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Can professors accept gifts from students?
Gifts from lobbyists, agency contractors or those seeking an agency contract (restricted donors) must be under $10. But the Office of State Ethics has also ruled that excessive gifts from other than restricted donors that are received because of your state position are a "use of one's office" for financial gain and also prohibited. It has ruled that such gifts are excessive if the value is $100 or more. Therefore, faculty may accept a gift from a student valued at up to $100.
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Is a civil union considered a "major life event" under the major life event gift exception?
General Statutes § 46b-38nn provides: "Parties to a civil union shall have all the same benefits, protections and responsibilities under law, whether derived from the general statutes, administrative regulations or court rules, policy, common law or any other source of civil law, as are granted to spouses in a marriage, which is defined as the union of one man and one woman." In light of this provision, the term "major life event," shall also include a civil union.
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Are domestic partners and/or civil unions included in the definition of Family for purposes of the Code of Ethics?
The Office of State Ethics provided this response regarding the above question:
Although the Code of Ethics does not address the issue, General Statutes § 46b-38oo
does. It provides as follows: “Wherever in the general
statutes the terms ‘spouse’, ‘family’, ‘immediate
family’, ‘dependent’, ‘next of kin’ or
any other term that denotes the spousal relationship are used or defined,
a party to a civil union shall be included in such use or definition,
and wherever in the general statutes, except sections 7-45 and 17b-137a,
subdivision (4) of section 45a-727a, and sections 46b-20 to 46b-34, inclusive,
46b-38nn and 46b-150d, the term ‘marriage’ is used or defined,
a civil union shall be included in such use or definition.”
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What is the University's policy on disposal of equipment or supplies after they are no longer useful?
The following is from Inventory Control’s website:
Retirement of Equipment - Pursuant to Public Act 91-256,
the University may transfer or dispose of surplus, unused or unserviceable
equipment. The Director of Purchasing, through the Central Stores
Division, has procedures to accomplish this. In general, a department
notifies the Director of Central Stores when it determines it has items
to be surplused, items that are not being used, or items that are unserviceable.
The Director of Central Stores inspects the items and determines
the disposition. Central Stores has several options to handle this. Central
Stores can try to find other departments at the University to use
the equipment; can transfer the equipment to other state agencies; can
donate the equipment to municipalities and non-profit organizations;
can trade in the equipment; can sell the equipment; or can discard it.
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What is the University's policy regarding communication with the media?
For any communication with the media where an employee's comments would be perceived as being on behalf of the University, permission must be given by University Communications.
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What is the definition of a family member for the purposes of "use of office"?
The Code of Ethics states "no public official or state employee shall use his public office or position or any confidential information received through his holding such public office or position to obtain financial gain for himself, his spouse, child, child's spouse, parent, brother or sister or a business with which he is associated." This definition of family is separate from the definition in Section 1-79(f) of the Code.
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Is it permissible for a Faculty member to accept a teacher discount at a store like Barnes & Noble?
According to the Office of State Ethics, the discount is not targeting any state employee or agency, but rather is being offered to all educators/teachers, regardless of their affiliation. Therefore, it is permissible for faculty members who are educators/teachers to accept the discount offered by Borders or Barnes & Noble.
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Can you disclose yourself as a University employee in a newspaper article you have written?
You may disclose yourself as a University employee for publications in which you have received compensation only when it is part of a biography.
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Does it violate the Code of Ethics to be a member of a State Board (for example, Board of Education)?
The University Guide to the State Code of Ethics states, "Any State employee who is elected to a state political office may not be employed by two branches of the state government simultaneously". State employees who are appointed to a State Board may remain on the Board as long as they are not receiving compensation for the appointment and it is not within the Judicial or Legislative branch of the State.
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May an employee solicit donations for a child's fundraiser?
It is not a violation of the Code of Ethics to raise money for charity, as long as the employee does not personally benefit (i.e. get a commission, etc.). However, it is inappropriate to pressure a subordinate to contribute to the fundraiser.
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If employees pay to attend a department picnic, can a prohibited donor donate items for a raffle?
Even if an employee has contributed money for a department picnic, the gift rules would still apply to any items donated by a prohibited donor.
