§ 2-68. Disqualification for conflict of interest

(a) The conflict of interest code shall apply to members of the city council and members of city commissions and boards established and appointed by city council or by law. Except as provided in subsection (c), the definitions contained in the Political Reform Act of 1974 (Government Code Section 81000 et seq.; hereinafter referred to as the "act"), the regulations and any amendments to the act or regulations, shall be incorporated herein by this reference.

(b) The members of city council and members of city commissions and boards established and appointed by city council or by law are public officials that are deemed to make, or participate in making, decisions which may foreseeably have a material effect on a financial interest.

(c) For purposes of this section, a financial interest as defined by the act shall also include an indirect investment or interest which means any investment or interest owned by a public official's spouse, children, parent, brother, or sister, or by an agent on behalf of a public official, or by a business entity or trust in which the public official, the public official's agents, spouse, children, parent, brother, or sister own directly, indirectly, or beneficially a ten (10) per cent interest or greater.

(d) In the event the city attorney is requested by a member of city council, or a member of city commissions or boards established and appointed by city council or by law, to render an opinion upon the question of such public official's disqualification from making, or participating in making, of decisions which may foreseeably have a material effect on a financial interest, the city attorney, in his or her discretion, may, render a written opinion upon such question.

(e) Any council member, or member of city commissions or boards established and appointed by city council or by law, who is disqualified from voting on a particular matter by reason of a conflict of interest shall publicly state or have the presiding officer or city attorney state the nature of such disqualification in the open council, or commission or board meeting. Where no clearly disqualifying conflict of interest appears, the matter of disqualification may, at the request of the council member affected, be decided by other council members or by the city attorney. A council member who is disqualified by reason of a conflict of interest in any matter shall comply with the provisions of California Government Code Section 87105 as may be amended from time to time regarding the conduct of a council member with a conflict of interest.

(f) As provided in the act (G.C. Section 87101), this section does not prevent any public official from making or participating in the making of a governmental decision to the extent his/her participation is legally required for the action or decision to be made. The fact that an official's vote is needed to break a tie does not make his/her participation legally required for purposes of this subsection.

(g) For purposes of this section, a financial interest as defined by the act shall also include any campaign contribution of two hundred fifty ($250.00) or more from a contributor or the agent of a contributor in the twelve-month interval prior to the date on which the decision involving the contributor is to be made. No city council member shall accept, solicit, or direct a contribution of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) or more from any party or his or her agent, while a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other entitlement for use is pending before city council and for three (3) months following the date a final decision is rendered in the proceeding if the council member knows or has reason to know that the participant has a financial interest, as that term is used in the Political Reform Act of 1974, as amended (Article 1, Chapter 7, commencing with Section 87100 of the California Government Code).

(Code 1960, § 2231; Ord. No. 72-38, § 2, 10-16-72; Ord. No. 90-9, § 2, 7-16-90; Ord. No. 91-21, § 2, 8-20-91; Ord. No. 05-1, §§ 1, 2, 1-18-05 )

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Conflict of interest generally, § 2-401 et seq.

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At the city's instruction, subsection (g) was added to § 2-68 following approval of Ballot Measure V by the voters at the general election held Nov. 6, 1990, the results of which were certified to by Resolution 90-86, adopted Dec. 3, 1990.