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County Counsel recommending the Board review and approve the revised Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) conflict of interest code.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Approve.
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Fiscal Impact/Change to Net County Cost: None
Background: The State Political Reform Act, Government Code §81000 et seq., contains several sections dealing with conflicts of interest of public officials, including a prohibition on participating in a decision in which the official has a financial interest, a requirement that the official disclose certain economic interests, and a prohibition on receiving gifts and honoraria. Government Code §87300 requires that each local public entity adopt its own local conflict of interest code, which must contain certain specified provisions, including a designation of specific employment positions with the public entity that make decisions which may have an effect on economic interests, and a description of the type of economic interest each designated employee must disclose on his or her statement of economic interest. In order to simplify the process for local public entities, state law permits a local public entity to adopt a particular state regulation, Title 2, California Code of Regulations (2 CCR) §18730, as its conflict of interest code, and attach to it an appendix of designated employees plus an appendix of disclosure categories for each of the designated employees. The incorporation of the state regulation into a local code means that the code is automatically updated if the regulation is changed in the future.
Local public entities must submit their conflict of interest code to a designated “code reviewing body” for review and approval. Government Code §82011(b) designates the county Board of Supervisors as the code reviewing body for local public entities which operate wholly within the boundaries of the county. The Board of Supervisors must therefore review local agencies’ conflict of interest codes after they are adopted. ...
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