For purposes of this Chapter, "gift" is defined as follows:
GIFT: A. A rendering of money, property, services, granting a discount, loan forgiveness, payment of indebtedness, or anything else of value in return for which legal consideration of equal or greater value is not given and received, if the donor is in any of the following categories:
1. Is doing or seeking to do business of any kind with the City. For purposes of this Chapter, "doing business with the City" means being a party to any one or any combination of sales, purchases, leases, or contracts to, from, or with the City.
2. Is engaged in activities which are regulated or controlled by the City.
3. Has interests which may be substantially and materially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the recipient's official duty.
4. Is a lobbyist with respect to matters within the recipient's jurisdiction.
B. However, "gift" does not mean any of the following:
1. Campaign contributions.
2. Informational material relevant to a public servant's official functions, such as books, pamphlets, reports, documents, or periodicals, and registration fees or tuition not including travel or lodging, for not more than three (3) days, at seminars or other public meetings conducted in this State, at which the public servant received information relevant to the public servant's official functions. Information or participation received under the exclusion of this paragraph may be applied to satisfy a continuing education requirement of the recipient's regulated occupation or profession if the recipient pays any registration costs exceeding thirty five dollars ($35.00).
3. Anything received from a person related within the fourth degree by kinship or marriage, unless the donor is acting as an agent or intermediary for another person not so related.
4. Any inheritance.
5. Anything available to or distributed to the public generally without regard to official status of the recipient.
6. Food, beverages, registration, and scheduled entertainment at group events to which all members of either house or both houses of the General Assembly are invited. "Member of the General Assembly" means an individual duly elected to the Senate or House of Representatives of the State of Iowa.
7. Actual expenses for food, beverages, travel, lodging, registration, and scheduled entertainment of the recipient for a meeting, which is given in return for participation in a panel or speaking engagement at the meeting.
8. Plaques or items of negligible resale value given as recognition for public services.
C. The value of the gift is determined as follows:
1. An individual making a gift on behalf of more than one person shall not divide the value of the gift by the number of persons on whose behalf the gift was made.
2. The value of a gift to the recipient is the value actually received.
3. For the purposes of the reporting requirements of this Chapter, a donor of a gift made by more than one individual to one or more recipients shall report the gift if the total value of the gift to the recipient exceeds fifteen dollars ($15.00). (Ord. 88-8, 11-7-1988; 1996 Code)