(a) City Attorney Opinion. Any board, board member, officer or employee of the City may request the City Attorney to render an opinion concerning the obligation of the board, board member, officer (other than a member of the Council), or employee under applicable laws to refrain from voting or acting upon any matter, contract, sale or transaction to which the board, board member, officer or employee may be a party, or concerning any situation where it would violate state law or where it may not be in the public interest for the board, board member, officer or employee to act in a particular matter, contract, sale or transaction. Likewise, any elected City officer may request an opinion with respect to any board member.
If the City Attorney receives such a request, the City Attorney shall render a written opinion. If the request is made by an elected City officer concerning a board member, the opinion shall be rendered within ten days of the City Attorney’s receipt of the request; provided, however, that if the City Attorney determines that the request does not contain sufficient information upon which to render an opinion, the City Attorney shall notify the person making the request, and the time within which the City Attorney must render the opinion shall not commence until that information has been provided to the City Attorney.
(b) Transfer to the Board of Referred Powers. If the City Attorney renders an opinion concluding that the board, board member, officer or employee is disqualified from acting under applicable law, or that it is not in the public interest for the board, board member, officer or employee to act in the matter, contract, sale or transaction involved, the board, board member, officer or employee shall be disqualified from acting on or in any way attempting to influence action on the matter. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the matter shall be transferred for action to the Board of Referred Powers, which is hereby created. In the event that one or more members of a board, but less than a quorum, are disqualified from acting pursuant to the opinion of the City Attorney, the member or members so disqualified shall not act on the matter, but the matter shall not be transferred to the Board of Referred Powers. If state law makes it unlawful for the board to act in the matter by reason of the disqualification of one or more members, the matter shall be transferred for action to the Board of Referred Powers.
Unless a transfer is prohibited by applicable state law, the Board of Referred Powers is vested with the same power to act upon any matter, contract, sale or transaction transferred to it with the same force and effect as if acted upon by the board, officer or employee from whom the matter, contract, sale or transaction was transferred. The Council shall provide by ordinance for all matters relating to number of members, appointment and functioning of the Board of Referred Powers and the procedure applicable in referring matters to it for its determination.