(A) Disqualifying conflicts of interest.
(1) No officer or employee shall participate in any official action that would constitute a conflict of interest under state statute except as expressly authorized by 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10 or 50 ILCS 105/0.01 et seq. or in division (B) of this section.
(2) No officer or employee shall have a financial interest in any contract, work, or business of the city or in the sale of any article whenever the expense, price, or consideration of the contract, work, business, or sale is paid out of city funds, except as expressly allowed by 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10 or 50 ILCS 105/0.01 et seq. or in division (B) of this section.
(3) No officer or employee shall have a financial interest in the purchase of any city property except as expressly allowed by 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10 or in division (B) of this section.
(4) No officer or employee may take or receive, or offer to take or receive, either directly or indirectly, any money or other thing of value as a gift or bribe or means of influencing his or her vote or action in his or her official character (see 50 ILCS 105/3(a)).
(5) No officer may represent, either as agent or otherwise, any person with respect to any application or bid for any contract or work in regard to which the officer may be called upon to vote except as expressly allowed by 50 ILCS 105/0.01 et seq. or in division (B).
(B) Exceptions to disqualifying conflicts of interest.
(1) The prohibitions set forth in division (A) do not apply to an officer or employee serving on a city advisory board or commission unless the
officer's duties include evaluating, recommending, approving, or voting to recommend or approve the contract, work, or business, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(a).
(2) Notwithstanding the prohibitions set forth in division (A), an officer or employee will not be deemed to have a disqualifying conflict of interest if the city officer or employee is an employee of a company or an owner of 1% or less in a publicly traded company, or both, and the officer or employee: (a) publicly discloses the officer's interest; (b) refrains from participating in the discussion; (c) abstains from voting on the contract; and (d) the contract is approved by a majority of members currently holding office, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(a).
(3) Notwithstanding the prohibitions set forth in division (A), an officer or employee will not be deemed to have a disqualifying conflict of interest if the officer owns or holds an interest of 1% or less in mutual funds in a publicly traded company, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(a).
(4) Notwithstanding the prohibitions set forth in division (A), a City Council member may provide materials, merchandise, property, services, or labor to the city in the circumstances described below in (B)(4)(a), (b), (c) and (d):
(a) If the contract is with a person or business entity in which the City Council member has less than a 7.5% share in the ownership and: (i) the member publicly discloses the interest before or during deliberations; (ii) the member abstains from voting on the contract, the contract is approved by majority vote of the members holding office; (iii) the contract is awarded by sealed bid to the lowest responsible bidder if the contract exceeds $1,500; and (iv) the total contracts awarded to the same person or business entity in the same fiscal year does not exceed $25,000, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(b)(l).
(b) If the contract with a person or business entity in which the City Council member has a financial interest does not exceed $2,000 and: (i) the member publicly discloses the interest before or during deliberations; (ii) the member abstains from voting on the contract; (iii) the contract is approved by majority vote of the members holding office; and (iv) the total contracts awarded to the same person or business entity in the same fiscal year does not exceed $4,000, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(b)(2).
(c) If the contract is with a person or business entity in which the City Council member holds less than a 1% ownership interest and: (i) the member publicly discloses the interest before or during deliberations; (ii) the member abstains from voting on the contract; and (iii) the contract is approved by majority vote of the members holding office, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(b-5).
(d) If the contract is for the procurement of public utility services in which a City Council member is either an officer or employee of the company or holds no more than 7.5% interest, and the utility's rates are approved by the ICC, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(c).
(5) Nothing in this section shall preclude the city from entering into a contract with a financial institution even if a City Council member is an officer or employee of the financial institution or holds less than a 7.5% ownership interest, so long as: (a) the member publicly discloses interest; (b) the member does not participate in the deliberations; and (c) the member does not vote on the contract, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(e).
(6) Notwithstanding the prohibitions set forth in this section, an officer may hold a position on the board of a not-for-profit corporation that is interested in a contract, work, or business of the City in either of the following circumstances, as set forth in 65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10(g)and 50 ILCS 105/10(f):
(a) If the officer is appointed by the City Council to represent the interests of the city on a not-for-profit board, then the officer may actively vote on matters involving that board or the city, at any time, so long as the membership on the board is not a paid position, except that the officer may be reimbursed for expenses incurred as the result of membership on the board.
(b) If the officer is not appointed by the City Council to the not-for-profit board, then the officer may continue to serve; however, the officer must abstain from voting on any matter before the City Council that directly involves the not-for-profit corporation and, for these matters, will not be counted as present for the purposes of a quorum of the City Council.
(Ord. 2019-44, passed 10-21-2019)