All city officials and employees, as herein defined, shall be subject to and abide by the following standards of conduct:
(A) Interest in contract or agreement. No official or employee, as herein defined, shall have or thereafter:
(1) Acquire an interest in any contract or agreement with the city;
(2) Derive a direct benefit from contracts or agreements they are involved in making or administering;
(3) Attempt to influence any other person who is responsible for making or administering a contract or agreement from which the city official or employee derives a direct benefit; or
(4) Solicit or receive any gift, reward or promise of reward in exchange for recommending, influencing or attempting to influence the award of a contract or agreement by the city.
(B) Use of official position. No city official or employee shall use his or her official position or the city’s facilities for his or her private gain or to facilitate hobbies, community, civic or other volunteer interests, nor shall he or she appear before or represent any private person, group or interest before any department, agency, commission or board of the city, except in matters of purely civic or public concern.
(C) Disclosure of information. No city official or employee shall use or disclose confidential information gained in the course of or by reason of his or her official position for purposes of advancing:
(1) His or her financial or personal interest;
(2) Business entity of which he or she is an owner, in part of or in whole, an officer or a director; or
(3) The financial or personal interest of a member of his or her immediate household or that of any other person.
(D) Incompatible service. No city official or employee shall engage in, or accept private employment or render service, for private interest when such employment or service is incompatible with the proper discharge of his or her official duties or would tend to impair his or her independence of judgment or action in the performance of his or her official duties, unless otherwise permitted by law and unless disclosure is as provided in this subchapter.
(E) Gifts. No city official or employee shall directly or indirectly solicit any gift; or accept or receive any gift having a value of $25 or more, whether in the form of money, services, loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, thing or promise, or any other form, under circumstances in which it could reasonably be inferred that the gift was intended to influence him or her, or could reasonably be expected to influence him or her, in the performance of his or her official duties, or was intended as a reward for any official action on his or her part. Legitimate political contributions shall not be considered as gifts under the provisions of this division (E). For the purpose of this section, gifts over $25 from any source in a calendar year shall not be permitted.
(F) Special treatment. No city official or employee shall grant any special consideration, treatment or advantage to any citizen beyond that which is available to every other citizen.
(2005 Code, § 2-112) (Ord. passed 10-21-1991; Ord. passed 1-6-1992; Ord. 2014-04-01, passed 4-28-2014)