SEC. 3.224. PROHIBITION ON REPRESENTING PRIVATE PARTIES BEFORE OTHER CITY OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES - COMPENSATED ADVOCACY.
§ 3.224
City officers cannot receive compensation for advocating to other city officials on behalf of private parties or organizations, with narrow exceptions for government business, representation by their own employer or professional association, and licensed attorneys handling legal matters.
A city official cannot get paid to lobby other city officials on behalf of a private person or business. There are a few exceptions: they can represent the city itself, they can speak for a union or company they work for, employees can act on behalf of their boss, and licensed lawyers can represent clients in legal matters involving the city. The Ethics Commission can allow exceptions when state law requires someone to represent their profession or trade.
- Controversial:This rule restricts how city officials can use their positions for private gain and involves enforcement against public servants, a subject of ongoing debate in city governance.
- Complex:The exceptions in subsection (b) are numerous and somewhat overlapping, particularly the distinction between acting as a member/employee versus merely acting as an agent of an officer, which may be difficult to apply in borderline cases.
AI-generated · claude-haiku-4-5 · informational only, not legal advice.
Official text
SEC. 3.224. PROHIBITION ON REPRESENTING PRIVATE PARTIES BEFORE OTHER CITY OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES – COMPENSATED ADVOCACY.
(a) Prohibition. No officer of the City and County shall directly or indirectly receive any form of compensation to communicate orally, in writing, or in any other manner on behalf of any other person with any other officer or employee of the City and County with the intent to influence a government decision.
(b) Exceptions. This section shall not apply to any communication by: (1) an officer of the City and County on behalf of the City and County; (2) an officer of the City and County on behalf of a business, union, or organization of which the officer is a member or full-time employee; (3) an associate, partner or employee of an officer of the City and County, unless it is clear from the totality of the circumstances that the associate, partner or employee is merely acting as an agent of the City and County officer; or (4) a City officer in his or her capacity as a licensed attorney engaged in the practice of law, which includes representing clients in communications with the City Attorney's Office, District Attorney's Office, Public Defender's Office, attorneys in the Tax Collector's Office or Sheriff's Office, outside legal counsel hired by the City, representatives of the City who are named in a pending litigation matter or witnesses or potential witnesses in a pending litigation matter.
(c) Waiver. The Ethics Commission may waive the prohibitions in this section for any officer who, by law, must be appointed to represent any profession, trade, business, union or association.
(Added by Proposition E, 11/4/2003; Ord. 97-06, File No. 051837, App. 5/19/2006; Ord. 244-09, File No. 091013, App. 12/3/2009)