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Amending Chapter 20-600 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Standards of Conduct and Ethics,” including Section 20-607, entitled “Conflict of Interest,” and Section 20-610, entitled “Statement of Financial Interests,” to regulate and restrict the receipt of outside income, under certain terms and conditions.
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THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA HEREBY ORDAINS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 20-600 of The Philadelphia Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
CHAPTER 20-600. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT AND ETHICS
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§ 20-607. Conflict of Interest.
(1) Unless there is public disclosure and disqualification as provided for in Section 20-608 hereof, no member of Council, or other City officer or employee shall be financially interested in any legislation including ordinances and resolutions, award, contract, lease, case, claim, decision, decree or judgment made by him in his official capacity, or by any board or body of which he is a member nor shall any financial interest be held by a parent, spouse, Life Partner, child, brother, sister or like relative-in-law, or by any person, firm, partnership, corporation, business association, trustee or straw party for his or her benefit, nor shall a member of Council or other City officer or employee be a purchaser at any sale or vendor at any purchase made by him in his official capacity. This latter prohibition shall apply so as to prevent a parent, spouse, child, brother, sister or like relative-in-law or any person, firm, partnership, corporation, business association, trustee or straw party from being such purchaser or vendor for or on behalf of the member of City Council, City officer or employee.
(1.1) The fact that others may have similar financial interests by engaging in similar business activity, owning similar investments, or otherwise, shall not obviate a conflict of interest for a member of Council unless that similarity is so substantially widespread as to either substantially eliminate the concerns underlying this Section or make application of this Section impractical.
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(4) Outside employment. No member of Council shall engage in any activity, other than the official’s City responsibilities, that produces for the member earned income in excess of $25,000 in any twelve-month period.
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§ 20-610. Statement of Financial Interests.
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(2) The statement of financial interests filed pursuant to this Section shall be signed under penalty of perjury and include the following information for the prior calendar year with regard to the filer:
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(e) The name of any person who is the direct or indirect source of income totaling in the aggregate five hundred dollars ($500) or more. Any filer whose salary is paid out of the City Treasury, not including members of boards and commission who receive compensation on a per-meeting basis, shall additionally report the amount of income received from any direct or indirect source of income totaling more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), and, if the filer is a member of Council, a statement of the filer’s duties with respect to such income or the nature of the filer’s investment that produced such income, in sufficient detail to determine what conflicts of interest, if any, may arise out of such income. Election not to receive a salary that is fixed by Charter or ordinance shall not relieve a filer from their obligations pursuant to this subsection. However, this subsection shall not be construed to require the divulgence of confidential information protected by statute or existing professional codes of ethics.
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SECTION 2. Effective date. This Ordinance shall be effective immediately, except that the addition of subsection (4) to Section 20-607 of The Philadelphia Code shall be effective January 1, 2024.
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