OR 90-474 Conflicts of Intrest AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF COPPELL, TEXAS
ORDINANCE NO. 90474
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF COPPELL, TEXAS, ESTABLISHING THE
ACTION TO BE TAKEN BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY IN REGARD TO
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ARISING OUT OF SECTION 11.06 OF THE HOME RULE
CHARTER OF THE CITY OF COPPELL; PROVIDING A REPEALING CLAUSE; PROVIDING
A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COPPELL, TEXAS:
SECTION 1.
This ordinance is to implement Section 11.06 of the City Charter of the City of
Coppell, Texas, and shall establish the action to be taken by the governing body in
regard thereto.
SECTION 2.
Said Section 11.06 reads as follows:
An employee or professional consultant of the city shall not:
A. Accept other employment or engage in outside activities incompatible
with the proper discharge of his duties and responsibilities with the
City, or which might impair his independent judgment in the
performance of his duty to the city; nor
B. Personally provide services for compensation, directly or indirectly,
to a person or organization who is requesting an approval,
investigation or determination from the city.
SECTION 3.
The City Council of the City of Coppel] hereby finds that said Section 11.06 of
the Charter of the City of Coppell:
A. Is not self-enacting;
B. Does not establish the action to be taken by the City Council in the event
of conflict;
C. Does not require the City Council to take any action in the event of a
conflict; and
D. Requires from its silence that the City Council exercise its legislative
discretion by adopting reasonable rules and regulations regarding action to
be taken in the event a conflict is determined to exist pursuant to the
provisions of said Charter section.
SECTION 4.
That from and after the effective date of this Ordinance, action taken in regard
to matters comming within the provisions of Section 11.06 of the Charter of the City
of Coppel] shall be in accordance with the folowing regulatons and procedure:
A. Before any disciplinary or remedial action is taken pursuant to Subsection
A of Section 11.06, against any employee or professional consultant of the
city who has some other employment or outside activity, there shah be a
finding that such other employment or outside activity is incompatible with
the proper discharge of his duties and responsibilities to the city, or a
finding that such is likely to impair his independent judgment in the
performance of his duty to the city. In the case of an employee, the
finding shah be made by the City Manager and in the case of a consultant
for the city, the finding shall be made by the City Council. If such other
employment or outside activity is found to be incompatible with the proper
discharge of his duties and responsibility to the city, or that might impair
his independent judgment in the performance of his duty to the city, the
employee or professional consultant shall first be given the opportunity to
terminate the incompatible other employment or outside activity, and if
such conflict is not abated within a reasonable time to be established by
the City Manager or City Council as the case may be, the employee shall
be subject to termination and the contract with the consultant shall be
subject to cancellation.
Before any disciplinary or remedial action is taken pursuant to Subsection
B of Section 11.06, against any employee or professional consultant of the
city for personally providing services for compensation, directly or
indirectly, to a person or organization (the "third person") who is requesting
an approval, investigation or determination from the city, there shall first
be a determination that a conflict does exist which shall include a finding
that the third person is requesting some approval, investigation or
determination from the City Council. In the event the City Council
determines that a conflict does exist by reason of providing such service
and that the third party is requesting some approval, investigation or
determination from the City Council, the City Council may take any of
the following courses of action:
1. Order that the service provided the third party is so remotely
connected to the employee's or consu]tant's duties and
responsibilities to the city that no remedial action or order is
necessary.
2. Issue an order finding that the service provided to the third party
is not incompatible with the proper discharge of the employee's or
consultant's duties and responsibilities to the city, but, prohibiting
the employee or professional consultant from representing the third
party before the City Council in connection with the third party's
request for approval, investigation or determination.
3. Issue an order directing the employee or professional consultant to
terminate his services to the third party within a specific time
established in the order or otherwise be subject to termination in
the case of the employee or cancelation of contract in the case of
the professional consultant.
In the case of an employee, the finding, determination or order shall be
made by the City Manager and in the case of a consultant for the city,
the such shall be made by the City Council.
SECTION 5.
City staff shah make every effort to:
A. Obtain from any employee a statement in writing describing any
outside employment.
B. Obtain from any consultant of the city a statement in writing, based
upon best knowledge and belief, that said consultant is not personally
providing services for compensation, directlay or indirectly, to a
person or organization who is requesting an approval, investigation
or determination from the city, or, in lieu thereof, a list and
description of such activity for review by the City Council.
SECTION 6.
All ordinances, or parts of ordinances, inconsistent or in conflict with the
provisions of this ordinance are hereby repealed.
SECTION 7.
If any article, paragraph or subdivision, clause or provision of this ordinance
shah be adjudged invalid or held unconstitutional, the same shah not affect the validity
of this ordinance as a whole or any part or provision thereof, other than the part so
decided to be invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 8.
This ordinance shall take effect immediately from and after its passage as the
law in such cases provides.
DULY PASSED by the City Council of the City of Coppell, Texas, this the
~ day of j~'//~_L , 1990.
APPROVED:
ATTEST:
CI SECRETXRY
APPROVED AS TO FORM: ~
CO90-0501-A