Town of Sugar Land may revise its ethics code to incorporate an anti-retaliation clause and an appeals course of for sanctions, amongst different adjustments.
The ethics code outlines conflicts of curiosity for metropolis council members, candidates for elected workplace and members of the executive and advisory boards for the town in Fort Bend County, southwest of Houston. A metropolis activity pressure critiques the ethics code each 5 years.
The proposed updates to the ethics code embrace 4 new or considerably revised sections in addition to a handful of extra minor adjustments.
The anti-retaliation clause is supposed to guard those that report or examine potential ethics violations.
The brand new code would additionally prohibit the ethics board from speaking individually with the events concerned in an ethics criticism with out the opposite’s information.
It additionally outlines methods for officers to attraction their sanctions and request a “title clearing” assertion if their instances are dismissed.
The brand new code would replace the battle of curiosity coverage to incorporate the official’s relationships with “a considerable debtor or creditor” and donors who’ve contributed greater than $2,500 to their marketing campaign in the latest election cycle.
The revisions additionally forbid officers from accepting or soliciting presents that might impression their selections.
It might forestall former officers from coming into into “important contracts” with the town for twenty-four months after the top of their time period – a rise of just about a 12 months from the present code.
People who’ve possession in firms which are suing the town for an unspecified quantity or greater than $25,000 may donate to metropolis council candidates beneath the revised ethics code. The present code permits these people to donate in the event that they personal lower than 10% of the enterprise that’s suing the town.
The brand new code would additionally permit the ethics board to dismiss complaints if the proof is unsubstantiated or incomplete or if the accuser doesn’t cooperate. The ethics board may refuse to listen to instances which are just like complaints which have already been dismissed.
Metropolis council handed the primary studying of the ethics code on April 1. It is going to vote on whether or not to finalize the adjustments at a future assembly.
