ELECTED OFFICIAL PAYMENT APPROVAL AUTHORIZATION
Binding City Policy
BCP-ADM-16.01
PURPOSE
Section 1. The Council finds:
1. State ethics laws restrict public officials' acceptance of gifts from sources with a legislative or administrative interest. Gifts of reasonable travel, food and lodging expenses are exempt from the restrictions, if the gifts are for officially designated negotiations or economic development activity or for officially sanctioned trade promotion or fact finding missions or trips.
2. Under the state administrative rules that were in effect until March 5, 2010, individual elected officials, including local elected officials, could authorize their own expenses for officially designated negotiations or economic development activity or for officially sanctioned trade promotion or fact finding missions or trips.
3. Under the state administrative rules adopted by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission on March 5, 2010, only specified local elected officials, not including city council members or auditors, may authorize their own expenses for officially designated negotiations or economic development activity or for officially sanctioned trade promotion or fact finding missions or trips.
4. The administrative rules provide that payment of expenses for local city council members and auditors must be approved by the governing body unless the governing body authorizes specified persons to provide that approval.
POLICY
NOW, THEREFORE, the Council directs:
a. Each elected official of the City of Portland is authorized to officially sanction trade-promotion and fact-finding missions and trips, to officially designate negotiations and economic development activities, and to approve acceptance of payment for his or her own reasonable expenses for officially designated or officially sanctioned activities.
b. This ordinance is binding city policy.
Section 2. The Council declares that an emergency exists because administrative rules affecting the ability of elected officials to approve their own expenses have already gone into effect and this ordinance is needed to ensure compliance with the administrative rules; therefore, this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage by the Council.
HISTORY
Emergency Ordinance No. 183698, passed by City Council and effective April 21, 2010.