(A) For purposes of this section,
OFFICER shall mean:
(1) Any members of any board or commission of the city;
(2) Any appointed official if the city official:
(a) Serves on a board or commission which spends and administers its own funds; and
(b) Is dealing with a contract made by the board or commission.
(3) Any elected city official. Unless specified otherwise, volunteer firefighters and ambulance drivers shall not be considered officers for purposes of this section, with respect to their duties as firefighters and ambulance drivers.
(B) No officer of the city shall be permitted to benefit from any contract to which the city is a party. The existence of an interest in any contract renders the contract voidable by decree of a court of competent jurisdiction as to any person who entered into the contract or took assignment thereof with actual knowledge of the prohibited conflict. An action to have a contract declared void under this section may be brought by the city or by any resident thereof and must be brought within one year after the contract is signed or assigned. Any decree may provide for the reimbursement of any person for the reasonable value of all money, goods, material, labor, or services furnished under the contract, to the extent that the city has benefitted thereby.
(C) The prohibition in this section shall apply only when the officer, or his or her parent, spouse, or child:
(1) Has a business with which the individual is associated, or business association, which shall mean a business:
(a) In which the individual is a partner, director, or officer; or
(b) In which the individual or a member of the individual's immediate family is a stockholder of closed corporation stock worth $1,000 or more at fair market value or which represents more than 5% equity interest, or is a stockholder of publicly-traded stock worth $10,000 or more at fair market value or which represents more than 10% equity interest.
(2) Will receive a direct pecuniary fee or commission as a result of the contract; provided however, the officer shall not be deemed to have an interest within the meaning of this section if the officer:
(a) Is an employee of the business involved in the contract; and
(b) Has no ownership interest or will not receive a pecuniary fee.
(D) The provisions of this section shall not apply if the interested officer:
(1) Makes a declaration on the record to the governmental body responsible for approving the contract regarding the nature and extent of his or her interest, prior to official consideration of the contract;
(2) Does not vote on the matter of granting the contract, except that if the number of members of the board declaring an interest in the contract would prevent the board, with all members present, from securing a quorum on the issue, then all members may vote on the matter; and
(3) Does not act for the city as to inspection or performance under the contract in which he or she has an interest.
(E) The receiving of deposits, cashing of checks, and buying and selling of warrants and bonds of indebtedness of any city by a financial institution shall not be considered a contract under the provisions of this section. The ownership of less than 5% of the outstanding shares of a corporation shall not constitute an interest within the meaning of this section. Notwithstanding the provisions of division (D), above, if an officer's parent, spouse or child is an employee of the city, the officer may vote on all issues of the contract which are generally applicable to all employees or all employees within a classification and do not single out his or her parent, spouse, or child for special action. If an officer has the power to employ personnel and he or she hires his or her parent, spouse, or child, the officer shall disclose the hiring pursuant to divisions (F)(1)(a) through (e) below, except that if the parent, spouse, or child is already employed in the position at the time the officer takes office and the position does not change, no disclosure need be made. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any contract entered into with an interested officer shall be subject to applicable competitive bidding requirements and shall be fair and reasonable to the city.
(F) (1) The City Clerk shall maintain, separately from other records, a ledger containing the information listed in divisions (F)(1)(a) through (e) below about every contract entered into by the city in which an officer has an interest as specified above for which disclosure is made as provided in division (D) above. Such information shall be kept in the ledger for five years from the date of the officer's last day in office and shall include the:
(a) Names of the contracting parties;
(b) Nature of the interest of the officer in question;
(c) Date that the contract was approved by the city involved;
(d) Amount of the contract; and
(e) Basic terms of the contract.
(2) The information supplied relative to the contract shall be provided to the Clerk not later than ten days after the contract has been signed by both parties. The ledger kept by the Clerk shall be available for public inspection during the normal working hours of the office in which it is kept.
(G) An open account established for the benefit of any city or entity thereof, with a business in which an officer has an interest, shall be deemed a contract subject to the provisions of this section. The statement required to be filed pursuant to this section shall be filed within ten days after such account is open. Thereafter, the Clerk shall maintain a running account of all amounts purchased on the open account. Purchases made from petty cash or a petty cash fund shall not be subject to the provisions of this section.
(H) Any officer who knowingly violates the provisions of this section or Neb. RS 49-14,103.01 through 49-14,103.03, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to the penalty for the violation as set out in § 30.999 of this chapter.
(I) The city may enact ordinances exempting from the provisions of this section, contracts involving $100 or less in which an officer of the city may have an interest. No officer, including volunteer firefighters and ambulance drivers, shall receive any pay or perquisites from the city other than his or her salary. The governing body shall not pay or appropriate any money or other valuable thing to pay a person who is not an officer for the performance of any act, service, or duty which shall come within the proper scope of the duties of any officer of the city.
(Prior Code, § 1-1003) (Ord. 1709, passed 10-3-1983; Ord. 1754, passed 10-1-1984; Ord. 1817, passed 2-2-1987)
Statutory reference:
Similar state law provisions, see Neb. RS 18-305 through 18-312, 49-14,103.03, 70-624.04