(A) All city employees and elected and appointed officers shall:
(1) Put loyalty to the highest moral principles and to country above loyalty to persons, party, or government department;
(2) Uphold the Constitution, laws, and regulations of the U.S. and of all governments therein and never be a party to their evasion;
(3) Give a full day’s labor for a full day’s pay; giving earnest effort and best thought to the performance of duties;
(4) Seek to find and employ more efficient and economical ways of getting tasks accomplished;
(5) Never discriminate unfairly by the dispensing of special favors or privileges to anyone, whether for remuneration or not; and never accept, for himself or herself or for family members, favors or benefits of such substance as to induce action under circumstances which might be construed by reasonable persons as influencing the performance of governmental duties;
(6) Make no private promises of any kind binding upon the duties of office, since a government employee has no private word which can be binding on public duty;
(7) Engage in no business with the city, either directly or indirectly, which is inconsistent with the conscientious performance of governmental duties or with the City Charter or state law;
(8) Never use any information gained confidentially in the performance of governmental duties as a means of making private profit;
(9) Expose corruption wherever discovered; and
(10) Uphold these principles, ever conscious that public office is a public trust.
(B) Prohibited Acts.
(1) Gratuities.
(a) No city officer, official or employee of the city shall solicit, accept or receive, directly or indirectly, any gift whether in the form of money, service, loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, thing or promise, or in any other form, under circumstances in which it can be reasonably be inferred that the gift is intended to influence him or her in the performance of their official duty/duties or is intended as a reward for any official action on their part.
(b) This section is not intended to cover the following:
1. This section shall not prohibit a city officer, official, candidate or employee from accepting minor gifts such as meals, awards, pens, pencils, and other token items valued at $25 or less when the gift is extended during the course of city business and no return promise is made by the recipient.
2. This section shall not prevent any officer, official or employee from accepting their regular compensation.
3. This section shall not prohibit nor discourage gifts and charitable donations of money, goods or services which are given or donated to, for, or on behalf of the City of Burton or for the public good.
(2) Preferential treatment. No city officer, official or employee of the city shall use or attempt to use their official position to unreasonably secure, request or grant, any privileges, exemptions, advantages, contracts, or preferential treatment for themselves or others.