1-43 Gifts to elected officials

Sec. 1-43. Gifts to elected officials.

(a) The purpose of this section is to avoid special influence by those who give gifts to city council members.

(b) Except when acceptance is permitted by subparagraph (d) of this section, it shall be a violation of this code of ethics for any elected official, or any member of their immediate family to solicit or to accept any gift from a donor, or from a lobbyist or representative of a client if:

(1) The elected official is in a position to take direct official action with regard to the donor or client; or

(2) The city has an existing, ongoing, or pending contract, business, or regulatory relationship with the donor or client.

(1) Any money, property, service, or thing of value that is given to a person without adequate and lawful compensation;

(2) Any honoraria or payment for participation in an event;

(3) Any loan of goods, equipment, or other items that is not available to the general public on the same terms and conditions;

(4) Any loan of money that is not available to the general public at the same interest rate and the same conditions;

(5) Any ticket to a sporting, recreational, or cultural event except as provided for in subsection (d)(4) of this section;

(6) Travel expenses and lodging;

(7) Any reduction in price or any discount that is not similarly available to the general public or everyone similarly situated on the same terms;

(8) Parking passes, except as provided for in subsection (d)(4) of this section; and

(9) Meals, except as provided for in subsection (d)(4) of this section.

(d) An elected official, or any member of their immediate family, may accept the following even if the elected official is in a position to take direct official action with regard to the donor or, if the donor is a lobbyist or representative, the donor's client:

(1) Gifts from other elected officials and their immediate family members on appropriate, special occasions;

(2) Campaign contributions as permitted by law;

(3) Non-pecuniary awards that are publicly presented by an organization in recognition of public service if the award is not extraordinary when viewed in light of the position held by the recipient;

(4) The donation of meals, tickets to events for which admission is charged, or free or reduced price admission to events for which a fee is charged, but only under the following conditions:

a. The value of any meals, tickets, or free or reduced price admissions accepted from the same donor in any calendar year shall not exceed $300.00 and shall be subject to the reporting requirements set forth in article III of this chapter. This amount shall be adjusted by an amount based upon the percentage change over a four-year period in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index for Denver-Boulder-Greeley, all items, all consumers, or its successor index, rounded to the nearest lower dollar. The first adjustment shall be done in the first quarter of 2024 and then every four years thereafter;

b. A donation from an employee of a business or entity shall be counted as a gift from the business or entity;

c. The individual or entity which pays for the meal, ticket, or admission shall be considered the donor for purposes of this subsection regardless of whether that individual or entity is reimbursed for the cost;

d. Attendance must be reasonably related to the official or ceremonial duties of the elected official;

e. The donation of parking for the meal or event shall be allowed on the same terms and conditions;

f. Elected officials may accept the donations of meals regardless of the annual cap on the value of such meals set forth in subparagraph a. of this subsection (d)(4) and without the need to report the donation under article III of this chapter if such meal is provided to all attendees at a public meeting and consumed while the meeting is in progress, including, by way of example, "working lunches," or is provided to all members of any governmental, civic, or non-profit board of which the elected official is a member and consumed in conjunction with any meeting of the board;

g. Elected officials may accept donations of tickets or free admissions to events, regardless of the annual cap on the value of such donations set forth in subparagraph a. of this subsection (d)(4) if such ticket or free admission is to a charitable event, as long as the ticket or free admission is offered directly by and at the expense of the charitable or other non-profit entity hosting the event and not directly or indirectly offered by any sponsor of the event or other donor to which the gift restriction set forth in this section applies;

h. Elected officials shall report the value of the meal or food provided at an event rather than the value of the seat at the table or what the entity paid for the table and/or sponsorship. If the actual cost cannot be ascertained, but it is reasonable to assume that the cost exceeds $300.00, the elected official shall report the circumstances on the required report without an exact monetary value.

(5) Unsolicited items of trivial value. For purposes of this subsection, "items of trivial value" means items or services with a value of $300.00 or less, such as inexpensive tee shirts, pens, calendars, books, flowers, or other similar items, not including cash or gift cards;

(6) Gifts while visiting other cities, counties, states, or countries or hosting visitors from other cities, counties, states, or countries when it would be a breach of protocol to refuse the gift;

(7) Reasonable expenses paid by non-profit organizations or other governments for attendance at a convention, factfinding mission or trip, or other meeting if the person is scheduled to deliver a speech, make a presentation, participate on a panel, or represent the City in an official capacity reasonably related to the recipient's employment by the City;

(8) Gifts on special and infrequent occasions if the gift is appropriate to the occasion. These occasions include weddings, funerals, and illnesses;

(9) Gifts to commemorate a public event in which the elected official participated in an official capacity, provided that the gift is appropriate to the occasion. Such occasions include groundbreaking ceremonies and grand openings;

(10) Memberships and passes from city recreational and cultural facilities;

(11) Gifts from family members;

(12) Items which are similarly available to the general public on the same terms and conditions.

(e) It shall not be a violation of this article for an elected official to solicit or accept donations to the City or to solicit, accept, or redirect donations for charitable purposes to a 501(c)(3) or other charitable organization or to provide assistance to individuals affected by illness, crime or disaster or who have educational or other charitable needs, provided, however, that:

(1) The elected official soliciting the donation, or a member of the such elected official's immediate family does not keep or use the donation or receive any monetary benefit therefrom; and

(2) It cannot reasonably be inferred that the donation was intended to influence the elected official in the performance of his or her duties.

(f) It shall not be a violation of this article for a member of an elected official's immediate family to accept a gift which arises from an independent relationship of an adult member, if:

(1) The elected official does not use the gift; and

(2) It cannot reasonably be inferred that the gift was intended to influence the elected official in the performance of his or her duties. (Ord. No. 2019-51, § 1, 8-19-2019)