63A-15-202. Meetings — Staff — Legal counsel — Additional appropriations.
| (1) |
The commission shall meet for the purpose of reviewing an ethics complaint when:
Terms Used In Utah Code 63A-15-202- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Department: means the Department of Government Operations. See Utah Code 63A-1-103
- Executive director: means the executive director of the Department of Government Operations. See Utah Code 63A-1-103
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Person: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
| (a) |
except otherwise expressly provided in this chapter, called to meet at the discretion of the chair; or |
| (b) |
a majority of members agree to meet. |
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| (2) |
A majority of the commission is a quorum. |
| (3) |
| (a) |
The commission shall prepare, on an annual basis, a summary data report that contains:
| (i) |
a general description of the activities of the commission during the past year; |
| (ii) |
the number of ethics complaints filed with the commission; |
| (iii) |
the number of ethics complaints dismissed in accordance with Section 63A-15-602; |
| (iv) |
the number of ethics complaints reviewed by the commission in accordance with Section 63A-15-701; |
| (v) |
an executive summary of each complaint review in accordance with Section 63A-15-701; and |
| (vi) |
an accounting of the commission’s budget and expenditures. |
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| (b) |
The commission shall submit the summary data report to the governor on an annual basis. |
| (c) |
The summary data report shall be a public record. |
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| (4) |
| (a) |
The commission shall employ staff at a level that is reasonable to assist the commission in performing its duties as established in this chapter. |
| (b) |
Staff for the commission may not perform services for a political subdivision. |
| (c) |
A person employed as staff for the commission may be the same person employed as staff for the Independent Legislative Ethics Commission, if the staff ensures that proper protections are in place to preserve the confidentiality to both bodies and to avoid a conflict of interest. |
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| (6) |
The commission:
| (a) |
is an independent entity established within the department for budgetary and general administrative purposes only; |
| (b) |
is not under the direction or control of the department, the executive director, or any other officer or employee of the department; |
| (c) |
shall employ a director to provide administrative support to the commission and to assist the commission in fulfilling the commission’s duties; |
| (d) |
may employ additional staff, to work under the direction of the director; |
| (e) |
shall contract with private legal counsel to provide legal services to the commission, as needed; and |
| (f) |
may, in consultation with the Office of the Legislative Fiscal Analyst, request supplemental appropriations to pay the costs of legal fees and other staffing needs that exceed the commission’s budget due to the number or complexity of the ethics complaints filed with or considered by the commission in a fiscal year. |
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Renumbered and Amended by Chapter 461, 2018 General Session
