Conflicts of Interest....

[Patriot]

From the Kansas Secretary of State:


Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest occurs when a public officer's duty to act in the best interest of the public conflicts with his/her private situation. Private situations which may create conflicts of interest include leadership positions in private organizations and businesses, ownership of property, and investments. In order to publicly disclose potential conflictsof interest, the law requires public officers in policymaking positions to file Statements of Substantial Interests as public records disclosing their assets.

State laws dealing with conflicts of interest deal mostly with local officials. These laws have three major components:

(1)  they require disclosure of substantial business interests,
(2)  they prohibit public officers and employees from making contracts involving the local governmental entity and the business in which the person has a substantial interest, and
(3)  they prohibit public officers from acting on any matter (i.e., voting on an issue as a member of a governing body) where their substantial interests are implicated unless their interests have been publicly disclosed.  [KSA 75-4301 et seq.]

The courts have also recognized a common law component of the doctrine of conflict of interest. A public officer has a duty to serve the public and must avoid situations that will cause him/her to act in a way that is not in the best interest of the public. Any such action is considered a breach of confidence.

Federal law also prohibits certain conflicts of interest, most notably in the Hatch Act, which restricts political activities of certain federal officers and employees. These restrictions apply to persons working in programs that receive federal funding in the form of grants or loans. [5 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.]

Many local units of government adopt policies prohibiting certain actions by officers and employees which might cause conflicts of interest. This is usually done through the adoption of ordinances or resolutions.

[Patriot]

From the Kansas Secretary of State:

Statement of Substantial Interests Forms must be completed by individuals who are required to do so by law. Any individual who intentionally fails to file as required by law, or intentionally files a false statement, is subject to prosecution for a class B misdemeanor.

[kshillbillys]

I would say, Patriot, that those individuals with a conflict of interest voting for a project seeking only their own personal gain, should be prosecuted, very publicly, with full disclosure of all conflicts of interest. And those individuals should step down or hand in their resignation immediately. They and everyone else know exactly who I am talking about. I don't believe I need to say any names.---Mr. KSH