Doing Business with City

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Parent Category: Code of Ethics

Generally city officials and employees may not do business with the City. There is an exception when the business is conducted through a sealed competitive bid process. This provision means that no official or employees shall own stock in, be employed by, or have any ownership interest in a company that does business with the City unless the business is awarded through a sealed competitive bid process or a request for proposal where the bids are opened and the awards made at public meetings. Board members may not do business directly with the board on which they serve, unless the business is awarded through a sealed competitive bid process.

Example: A department cannot purchase pins and key chains valued at less than $1,000 from a departmental employee through a purchase order that was not put up for bid.

Example: The Department of Aviation cannot hire a training company owned by a city firefighter to provide hazardous materials training at the airport when the bids were submitted in response to a request for proposal sent by the department to three companies.

Example: City employees may work as baggage handlers for a national airline that does business with the City when the employees have no direct financial interest in the company, their outside job is unrelated to their official duties as a city employee, and they are paid the same salary and benefits as other employees performing the same job for the airline.