STATE ETHICS LAW As employees of a state-supported institution, all employees of the University of North Alabama are subject to applicable Alabama state ethics laws. Below are highlights of some of the provisions that are applicable to UNA employees. The Ethics Commission website provides detailed information on all guidelines contained in the Ethics Act. Visit the website at: http://ethics.alabama.gov/ 1. Legal Duty to File Statement of Economic Interest Ala. Code § 36-25-14 requires all full-time public employees whose base pay is $97,000 or higher, and/or every full-time public employee serving as a supervisor to file a Statement of Economic Interests no later than April 30. Each person who meets the necessary criteria, regardless of whether they retired the previous year or served/worked in the public position for any time (even a portion of one day) during the previous year, is required to file. The duty of an employee to comply with the Ethics Act, including the duty to file the Statement of Economic Interests, rests with the employee, not UNA. Employees who are required to file but fail to timely file a Statement of Economic Interests with the Ethics Commission may be fined $10.00 per day not to exceed $1,000.00 or be charged with a Class A misdemeanor for intentional failure to file [Ala. Code§6-25-14(d) & (e)]. 2. UNA Requirement to Timely Provide Proof of Training to Human Resources UNA requires all new employees to complete the ethics training (regardless of salary level). It is each new employee’s responsibility to complete the training within 90 days of your hire date. You must print the certificate after you complete your training and email a copy of it to humanresources@una.edu. The training is online at: http://www.ethics.alabama.gov/training/ 3. Criminal Act to Use Position for Personal Financial Gain/Rules for Contracts with UNA It is a violation of the State Ethics Code (felony or misdemeanor, depending on facts) for a UNA employee to use his/her position with UNA to obtain personal gain for himself/herself, a family member or any business with which the employee is associated. UNA/state property, including equipment, technology, supplies, tools, and building materials are to be used for conducting official business of UNA. As such, private or personal use of UNA/state property for personal gain is prohibited. Faculty and staff shall not make use of property, personnel, or students of UNA for the purpose of obtaining personal compensation from sources external to UNA or use the University’s name in a way that would suggest that a personal activity or endeavor is sponsored or endorsed by UNA. (See Alabama Code § 36-25-5). Ala. Code §36-25-11 prevents any public official or public employee, or members of their households, or any businesses associated with these people from entering into a contract that will be paid for using government funds unless the contract has been awarded through a competitive bid process. The contract must then be filed with the Ethics Commission within ten (10) days of its execution. 4. More Information on Amendments to Ethics Act & Gifts to Public Employees Employees are prohibited from soliciting or accepting any of the following “things of value” for the purpose of influencing official action: any gift, benefit, favor, service, gratuity, tickets or passes to an entertainment, social or sporting event, unsecured loan, other than those loans and forbearances made in the ordinary course of business, reward,
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