Reference is made to § 1201(c) of the Charter of the City of Reading.
A. Composition and structure of Board.
(1) Composition. The Board established under § 1201 of the City of Reading Home Rule Charter shall be composed of five residents of the City of Reading.
(2) Terms of service. Members of the Board shall serve for terms of three years, except that members shall continue to serve until their successors are appointed and qualified. The terms of the initial members shall be staggered, with one member serving a term of one year, two members serving for two years, and two members serving for three years.
(3) Vacancy. An individual appointed to fill a vacancy occurring other than by the expiration of a term of office shall be appointed for the unexpired term of the member he/she succeeds and is eligible for appointment thereafter according to the terms herein.
(4) Election of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson. The Board shall elect a Chairperson and a Vice Chairperson annually at a meeting held in July of each year. The Vice Chairperson shall act as chairperson in the absence of the Chairperson or in the event of a vacancy in that position.
(5) Quorum. A majority of the members of the Board shall constitute a quorum and, except as provided in § 5-1009C and D, the votes of a majority of the members present are required for any action or recommendation of the Board.
(6) Staff. The Board shall appoint a Solicitor, a secretary and such other staff as may be deemed necessary. The Solicitor, secretary and such other staff as may be necessarily appointed need not be members of the Board.
(7) Meetings. The Board shall meet at the call of the Chairperson or at the call of a majority of its members.
(8) Investigative Officer. The Board shall appoint an investigating officer as set forth herein. The Board shall, from time to time, determine an amount to be paid as reasonable compensation to the investigating officer as payment for such services. The investigative officer shall be a member in good standing of the Berks County Bar and shall have so been for at least five years. The investigative officer need not be a resident of the City of Reading and shall not be a Board member. The investigating officer is authorized to retain the services of investigators and may only delegate nondiscretionary functions.
(9) Removal of members. Any member may be removed for misconduct or neglect of duty or for other just cause by a majority vote of Council taken after the member has received 15 days' advance notice of the intent to take such vote. Failure of a member to attend three consecutive regular meetings of the Board will constitute grounds for immediate removal from the Board by City Council. Failure of a member to attend at least 50% of the regular meetings of the Board in a calendar year will constitute grounds for immediate removal from the Board by City Council. The Chairperson of the Board shall inform the City Clerk in writing when a member has failed to comply with this attendance policy. Following such notification, City Council may vote to remove the member and seek applicants to fill the vacant position. [Amended 9-27-2010 by Ord. No. 74-2010]
B. Powers and duties. The powers and the duties of the Board of Ethics may be summarized as follows:
(1) Give advice as to the application of the ethics provisions of the Charter of the City of Reading and this Code of Ethics.
(2) Receive and dispose of complaints of violations of the ethics provisions of the Charter and Code of Ethics, and exercise discretion in declining to pursue an investigation if such a course would be in the best interest of the citizens of the City of Reading or where the activity complained of amounts to no more than a de minimis violation.
(3) Appoint an investigating officer to conduct investigations and to issue findings reports where appropriate.
(4) Hold hearings, issue subpoenas and compel the attendance of witnesses, administer oaths, take testimony, require evidence on any matter under investigation before the Board, and issue orders including, but not limited to, those related to adjudications and penalties.
(5) Conduct educational programs to promote the ethical conduct of public officials, City employees, and individuals and groups doing business with the City.
(6) Adopt rules and regulations to administer, implement, enforce and interpret the Code of Ethics.
(7) Annually review the statements of financial interest filed pursuant to § 5-1004 of this Part 10.
C. Prohibitions. Due to their special position, Board members have a higher duty than other public officials to avoid conflicts of interest. Respect for the code can be maintained only if members are models of ethical behavior. The prohibitions in this section are in addition to the duties, responsibilities or obligations imposed upon the Board members as public officials under other provisions of the code.
(1) No member may hold or campaign for any other public office.
(2) No member may hold office in any political party or political organization or political committee.
(3) No member may hold a position of employment or appointment with any municipal government or any board or commission formed by the City of Reading.
(4) No member may actively participate in or contribute to any political campaign in the City of Reading for a candidate running for or from the office of the Mayor, President of Council, Council member, or Auditor. This does not abridge the right of a member of communicating a candidate's platform or position on issues of public concern.
(5) No member shall receive compensation but shall be reimbursed by the City for documented expenses actually incurred.
D. Preservation. Complaints and proceedings pending before the Board at the time this code is adopted shall be preserved insofar as they are consistent with recent orders of the Court of Common Pleas of Berks County. The Board shall take any and all steps necessary to adjudicate all pending complaints so as to comply with said orders, including the establishment of a committee of Board members not previously involved in the disposition of said complaints to adjudicate and dispose of the same. Said committee shall consist of at least three Board members and shall act with the authority of the Board in adjudicating said complaints and instituting penalties and restitution where applicable.