[1]
Charter reference: As to City's authority to adopt a Code of Ethics, see Charter 7.5 (1968).
[Ordinance adopted Mar. 2, 1970]
(a) 
The public judges its government by the way public officials and employees conduct themselves in the posts to which they are elected or appointed.
(b) 
The people have a right to expect that every public official and employee will conduct himself in a manner that will tend to preserve public confidence in and respect for the government he represents.
(c) 
Such confidence and respect can best be promoted if every public official and employee, whether paid or unpaid, and whether elected or appointed, will uniformly:
(1) 
Treat all citizens with courtesy, impartiality, fairness and equality under the law; and,
(2) 
Avoid both actual and potential conflicts between their private self-interest and the public interest.
(d) 
To help public officials and employees achieve these goals is one of the objectives of the Code of Ethics.
(e) 
The otter objective is based on the proposition that no man can serve two masters, nor should he attempt to do so. Therefore, this Code of Ethics proposes to relieve him of the impossible task of judging himself. Instead, under the provisions of the Charter, this Code places judgment in the hands of the Council which will review the facts and measure them by the yardstick of public morality established by this Code.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
The terms used in this Code of Ethics are hereby defined as follows:
(a) 
Financial interest. Any interest which shall yield, directly or indirectly, a monetary or other material benefit (other than the duly authorized salary or compensation for his services to the City) to the official or employee or to any person employing or retaining the services of the official or employee.
(b) 
Official or employee. Any person elected or appointed to, or employed or retained by, any public office or public body of the municipality whether paid or unpaid and whether part-time or full-time.
(c) 
Personal interest. Any interest arising from blood or marriage relationships or from close business or political association whether or not any financial interest is involved.
(d) 
Public body. Any agency, board, body, commission, committee, department or office of the City.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
No official or employee shall grant or make available to any person any consideration, treatment, advantage or favor beyond that which it is the general practice to grant or make available to the public at large.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970 as amended by MC 1985-20, § 1, November 18, 1985]
(a) 
No official or employee shall request, use, or permit, the use of any publicly-owned or publicly-supported property, vehicle, equipment, labor or service for personal convenience or the private advantage of himself or any other person. This rule shall not be deemed to prohibit an official or employee from requesting, using or permitting the use of such publicly-owned or publicly-supported property, vehicle, equipment, material, labor or service which is the general practice to make available to the public at large or which is provided as a matter of stated public policy for the use of officials and employees in the conduct of official business.
(b) 
All publicly-owned or publicly-supported vehicles and/or equipment shall be identified by the placement of the official City of Plainfield logos on the doors and/or trunk or such other location on such vehicles and/or equipment so as to make, at all times, said official logos visible to the public. At no time, while such vehicles and/or equipment are the property of the City of Plainfield, shall the official logos be removed, except to replace same where such action is required due to ordinary wear and tear, vandalism, or some other cause unrelated to official action. Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent removal of the official City logos where said vehicles and/or equipment are sold or otherwise disposed of by and with the written approval of the City Council of the City of Plainfield.
(c) 
It shall hereafter be required that all publicly-owned or publicly-supported vehicles and/or equipment be further identified by official State of New Jersey municipal license plates, duly purchased and placed on the front and rear of such vehicles and/or equipment where appropriate for the lawful use of same. Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent the removal of said official State of New Jersey municipal license plates where said vehicles and/or equipment is sold or otherwise disposed of by and with the written approval of the City Council of the City of Plainfield.
(d) 
All officials and employees who, after a proper request and approval, make use of any publicly-owned or publicly-supported vehicle and/or equipment shall, before such use, document to the appropriate City official or employee permitting use of same, the mileage indicated on the vehicle and/or equipment odometer or other instrument used to indicate mileage, and upon the return of such vehicle and/or equipment, document and record the mileage then indicated. Every such person shall further be required before the approved use of such vehicles and/or equipment, to list, in addition to the mileage as hereinbefore set out, the name of such official or employee, and purpose of the usage of such vehicle and/or equipment, the time such vehicle and/or equipment is taken out and the time of return.
(e) 
The City Administrator or his designee shall maintain complete records of the use of all publicly-owned or publicly-supported vehicles and/or equipment consistent with this section. It shall further be required that all records and information maintained pursuant to this section shall be provided to the City Council or any member thereof upon request.
(f) 
Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent publicly-owned or publicly-supported vehicles and/or equipment designated for official police undercover work or other special police assignment to be subject to any requirement relating to the placement of official City of Plainfield logos and/or New Jersey municipal license plates. However, in all other respects, such police vehicles shall be subject to the remaining provisions contained herein.
(g) 
The City Council of the City of Plainfield may, upon the request of the Mayor or his designee, waive any provision contained herein upon the showing of good cause and public interest. Any such waiver by the City Council shall be memorialized by resolution setting out the waiver, reasons therefor, time period for any such waiver, and other pertinent conditions deemed appropriate by the Council. Nothing herein shall be construed to permit any waiver for the private use of any publicly-owned or publicly-supported vehicle and/or equipment by any official or employee of the City of Plainfield.
(h) 
Any official and/or employee found to have violated this section, after notice and an opportunity to be heard, may be subject to disciplinary action pursuant to the appropriate State Statute(s), Civil Service Regulation(s), Plainfield Municipal Code, or other relevant regulatory guidelines.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
No official or employee, either on his own behalf or on behalf of any other person, shall, unless otherwise permitted by law, have any financial or personal interest in any business or transaction with any public body in the City.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
Whenever the performance of his official duties shall require any official or employee to deliberate, vote or take action on any matter involving his financial or personal interest, he shall publicly disclose the nature and extent of such interest and disqualify himself from participating in the deliberation as well as in the voting, unless otherwise permitted by law so to act, as stated in an opinion of the Corporation Counsel.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
No official or employee shall engage in private employment with, or render services for, any private person who has business transactions with any public body of the City unless he shall first make public disclosure of the nature and extent of such employment or services.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
No official or employee shall accept any gift, whether in the form of money, thing, favor, loan or promise, that would not be offered or given to him if he were not an official or employee.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
(a) 
No official or employee shall, without prior formal authorization of the public body having jurisdiction, disclose any confidential information concerning any other official or employee, or any other person, or any property or governmental affairs of the City.
(b) 
Whether or not it shall involve disclosure, no official or employee shall use or permit the use of any such confidential information to advance the financial or personal interest of himself or any other person.
[Ordinance adopted March 2, 1970]
In the event that the Council shall, under the provisions of Section 2.8 of the Charter, make a determination that the conduct of any official or employee was improper, it may, based upon written findings, conclusions and determinations, censure, suspend or remove the official or employee from office.