Town officials and employees must exercise their
official duties solely in the public interest and must avoid conflicts
of interest or the appearance of conflicts of interests to the greatest
extent possible.
Town officers and employees shall not knowingly
acquire, solicit, negotiate for or accept any interest, employment
or other thing of value which would put them in violation of this
Code of Ethics.
[Amended 3-23-2021 by L.L. No. 5-2021]
A. A
Town officer or employee shall not use his or her official position
or office, or take or fail to take any action, in a manner which he
or she knows or has reason to know may result in compensation for
any of the following persons:
(1) The Town officer or employee.
(2) His or her outside employer or business or that of a member of his
or her household.
(3) A member of his or her household.
B. Consultants.
(1) Except as provided in Subsection
B(2),
(3) and
(4) below, to avoid potential conflicts of interest, a Town consultant shall not appear on behalf of any other client before the Town or any agency thereof during the period of service to the Town by the consultant. The Town shall specify the restriction in any written contracts entered into between the Town and consultants. However, failure of the contract to state the restriction shall not affect the enforcement of this section of the Town's Ethics Code.
(2) The restrictions contained in this chapter shall not apply to consultants
which:
(a)
Operate a business located within the Town and have been retained
by the Town to perform a contract valued at $25,000 or less; or
(b)
Have a written contract with the Town in which the Town Board
has expressly authorized an exemption for the consultant from the
provisions of the Town's Ethics Code; or
(c)
Have received a special waiver from the Town's Ethics Board pursuant to Subsection
B(4) of this section.
(3) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit a consultant
from:
(a)
Appearing on his own behalf, or on behalf of the Town, before
a Town agency.
(b)
Seeking or obtaining a ministerial act from an administrative
officer; or
(c)
Receiving a Town service or benefit, or using a Town facility,
on the same terms on which such service, benefit or facility is available
to the public.
(4) Special waiver. A consultant may make appearances before Town agencies
otherwise prohibited by this section, upon written approval of the
Ethics Board and the consent of the involved Town agencies. The Ethics
Board shall consider such approval on a case-by-case basis taking
into account for such findings the following criteria:
(a)
The general expertise of the consultant.
(b)
The expertise of the consultant vis a vis the particular matter.
(c)
The extent of the consultant's involvement both for the
Town and for the private client(s).
(d)
The extent of the fees, past or future, to be paid to the consultant
by the Town.
(e)
The impact such appearances may have on the public trust.
(f)
The statement of necessity from the involved Town agency.
(g)
Such findings shall be detailed in writing by the Ethics Board
and filed with the office of the Town Clerk.
A Town officer or employee shall promptly recuse himself or herself from voting, advising or otherwise taking discretionary action on a matter before the Town when acting on the matter or failing to act on the matter may financially benefit any of the persons listed in §
26-5 of this chapter.
Whenever a Town officer or employee is required
to recuse himself or herself under this Code of Ethics:
A. He or she shall promptly inform his or her superior,
if any.
B. A member of a board shall state the general nature
and extent of the conflict of interest upon the public record of the
board.
C. He or she shall immediately refrain from participating
further in the matter.
No Town official or employee or member of any
official or employee's family shall, directly or indirectly, solicit,
accept or receive any gift under circumstances from which it could
reasonably be inferred that the gift was intended to influence him
or her in the performance of his or her official duties or was intended
as a reward for any official action on his or her part.
[Amended 2-3-2004 by L.L. No. 5-2004]
A Town officer or employee or any relative (as defined in §
26-2) of a Town Board member shall not appear before or exert influence over any board or department of the Town, except on his or her own behalf or on behalf of the Town.
Town officers and employees and former Town
officers and employees shall not disclose any confidential information
or use it to further anyone's personal interests.
[Added 3-23-2021 by L.L.
No. 5-2021]
A. No person shall engage in any political activities on any Town premises
at any time. Such prohibited activities include but are not limited
to the following:
(1) Sales or purchases of tickets to political events.
(2) Discussion of tickets to political events.
(3) Solicitation to join a political party or activity.
(4) Discussion of promotions or transfers or changes of assignments or
compensation on the basis of any political considerations.
(5) Solicitation of funds or goods or services for political purposes.
(6) Use of Town taxpayer-funded equipment, computers, internet, email,
telephones and supplies for political activity.
B. No person having supervisory control or who is superior in title
to any official or employee of the Town shall engage in any of the
following actions with subordinates at any time on or off Town premises:
(1) Discussion of or solicitation of ticket purchases or sales.
(2) Solicitation to join a political party or political activity.
(3) Use of political considerations in discussing duties, positions,
compensation, changes in titles or work assignments.
(4) Use of political considerations as the reason for promotions, assignment
changes, demotions or termination.
[Added 2-3-2004 by L.L. No. 5-2004; 3-23-2021 by L.L.
No. 5-2021]
No elected official or member of the Town Board, Planning Board,
Zoning Board of Appeals, Board of Ethics, Board of Assessment Review
or the Town Attorney shall be a committeeman or committeewoman, alternate
committeeperson, or the officer of a political party committee.
[Amended 2-3-2004 by L.L. No. 5-2004]
A Town officer or employee shall not appear
or practice before the Town as to particular matters on which the
Town officer or employee personally worked while in Town service,
unless acting in response to a request by the appropriate official
for the sole purpose of providing information. A Town officer or employee
shall not appear or practice before the board or department in which
he or she previously served, except on his or her own behalf, for
a period of two years after the termination of his or her municipal
service or employment. Nothing herein shall prohibit the Town itself
from retaining the services of a former Town officer or employee or
a firm or corporation in which such former Town officer or employee
currently is employed.
A Town officer or employee shall not induce
or aid another officer or employee of the Town to violate any of the
provisions of this Code of Ethics.
[Amended 3-23-2021 by L.L. No. 4-2021]
The provisions of Article
II shall not prohibit or require recusal as a result of the following:
A. An action specifically authorized by statute, rule or regulation
of the Town of Southold, the State of New York or of the United States.
C. Gifts:
(1) Received by the Town officer or employee from his or her parent,
spouse or child.
(2) Having an aggregate value of $500 or less during any twelve-month
period.
(3) Accepted on behalf of the Town and transferred to the Town.
D. Gifts or benefits having a value of $100 or less that are received
by a Town officer or employee listed in § 11 of the Domestic
Relations Law for the solemnization of a marriage by that officer
or employee at a place other than his or her normal place of business
or at a time other than his or her normal hours of business.
E. Awards from charitable organizations.
F. Receipt of Town services or benefits or use of Town facilities that
are generally available on the same terms and conditions to residents
or a class of residents in the Town.
G. Representation of constituents by elected officials without compensation
in matters of public advocacy.
H. Members of the Historic Preservation Commission, that hold professional
licenses, appearing on behalf of and/or representing others before
Town boards, commissions, committees, or departments, provided that
the subject matter of the appearance or representation is not also
within the jurisdiction of the Historic Preservation Commission.