her on the preceding day under this Section.
(Ord. 1953 c. 8 § 5; Ord. 1969 c. 5; Ord. 1972 c. 20 § 2; Rev. Ord. 1961 (Sup. 1971) c. 3 § 12; CBC 1975 Ord. T5 § 112; CBC 1985 5-5.18)
Editor’s note:
   The bracketed portion is unconstitutional Sugarman v. Dougall, 413 U.S. 634; 93 S.Ct. 2842 (1973).
5-5.19   Reimbursement of Legal Expenses to City Employees Incurred Within the Scope of Employment.
   (A)   No city employee shall be represented by the Corporation Counsel nor shall any City Agency make any payment for legal services to such city employee, except in matters arising within the scope of the employee’s duties as a city employee.
   (B)   No City Agency shall make any payment for legal services rendered to a city employee by private counsel in connection with any criminal or administrative proceeding or investigation arising from an alleged violation of the law by such employee; provided that if such employee is fully exonerated or such proceedings or investigation is terminated without findings or action against such employee, and the matter arose within the scope of the employee’s duties as a city employee, the cost of such legal services may be reimbursed by the city upon approval of the Corporation Counsel.
   (C)   This Section shall not apply to employees of law enforcement Departments within the city and/or Suffolk County.
   (D)   Any employee who seeks payment from the city for legal expenses incurred in a criminal matter shall post a bond equal to the amount of the payments or shall offer collateral sufficient to secure the amount of the payments made by the city. This is to ensure that the city can recover the amount it has paid for legal services should the employee not be fully exonerated.
(Ord. 1982 c. 34 §§ 1-4; CBC 1985 5-5.19)
5-5.20   Paid Parental Leave for City Employees.
   (A)   The city shall implement paid parental leave for all of its exempt female and male employees and all other employees covered by collective bargaining agreements whose agreements explicitly provide for this benefit for the employee, for the purpose of caring for his or her newborn or newly adopted child or children. This leave shall apply equally to parents regardless of gender, as well as to same-sex couples, in the event of a natural birth by any method, adoption, surrogacy and loss of pregnancy. Employees who have worked for the city for a minimum of one year are eligible for the full duration of paid parental leave.
   (B)   The paid parental leave shall be up to 12 weeks long, and may be taken by day or week anytime during the first year after the birth or adoption of the child or children. The leave period is fixed regardless of the number of children born or adopted by the employee. During the leave period, the employee shall be paid 100% of his or her base wages for the first four weeks, 75% of his or her base wages for the following four weeks and 50% of base wages for the remaining four weeks. Employees shall be eligible to use any accrued leave in order to receive compensation up to 100% of base pay during the weeks reimbursed at the rates of 75% and 50%. This paid leave will occur concurrently with and count towards the following leaves for which the employee may be eligible: the federally mandated 12 weeks of Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”, being 29 U.S.C. §§ 2611 et seq.) leave, eight weeks of Massachusetts Parental Leave Act (“MPLA”, being M.G.L. Chapter 149, Section 105D, and M.G.L. Chapter 151B, Section 4(11A)) leave and up to 12 months of unpaid leave due to childbirth, adoption or loss of pregnancy offered by the city.
   (C)   The number of paid parental leave periods employees may take is unlimited over the duration of their employment with the city, but employees are only eligible for one 12-week paid leave per birth, adoption or loss of pregnancy.
   (D)   If both parents work for the city, each is entitled to a 12-week leave period as described in division (B) above and they may take their parental leave periods concurrently, subsequently or in any other combination they wish.
   (E)   The Director of Human Resources for the city shall have full authority to issue policies relative to paid parental leave benefits offered pursuant to this Section for any purpose, including, but not limited to, notification requirements for employees requesting leave, employee eligibility and documentation requirements for births, adoptions or loss of pregnancy.
(Ord. 1984 c. 36; CBC 1985 5-5.20; Ord. 2015 c. 3; Ord. 2021 c. 10 § 1)
5-5.21   To Expend Gifts as Directed.
   Every Officer in charge of a Department shall expend any contribution, payment, gift, devise or bequest in accordance with the directions attached thereto.
(Rev. Ord. 1961 c. 3 § 13; CBC 1975 Ord. T5 § 113; CBC 1985 5-5.21)
5-5.22   Personal Property Not Required by Department.
   If the Officer in charge of any Department shall at any time have the care, custody and management of any personal property belonging to the city which is not required for the purposes of such Department, he or she shall by a writing executed in triplicate, one copy of which shall be retained by him or her, one copy filed with the City Auditor and one copy delivered to the Purchasing Agent transfer the care, custody and management of such personal property to the Purchasing Agent, who, if such personal property is required for the purposes of another Department, shall by a writing executed in like manner transfer the care, custody and management thereof to the Officer in charge of such Department and, if such personal property is not so required and he or she estimates the value thereof not to exceed $500, may, with the written approval of the Mayor lease, sell or otherwise dispose of same at such time, for such price and in such manner as he or she shall adjudge most advantageous to the city.
(Ord. 1953 c. 8 § 6; Rev. Ord. 1961 c. 3 § 14; CBC 1975 Ord. T5 § 114; CBC 1985 5-5.22)
5-5.23   Inspection and Certificate by Weigher.
   Every Officer, except the Commissioner of Public Works, when contracting for, or accepting delivery of, fuel, or stone, gravel, sand or ballast from a vessel, shall require that it be weighed and inspected by a duly authorized weigher or measurer, and that the bill therefor shall be accompanied by the certificate of such weigher or measurer.
(Ord. 1954 c. 2 § 10; Rev. Ord. 1961 c. 3 § 15; CBC 1975 Ord. T5 § 115; CBC 1985 5-5.23)
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