The residents and businesses of the City of San Bernardino are entitled to have fair, ethical and accountable local government which has earned the public's full confidence for integrity. The City will operate in an open, honest and transparent manner. To this end, the Mayor and City Council of the City of San Bernardino will adhere to the following Code of Conduct to assure public confidence in the integrity of local government, its effective operations, and fair treatment of people.
A. The professional and personal conduct of the Mayor and City Council must be above reproach and avoid the appearance of impropriety. The Mayor and members of the City Council shall refrain from abusive conduct, personal or verbal attacks upon the character or motives of each other, the staff or the public.
B. The Mayor and members of the City Council shall perform their duties in accordance with the procedural rules for meetings, established by them, in governing the deliberation of public policy issues, involvement of the public and the implementation of policy decisions of the Mayor and City Council by City staff.
C. The Mayor and City Council shall prepare themselves for public issues; listen courteously and attentively to all public discussions before the body; and focus on the business at hand. They shall refrain from interrupting other speakers; making personal comments not germane to the business of the body; or otherwise interfering with the orderly conduct of meetings.
D. The Mayor and City Council shall base their decisions on the merits and substance of the matter at hand, rather than on unrelated considerations.
E. The Mayor and City Council shall publicly share substantive information that is relevant to the matter under their consideration, which they may have received from sources outside of the public decision-making process.
F. In order to assure their independence and impartiality on behalf of the common good, the Mayor and City Council shall not use their official positions to influence government decisions in which they have a material financial interest; or where they have an organizational responsibility or personal relationship which may give the appearance of a conflict of interest.
G. The Mayor and City Council shall not take any special advantage of services or opportunities for personal gain, by virtue of their public office that is not available to the public in general. They shall refrain from accepting any gifts, favors or promises of future benefits which might compromise their independence of judgment or action, or give the appearance of being compromised.
H. The Mayor and City Council shall respect the confidentiality of information concerning the property, personnel or affairs of the City. They shall neither disclose confidential information without proper legal authorization, nor use such information to advance their personal, financial or other private interest.
I. The Mayor and City Council shall not use public resources that are not available to the public in general, such as City staff time, equipment, supplies or facilities for private gain or personal purposes.
J. The Mayor and City Council shall refrain from using their position to unduly influence the deliberations or outcomes of commission proceedings.
K. The Mayor and City Council will not divert management from the approved priorities with issues of personal interest or requests for information that may require significant staff resources without the active approval of the majority of the Mayor and City Council. The Council will come to consensus regarding major issues that need further exploration and analysis so as to judiciously give direction to the City Manager and his staff. This language does not prohibit the Mayor, Council Members, City Attorney, or City Clerk, from bringing information forward and discussing it with the City Manager and/or staff.
L When the Mayor and City Council have not taken a position on an issue, neither the Mayor nor any Council Member should speak on behalf of the Mayor and City Council. When presenting their individual opinions and positions, Council Members should explicitly state that they do not represent their body, the City of San Bernardino, nor should they encourage the inference that they do. After a decision is made, the Mayor serves as the spokesperson for the City's view on policy matters; the City Council should speak with "one voice."
M. The Mayor and City Council shall support the maintenance of a positive and constructive work place environment for City employees and for residents and businesses dealing with the City. The Mayor and City Council shall recognize their special role in dealings with City employees and in no way create the perception of inappropriate direction to staff.
N. With respect to communications with the City Manager and staff:
1. Unless it is a simple inquiry, the Mayor or members of the City Council will contact the City Manager before going to Department Heads.
2. When contacting Department Directors through e-mail, the Mayor and Council Members will copy the City Manager as a courtesy.
3. The City Manager will ensure that the Mayor and City Council are proactively informed on major policy issues or issues that may attract media or public attention; likewise, the Mayor and City Council members will give the City Manager notice if he or she learns of issues of concern.
4. The Mayor, City Council, City Manager and staff will not blindside each other in public.
5. Council members are encouraged to submit questions on agenda items to the City Manager as far in advance of the meeting as possible so that staff can be prepared to respond at the meeting.
6. The Mayor and City Council will refer citizen complaints to staff and give them adequate time to respond. Staff will report back to the Council through the City Manager on the resolutions of these complaints.
7. The Mayor and Councilmembers will be provided with information from staff and other members on an equal basis so that they are equally prepared to make good decisions.
(Ord. MC-1438, 4-17-17)