ADOPTED: March 11,
1986
REVISED: June 15,
1999
REVISED April 12,
2005
Palos
Community Consolidated School District 118
2:105
School Board
Ethics and Gift Ban
Definitions
Unless otherwise stated, all terms used in this policy
have the definition given in the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, 5ILCS
430/1-5.
With respect to an employee whose hours are not fixed,
“compensated time” includes any period of time when the employee is on premises
under the control of the District and any other time when the employee is
executing his or her official duties, regardless of location.
Prohibited Political Activity
“Prohibited political activity” means:
1.
Preparing for, organizing, or participating in any political meeting,
political rally, political demonstration, or other political event.
2.
Soliciting contributions, including but not limited to the purchase of,
selling, distributing, or receiving payment for tickets for any political
fundraiser, political meeting, or other political event.
3.
Soliciting, planning the solicitation of, or preparing any document or
report regarding anything of value intended as a campaign contribution.
4.
Planning, conducting, or participating in a public opinion poll in
connection with a campaign for elective office or on behalf of a political
organization for political purposes or for or against any referendum question.
5.
Surveying or gathering information from potential or actual voters in an
election to determine probable vote outcome in connection with a campaign for
elective office or on behalf of a political organization for political purposes
or for or against any referendum question.
6.
Assisting at the polls on Election Day on behalf of any political
organization or candidate for elective office or for or against any referendum
question.
7.
Soliciting votes on behalf of a candidate for elective office or a
political organization or for or against any referendum question or helping in
an effort to get voters to the polls.
8.
Initiating for circulation, preparing, circulating, reviewing, or filing
any petition on behalf of a candidate for elective office or for or against any
referendum question.
9.
Making contributions on behalf of any candidate for elective office in
that capacity or in connection with a campaign for elective office.
10.
Preparing or reviewing responses to candidate questionnaires.
11.
Distributing, preparing for distribution, or mailing campaign literature,
campaign signs, or other campaign material on behalf of any candidate for
elective office or for or against any referendum question.
12.
Campaigning for any elective office or for or against any referendum
question.
13.
Managing or working on a campaign for elective office or for or against
any referendum question.
14.
Serving as a delegate, alternate, or proxy to a political party
convention.
15.
Participating in any recount or challenge to the outcome of any election.
No employee shall
intentionally perform any prohibited political activity during any compensated
time. No Board Member or employee shall intentionally use any property or
resources of the District in connection with any prohibited political activity.
At no time shall any Board Member or employee intentionally require any other
Board Member or employee to perform any prohibited political activity: (a) as
part of the Board Member’s or employee’s duties, (b) as a condition of
employment, or (c) during any compensated time off, i.e., as holidays, vacation
or personal time off. No Board Member or employee shall be required at any time
to participate in any prohibited political activity in consideration for that
Board Member or employee being awarded additional compensation or any benefit,
whether in the form of a salary adjustment, bonus, compensatory time off,
continued employment or otherwise, nor shall any Board Member or employee be
awarded additional compensation or any benefit in consideration for his or her
participation in any prohibited political activity.
A Board Member or employee may
engage in activities that: (1) are otherwise appropriate as part of his or her
official duties, or (2) are undertaken by the individual on a voluntary basis
that are not prohibited by this policy.
Limitations on Receiving
Gifts
“Prohibited source” means any
person or entity who:
1.
Is seeking official action by: (a) a Board Member, or (b) an employee,
or by the Board Member or another employee directing that employee;
2.
Does business or seeks to do business with: (a) the Board Member, or (b)
with an employee, or with the Board Member or another employee directing that
employee;
3.
Conducts activities regulated by: (a) the Board Member, or (b) by an
employee or by the Board Member or another employee directing that employee; or
4.
Has an interest that may be substantially affected by the performance or
non- performance of the official duties of the Board Member or employee.
“Gift” means any gratuity,
discount, entertainment, hospitality, loan, forbearance, or other tangible or
intangible item having monetary value including, but not limited to, cash, food
and drink, and honoraria for speaking engagements related to or attributable to
government employment or the official position of a Board Member or employee.
Except as permitted by this
policy, no Board Member or District employee, and no spouse of or immediate
family member living with any Board Member or employee (collectively referred to
herein as “recipients”), shall intentionally solicit or accept any gift from any
prohibited sources, as defined herein, or that is otherwise prohibited by law or
policy. No prohibited sources shall intentionally offer or make a gift that
violates this policy.
The following are exceptions to
the ban on accepting gifts from a prohibited source:
1.
Opportunities, benefits, and services that are available on the same
conditions as for the general public.
2.
Anything for which the Board Member or employee, or his or her spouse or
immediate family member, pays the fair market value.
3.
Any: (a) contribution that is lawfully made under the Election Code, or
(b) activities associated with a fund-raising event in support of a political
organization or candidate.
4.
Educational materials and missions.
5.
