Chapter Four –Legal Matters (Cont.)
conflict of interest, the PRA may require the official to disqualify himself or herself from making or participating in a government decision, or using his or her official position to influence a government decision. What is a Conflict of Interest? The Political Reform Act of 1974, which is codified as Government Code Section 87100 et seq., provides that no public official at any level of State or local government shall make, participate in making, or in any way attempt to use the public official’s position to influence a governmental decision in which the official knows or has reason to know the official has a financial interest. A public official has a financial interest in a decision within the meaning of Section 87100 of the PRA if it is reasonably foreseeable that the decision will have a material financial effect, distinguishable from its effect on the public generally, on the official, a member of the official’s immediate family or on any of the following: 1) Any business entity in which the public official has a direct or indirect investment worth two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) or more. 2) Any real property in which the public official has a direct or indirect investment worth two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) or more. 3) Any source of income, except gifts and other loans by a commercial lending institution made in the regular course of business on terms available to the public without regard to official status aggregating five hundred dollars ($500) or more in value provided, or promised to, received by, the public official within 12 months prior to the time when the decision is made. 4) Any business entity in which the public official is a director, officer, partner, trustee, employee, or holds any position of management. 5) Any donor, or any intermediary or agent for a donor of, a gift or gifts aggregating two hundred fifty ($250) or more in value provided to, received by, or promised to the public official within 12 months prior to the time when the decision is made. The amount of the value of gifts specified by this subdivision shall be adjusted biennially by the commission to equal the same amount determined by the commission pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 89503. For purposes of Section 87100, indirect investment or interest means any investment or interest owned by the spouse or dependent child of a public official, by an agent on behalf of a public official, or by a business entity or trust in which the official, the official’s agents, spouse, and dependent children own (directly, indirectly, or beneficially) a ten percent (10%) interest or greater.
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