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Is there a limit on the reimbursement of meals under necessary expenses?
According to the Office of State Ethics, there has never been a set monetary limit on the payment or reimbursement of meal expenses for purposes of the "necessary expenses" provision. However, they did make clear that any expenses under the "necessary expenses" provision must not be excessive or lavish.
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What is the University's policy regarding the use of University funds for the purchase of food for department meetings, etc?
The University’s policy regarding the payment of meals for University
business can be found on the following website:
http://web.uconn.edu/acctpay/pp_meals.html
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Are you required to report payment of "necessary expenses" if payment is being made by the Foundation?
Because the University of Connecticut Foundation is an outside entity and not part of the University, you would need to report any payment or reimbursement of necessary expenses in accordance with the State Ethics Code.
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UITS - Enterprise Systems Training – January 17, 2007:
Can information about gifts we personally receive as University employees be requested under Freedom of Information (FOI)?
Under FOI, individuals or entities may request documents that are prepared, owned, used, received or retained by the University that relate to University business. If you have received the gift in your capacity as a University employee, any documentation you receive, create or maintain about the gift could be subject to the FOI laws. If you do not keep documentation regarding gifts, you are not required to create a document in response to an FOI request. If you receive an FOI request or have any questions regarding FOI, please contact the University's Privacy Officer, Rachel Krinsky Rudnick at (860) 486-4526.
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College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Training – January 9, 2007:
Who is defined as "family" under the State Code of Ethics?
Section 1-79(f) of the Code defines "immediate family" as any spouse, child or dependent relative who resides in the individual's household.
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UITS training – November 27, 2006:
Can a vendor pay the equivalent of one day’s salary, if
you choose to take an unpaid day to speak at a conference?
If you are speaking at a conference and your state position was not
a deciding factor in being asked and you are not attending in an
official University capacity, then the vendor can reimburse for whatever
expenses they would like. This situation would be considered outside
employment, and you should refer to the University’s Consulting
policy as well as any dual employment guidelines.
If you are speaking at conference in your official University capacity,
then you would not have to take a day without pay, therefore reimbursement
would not be necessary or appropriate.
- Student Affairs Training - November 2006
Is it a violation of the Code of Ethics if a state employee holds a Pampered Chef party in their campus residence?
Since the individual could benefit financially from the party (discounts received for being the host) and they may be inviting other University employees, this has an appearance of being a conflict of interest under the State Code of Ethics and should be avoided.
- School of Engineering Training - November 13, 2006
Are adjunct faculty covered under the provisions of the State Code of Ethics regarding contracts with the state?
Since adjunct faculty are paid through special payroll, the provisions in the code which address contracts with the state apply. Specifically, immediate family members of state employees may not be hired as independent contractors through special payroll unless an open and public process has been completed.
Is there a conflict of interest if a faculty inventor invests in the University of Connecticut Research and Development Corporation (UCONN R & D)?
University is currently seeking clarification from the Office of State Ethics on this subject. Please check back later for an update.
Is it a violation of the Code of Ethics to wear a political button at work?
In answering this question, we must remember the balance between the Code of Ethics and our First Amendment rights. You may wear a political button at work; however you may not use state resources to promote a candidate or political party. Also, you cannot imply that you are representing the University in your support of that particular candidate or party.
- FAIT Training - October 3, 2006
Does the “lunch hour” count
as state time?
According to Human Resources, this answer
depends on whether or not the employee is paid or unpaid for
this time. For example,
your normal work schedule is 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and you normally
take 12:00 to 1:00 as your “lunch hour”. Your work
week is designated as 40 hours. You are therefore not paid
for the time you take as a lunch hour, so this is not considered
state time.
As mentioned in the training, if you are doing
work for your own business, etc., you should make sure you are
also not using University property, which includes your office,
computer, telephone, etc.
Are student workers covered by the Code of Conduct?
Students employed on the student labor payroll are not covered
by the Code of Conduct. They are required to follow the
guidelines outlined in the Student Code of Conduct as well as
the professional standards of conduct adopted by their schools. If
a department feels that a student worker has conducted themselves
inappropriately, they may consult with the student employment
area of the Financial Aid Office.