Travel expenses for a meeting to discuss business.
6.
A gift from a relative, meaning those people related to the individual as
father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, great aunt, great
uncle, first cousin, nephew, niece, husband, wife, grandfather, grandmother,
grandson, granddaughter, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law,
daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, stepmother, stepson,
stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, and including
the father, mother, grandfather, or grandmother of the individual’s spouse and
the individual’s fiancé or fiancée.
7.
Anything provided by an individual on the basis of a personal friendship
unless the recipient has reason to believe that, under the circumstances, the
gift was provided because of the official position or employment of the
recipient or his or her spouse or immediate family member and not because of the
personal friendship. In determining whether a gift is provided on the basis of
personal friendship, the recipient shall consider the circumstances under which
the gift was offered, such as: (a) the history of the relationship between the
individual giving the gift and the recipient of the gift, including any previous
exchange of gifts between those individuals; (b) whether to the actual knowledge
of the recipient the individual who gave the gift personally paid for the gift
or sought a tax deduction or business reimbursement for the gift; and (c)
whether to the actual knowledge of the recipient the individual who gave the
gift also at the same time gave the same or similar gifts to other Board Members
or employees, or their spouses or immediate family members.
8.
Food or refreshments not exceeding $75 per person in value on a single
calendar day; provided that the food or refreshments are: (a) consumed on the
premises from which they were purchased or prepared; or (b) catered. “Catered”
means food or refreshments that are purchased ready to consume which are
delivered by any means.
9.
Food, refreshments, lodging, transportation, and other benefits resulting
from outside business or employment activities (or outside activities that are
not connected to the official duties of a Board Member or employee), if the
benefits have not been offered or enhanced because of the official position or
employment of the Board Member or employee, and are customarily provided to
others in similar circumstances.
10.
Intra-governmental and inter-governmental gifts. “Intra-governmental
gift” means any gift given to a Board Member or employee from another Board
Member or employee, and “inter-governmental gift” means any gift given to a
Board Member or employee by an officer or employee of another governmental
entity.
11.
Bequests, inheritances, and other transfers at death.
12.
Any item or items from any one prohibited source during any calendar year
having a cumulative total value of less than $100.
Each of the listed exceptions
is mutually exclusive and independent of every other.
A Board Member or employee, his
or her spouse or an immediate family member living with the Board Member or
employee, does not violate this policy if the recipient promptly takes
reasonable action to return a gift from a prohibited source to its source or
gives the gift or an amount equal to its value to an appropriate charity that is
exempt from income taxation under Section 501 c (3) of the Internal Revenue
Code.
Ethics Advisor
The Superintendent
shall appoint an Ethics Advisor for the School District. The Ethics Advisor
shall provide guidance to the Board Members and School District employees
concerning the interpretation of and compliance with this policy and State
ethics laws.
Filing Complaints
Written complaints
alleging a violation of this policy shall be filed with the Superintendent or
School Board President.
Ethics Commission
In order to
effectively manage the receipt of complaints concerning violations of this
policy, as soon as possible after a complaint is filed, the Superintendent shall
appoint a 3-member Ethics Commission. If the Superintendent is the subject of
the complaint, the School Board President shall perform this duty. Commission
members may be any District resident, except that no person shall be appointed
who is related, either by blood or by marriage, up to the degree of the first
cousin, to the person who is the subject of the compliant.
At the Commission’s
first meeting, the Commissioners shall choose a chairperson from their number.
Meetings shall be held at the call of the chairperson or any 2 Commissioners. A
quorum shall consist of 2 Commissioners, and official action by the Commission
shall require the affirmative vote of 2 members. The Commission shall have the
following powers and/or duties:
1.
To adopt procedures and timelines to manage a complaint and determine the
complaint’s disposition.
2.
To investigate a complaint and receive information pertaining to it.
3.
To hold a meeting, upon not less than 48 hours’ public notice, with the
complaining party and the person accused of violating the policy for the purpose
of determining the complaint’s disposition. Both parties shall be given the
opportunity to provide information concerning the complaint. The meeting may be
closed to the public to the extent authorized by the Open Meetings Act.
4.
To request the assistance of an attorney.
5.
To issue recommendations for disciplinary actions and/or refer violations
to the appropriate State’s Attorney for prosecution. The Commission shall,
however, act only upon the receipt of a written complaint alleging a violation
of this policy and not upon its own prerogative.
6.
The powers and duties of the Commission are limited to matters clearly
within the purview of this policy.
If the
Commission finds it more likely than not that the allegations in a complaint
charging a Board Member or employee with violating this policy are true, it
shall notify the appropriate State’s Attorney and/or recommend disciplinary
action for an employee. If the complaint is deemed not sufficient, the
Commission shall send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice to
the parties of the decision to dismiss the complaint.
LEGAL
REF.: 5 ILCS 430/1-1, et. seq.
ADOPTED:
REVISED: April 12, 2005
