03-E Hist Pres.Comm. (10/14/02) - Laserfiche WebLink

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October 14, 2002 Page 15 of 35 can begin to think about your closest relatives and that is what we are talking about. If a matter comes before the Building and Standards Commission and if a member of the commission son, brother, etc. then that matter is a matter that may trigger this depending on the legal interest involved with regard to the property interest. If you have this circumstance then your responsibility is set out in 171.004. If you have a substantial interest in a business entity or in real property, your first obligation is to file before a vote or decision on that matter is made, an affidavit stating the nature and extent of that business interest, and secondly to abstain from further participation in the matter if in the case of substantial interest in the matter the action will have a special economic effect on the business entity that is distinguishable from the effect on the public. I don't know how you determine that. So my best advice to you with regard to the remainder of these standards is if you have an interest stay away from it. File your affidavit and abstain. That is what we have in part alternates and the sooner that you realize that you have this conflict the better it is to notify the appropriate staff inember. When you get your agenda, immediately screen that agenda and determine if there is any item on there that may constitute a conflict of interest. And abstaining from further participation means not that you just abstain from the vote. It means you don't participate in the deliberation of that item. You don't discuss; you don't ask; you do not participate. I think that is primarily the substance of the statutory conflict of interest language. The second category, you recall, that I mention was city charter and that is under VI. I said City Charter provisions likewise prohibit city officers from having a financial interest, direct or indirect, any contract with the city in the sale of land, materials, supplies and services to the city, etc. etc. How this is applied to this board or commission may be on an individualized basis that we may have to consider at the time that the potential conflict occurs but you will see sections 132 of the Charter that I have put in and recommend to you for your review, that has to do with personal interests. Section 133 is probably not going to directly apply, although it infers no direct gifts. Although it only restricts in the language to gifts from a public utility corporation enjoying a franchise. 134 deals with relatives of employees. 135 persons indebted to the city. 136 has to do with the oath that you received today. I recommend those materials to you for your review. Finally, the last category of conflict of interest is what is called Common Law. You will find a provision in State Law that I have given you that says that State Law preempts Common Law conflict of interest. I have never really found a substantive interpretation of that. I think what it means is that in the case of conflict at law under the Common Law and conflict of law as described in a statute that the statutory provision will control the instance of the direct conflict. Otherwise, I think Common Law is still alive. So what that means is, a much more vague concept. But again I think it goes back to the issue of what is fair. As an example, a council member must be expected to listen to constituents about what matter may come before a council