Section 2603. Powers and obligations

* a. Rules. The board shall promulgate
  rules as are necessary to implement and interpret the provisions of this
  chapter,  consistent with the goal of providing clear guidance regarding
  prohibited conduct. The board, by rule,  shall  once  every  four  years
  adjust  the  dollar amount established in subdivision sixteen of section
  twenty-six hundred one  of  this  chapter  to  reflect  changes  in  the
  consumer  price  index  for  the metropolitan New York-New Jersey region
  published by the United States bureau of labor statistics.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602
    *  b.  Training  and  education.  1.  The   board   shall   have   the
  responsibility   of   informing  public  servants  and  assisting  their
  understanding of the conflicts of interest provisions of  this  chapter.
  In  fulfilling  this responsibility, the board shall develop educational
  materials regarding the conflicts of  interest  provisions  and  related
  interpretive  rules and shall develop and administer an on-going program
  for the education of public servants regarding the  provisions  of  this
  chapter.
    2.  The  board  shall  provide  training to all individuals who become
  public servants to inform them of the provisions of this chapter,  shall
  assist  agencies in conducting ongoing training programs, and shall make
  information concerning this chapter available and known  to  all  public
  servants.  On  or  before  the  tenth  day after an individual becomes a
  public servant, such public servant must file a written  statement  with
  the  board  that such public servant has read and shall conform with the
  provisions of this chapter.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602
    * c. Advisory opinions. 1. The board shall  render  advisory  opinions
  with respect to all matters covered by this chapter. An advisory opinion
  shall  be  rendered  on the request of a public servant or a supervisory
  official of a public  servant  and  shall  apply  only  to  such  public
  servant.  The request shall be in such form as the board may require and
  shall be signed by the person making the request.  The  opinion  of  the
  board  shall  be  based on such facts as are presented in the request or
  subsequently submitted in a written, signed document.
    2. Advisory opinions shall be issued only  with  respect  to  proposed
  future  conduct  or  action  by a public servant. A public servant whose
  conduct or action is the subject of an advisory  opinion  shall  not  be
  subject  to penalties or sanctions by virtue of acting or failing to act
  due to a reasonable reliance on the opinion, unless material facts  were
  omitted  or misstated in the request for an opinion. The board may amend
  a previously issued advisory opinion after giving reasonable  notice  to
  the  public  servant that it is reconsidering its opinion; provided that
  such amended advisory opinion shall apply  only  to  future  conduct  or
  action of the public servant.
    3.  The  board  shall  make  public  its  advisory  opinions with such
  deletions as may be necessary to prevent disclosure of the indentity  of
  any public servant or other involved party. The advisory opinions of the
  board  shall  be  indexed by subject matter and cross-indexed by charter
  section and rule number and such index shall be maintained on an  annual
  and cumulative basis.
    4. Not later than the first day of September, nineteen hundred ninety,
  the  board  shall initiate a rulemaking to adopt, as interpretive of the
  provisions of this chapter, any advisory opinions of the board of ethics
  constituted pursuant to chapter sixty-eight of the charter heretofore in
  effect, which the board determines to be consistent  with  and  to  have
  interpretive value in construing the provisions of this chapter.
    5.  For  the  purposes  of this subdivision, public servant includes a
  prospective and  former  public  servant,  and  a  supervisory  official

  includes a supervisory official who shall supervise a prospective public
  servant  and  a  supervisory  official  who  supervised  a former public
  servant.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602
    *  d.  Financial  disclosure.  1.  All financial disclosure statements
  required to be completed and filed by public servants pursuant to  state
  or local law shall be filed by such public servants with the board.
    2.  The  board shall cause each statement filed with it to be examined
  to determine if there  has  been  compliance  with  the  applicable  law
  concerning  financial  disclosure  and  to  determine  if there has been
  compliance with or violations of the provisions of this chapter.
    3. The board shall issue rules  concerning  the  filing  of  financial
  disclosure statements for the purpose of ensuring compliance by the city
  and  all  public  servants  with  the applicable provisions of financial
  disclosure law.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602
    e.  Complaints.  1.  The  board  shall  receive  complaints   alleging
  violations of this chapter.
    2. Whenever a written complaint is received by the board, it shall:
    (a)  dismiss  the complaint if it determines that no further action is
  required by the board; or
    (b) refer the  complaint  to  the  commissioner  of  investigation  if
  further investigation is required for the board to determine what action
  is appropriate; or
    (c)  make  an  initial  determination  that there is probable cause to
  believe that a public servant has violated a provision of this  chapter;
  or
    (d)  refer  an  alleged  violation  of this chapter to the head of the
  agency served by the public servant, if the board deems the violation to
  be minor or if related disciplinary  charges  are  pending  against  the
  public servant.
    3.  For  the purposes of this subdivision, a public servant includes a
  former public servant.
    f. Investigations. 1. The board shall have the  power  to  direct  the
  department  of  investigation  to conduct an investigation of any matter
  related  to  the  board's  responsibilities  under  this  chapter.   The
  commissioner   of   investigation   shall,  within  a  reasonable  time,
  investigate any such matter and submit a confidential written report  of
  factual findings to the board.
    2.  The commissioner of investigation shall make a confidential report
  to the board concerning the results of all investigations which  involve
  or  may involve violations of the provisions of this chapter, whether or
  not such investigations were made at the request of the board.
    g. Referral of matters within the board's jurisdiction.  1.  A  public
  servant  or  supervisory official of such public servant may request the
  board to review and make a determination regarding  a  past  or  ongoing
  action  of such public servant. Such request shall be reviewed and acted
  upon by the board in the same manner as  a  complaint  received  by  the
  board under subdivision e of this section.
    2.  Whenever  an  agency  receives a complaint alleging a violation of
  this chapter or determines that a violation of  this  chapter  may  have
  occurred,  it  shall refer such matter to the board. Such referral shall
  be reviewed and acted upon  by  the  board  in  the  same  manner  as  a
  complaint received by the board under subdivision e of this section.
    3.  For  the  purposes  of this subdivision, public servant includes a
  former public servant, and a supervisory official includes a supervisory
  official who supervised a former public servant.

