Sec. 2-310. - Ethics review board.

(a)

Municipal campaign finance regulations enforcement authority. The ethics review board created pursuant to article XIII of the City Charter shall have authority to review reports required under this chapter and shall have the jurisdiction to investigate, make findings, issue rulings and assess sanctions concerning any alleged violation of this chapter, by any person subject to these provisions.

(b)

Municipal campaign finance advisory opinions issued by the ethics review board.

(1)

By writing filed with the city clerk, any officeholder or candidate for city council, mayor or officer of a political action committee registered with the office of the city clerk may request an advisory opinion with respect to the interpretation of the code of municipal campaign finance regulations, but only with respect to whether proposed action by that person would violate these regulations. The city clerk shall promptly transmit all requests for advisory opinions to the ethics compliance officer and the chair of the ethics review board.

(2)

Within twenty (20) days of receipt by the chair of the ethics review board of a request for an advisory opinion, the board, acting en banc or through a designated ethics panel, shall issue a written advisory opinion. During the preparation of the opinion, the board may consult with the ethics compliance officer of the city and other appropriate persons. An advisory opinion shall not reveal the name of the person who made the request, if that person requested anonymity, in which case the opinion shall be written in the form of a response to an anonymous, hypothetical fact situation.

A copy of the opinion shall be indexed and kept by the ethics review board as part of its records. In addition, copies of the opinion shall be forwarded by the chair of the ethics review board, or the ethics compliance officer, to the person who requested the opinion, to the members of the ethics review board, and to the city clerk. The city clerk shall make the opinion available as a public record in accordance with the Local Government Records Act. The ethics compliance officer shall promptly post the opinion on the Internet via the city homepage.

(c)

Civil sanctions for violations of the municipal campaign finance regulations. The following civil sanctions may be imposed by the ethics review board which finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the municipal campaign finance regulations have been violated:

(1)

Letter of notification. The ethics review board may issue a letter of notification to any individual subject to the municipal campaign finance regulations where the board finds that the violation was clearly unintentional or inadvertent. The letter must advise the person to whom it is directed of any steps to be taken to avoid future violations;

(2)

Letter of admonition. The ethics review board may issue a letter of admonition to any individual subject to the municipal campaign finance regulations where the board finds that the violation was minor and/or may have been unintentional or inadvertent;

(3)

Letter of reprimand. The ethics review board may issue a letter of reprimand to any individual subject to the municipal campaign finance regulations where the board finds that the violation was made intentionally or knowingly;

(4)

Referral to ethics training. Upon finding of violation of the municipal campaign finance regulations, the ethics review board may require any individual subject to the municipal campaign finance regulations to attend training on these regulations;

(5)

A fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) where the board finds that the violation was made intentionally or knowingly. Each day after any deadline for which any required statement has not been filed, or for which a statement on file is incorrect, misleading, or incomplete, constitutes a separate offense.

(d)

The rules and procedures set out in chapter 2, article III, sections 2-80—2-91 shall apply to the enforcement of this article, including:

(1)

Procedures for filing and responding to complaints of violations of the municipal campaign finance regulations;

(2)

Disposition of complaints;

(3)

The imposition or recommendation of sanctions;

(4)

Extension of deadlines; and

(5)

The timeliness of filings.

(Ord. No. 100284, § 6, 1-13-05)

Editor's note—

Ord. No. 100284, § 6, adopted January 13, 2005, amended § 2-310 in its entirety to read as herein set out. Formerly, § 2-310 pertained to the campaign finance enforcement authority and derived from Ord. No. 99538, § 1, adopted August 5, 2004.