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|  The purpose of financial disclosure is to provide accountability by public servants and to help ensure that no prohibited conflicts exist between the public servant’s official duties and their private interests and positions. Specifically, financial disclosure reports reveal potential conflicts of interest before they arise; focus the attention of the filer, the media, and the public at least once each year on the conflicts of interest law and on potential violations of that law; and provide a means by which to ensure that the filer recuses himself or herself when a conflict of interest actually arises. Under the City’s financial disclosure law, section 12-110 of the New York City Administrative Code, nearly 8,000 City public servants must electronically file financial disclosure reports with the Board. The Financial Disclosure Unit of the Conflicts of Interest Board interprets, administers, and enforces the financial disclosure law. Specifically, the unit is responsible for collecting and maintaining the financial disclosure reports, reviewing them for completeness and compliance, notifying non-filers and late filers of their non-compliance, and initiating enforcement actions if a required filer fails to file or fails to pay a late filing fine. The Financial Disclosure Unit is also charged with reviewing financial disclosure reports for possible conflicts of interest. Generally, high-level officials and other employees of all City agencies at a significant risk for conflicts of interest must file financial disclosure reports. Approximately half of the public servants who file with the Board also must file additional financial disclosure to the Department of Investigation pursuant to Mayoral Executive Order 91 of 1986. These additional financial disclosure reports are generated by and filed with the City’s Department of Investigation (“DOI”). No portion of the DOI report is available to the public, or even to the Board. Financial disclosure reports generally include financial information from the previous calendar year. Filers are required to list certain basic information about their private interests and positions so that the public and the Board may determine where the filer’s potential conflicts of interest lie. Filers must also disclose some information about their spouse, or domestic partner, and unemancipated children, however this information is confidential. Filers need not provide exact amounts in response to a question requiring a value or amount to be reported, but need list only a category of value or amount, ranging from $1,000 to under $5,000 to $500,000 or more. The Board is required by law to make the public portions of a financial disclosure report available for public inspection by any member of the public. A nominal fee is charged, and photo identification of the requester is required. The Board cannot fax, mail, or email copies of reports. Except when a request to inspect the report is pending, a filer may request that the Board withhold certain items in the report from public inspection upon a showing that public inspection of the item would be an unwarranted invasion of the filer’s privacy or a risk to a person’s safety or security. Electronic Financial Disclosure ● Electronic Filing of 2010 Reports (in PDF) Financial Disclosure Appeals Rule The Board adopted the final Financial Disclosure Appeals Rule at an open meeting held on January 28, 2011. Links to the minutes of that meeting and the final rule follow. The rule became effective on March 6, 2011. ● Final Financial Disclosure Appeals Rule (in PDF) | |
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| Financial Disclosure Links ● Section 12-110 of the Administrative
Code, The Financial Disclosure Law, As Reenacted by Local Law 14 of
2006 (in PDF) | |