    h. Hearings. 1. If the board makes an initial determination, based  on
  a  complaint, investigation or other information available to the board,
  that there is probable cause to believe  that  the  public  servant  has
  violated  a provision of this chapter, the board shall notify the public
  servant  of  its  determination  in  writing. The notice shall contain a
  statement of the facts upon which the board relied for its determination
  of probable cause and a statement of the  provisions  of  law  allegedly
  violated.  The board shall also inform the public servant of the board's
  procedural rules. Such public servant shall have a  reasonable  time  to
  respond,  either  orally  or  in writing, and shall have the right to be
  represented by counsel or any other person.
    2. If, after receipt of  the  public  servant's  response,  the  board
  determines  that  there is no probable cause to believe that a violation
  has occurred, the board shall dismiss the matter and inform  the  public
  servant  in  writing of its decision. If, after the consideration of the
  response by the public  servant,  the  board  determines  there  remains
  probable  cause  to  believe  that a violation of the provisions of this
  chapter has occurred, the board shall hold or direct  a  hearing  to  be
  held  on the record to determine whether such violation has occurred, or
  shall refer the matter to the appropriate agency if the  public  servant
  is subject to the jurisdiction of any state law or collective bargaining
  agreement  which  provides  for the conduct of disciplinary proceedings,
  provided that when such a matter is referred to an  agency,  the  agency
  shall consult with the board before issuing a final decision.
    3.  If  the board determines, after a hearing or the opportunity for a
  hearing, that a public servant has violated provisions of this  chapter,
  it  shall,  after  consultation  with  the  head of the agency served or
  formerly served by the public servant, or in the case of an agency head,
  with the mayor, issue an order either imposing such  penalties  provided
  for  by  this  chapter  as  it  deems  appropriate, or recommending such
  penalties to the head of the agency served or  formerly  served  by  the
  public  servant,  or  in  the  case  of  an  agency  head, to the mayor;
  provided, however, that the board shall  not  impose  penalties  against
  members of the council, or public servants employed by the council or by
  members  of the council, but may recommend to the council such penalties
  as it deems appropriate. The order shall include findings  of  fact  and
  conclusions  of  law.  When  a  penalty  is recommended, the head of the
  agency or the council shall report to the board what action was taken.
    4. Hearings of the board shall not be public unless requested  by  the
  public servant. The order and the board's findings and conclusions shall
  be made public.
    5.  The  board  shall  maintain an index of all persons found to be in
  violation of this chapter, by name, office and date of order. The  index
  and  the determinations of probable cause and orders in such cases shall
  be made available for public inspection and copying.
    6. Nothing contained in this section  shall  prohibit  the  appointing
  officer  of  a public servant from terminating or otherwise disciplining
  such  public  servant,  where  such  appointing  officer  is   otherwise
  authorized  to  do  so;  provided,  however,  that  such  action  by the
  appointing officer shall not preclude  the  board  from  exercising  its
  powers  and duties under this chapter with respect to the actions of any
  such public servant.
    7. For the purposes of this subdivision, the term public servant shall
  include a former public servant.
    * i. Annual report. The board shall submit an  annual  report  to  the
  mayor  and the council in accordance with section eleven hundred and six
  of this charter. The report shall include a summary of  the  proceedings
  and activities of the board, a description of the education and training

  conducted  pursuant  to  the requirements of this chapter, a statistical
  summary and evaluation of complaints and referrals  received  and  their
  disposition,  such legislative and administrative recommendations as the
  board  deems  appropriate,  the  rules  of  the  board, and the index of
  opinions and orders of that  year.  The  report,  which  shall  be  made
  available  to  the  public,  shall  not  contain  information, which, if
  disclosed, would constitute an unwarranted invasion of the privacy of  a
  public servant.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602
    *  j.  Revision. The board shall review the provisions of this chapter
  and shall recommend to the council from time to  time  such  changes  or
  additions  as  it may consider appropriate or desirable. Such review and
  recommendation shall be made at least once every five years.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602
    * k. Except as  otherwise  provided  in  this  chapter,  the  records,
  reports,  memoranda  and  files  of  the board shall be confidential and
  shall not be subject to public scrutiny.
    * NB Effective upon confirmation of members per § 2602