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The mission of the Conflicts of Interest Board lies in promoting both the reality and the perception of integrity in City government by preventing unethical conduct before it occurs. To that end, the Board is charged with administering New York City's conflicts of interest law, contained in Chapter 68 of the City Charter, the City's Financial Disclosure Law, found in Section 12-110 of the Administrative Code, and the Lobbyist Gift Law, set forth in sections 3-224 through 3-228 of the Administrative Code. In interpreting and enforcing these laws, the Board is guided by the principles of fairness, clarity, and common sense. The board is divided into six units: Legal Advice, Training and Education, Enforcement, Financial Disclosure, Information Technology, and Administration. The work of each unit is described below.
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Legal Advice Unit Wayne G. Hawley, Deputy Executive Director, General Counsel By providing City officials and employees with answers to their ethics questions, the Legal Advice Unit seeks to prevent violations of the conflicts of interest law from occurring. To meet this objective, a lawyer of the day is on call during business hours to answer questions by telephone. In addition staff attorneys research and answer, in writing, written questions regarding possible conflicts of interest. Novel or difficult questions as well as requests for waivers or orders are brought to the Board for consideration, resulting in a Board letter, waiver letter, order, or formal advisory opinion. With few exceptions, all communications between a City employee and the members and staff of the Board are confidential. | |
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Training and Education Unit Alex Kipp, Director The Training and Education Unit helps to prevent conflicts of interest from arising by informing public servants and the public about the ethics law and the penalties for violating it. The Unit's mission is to train every NYC official and employee, not only in the basic rules of Chapter 68, but also in the objective and spirit behind it. For any agency that requests them, the Unit conducts classes that include games, role-playing exercises and other interactive tools, and provides technical support for agencies to conduct their own classes. We also publish a variety of informative videos, leaflets, posters, and booklets that are available upon request; much of this material can be downloaded from the "Publications" page of this website. For further information about training classes or materials for your staff, please call 212-442-1421. | |
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Enforcement Unit Carolyn Lisa Miller, Director of Enforcement A critical component of the work of the Conflicts of Interest Board is its Enforcement Unit. While COIB strives to enable City employees to comply with the Conflicts of Interest Law through the education provided by its Training Unit or the individual guidance provided by its Advice Unit, there are still City employees who fail to follow the City’s ethics law. It is the work of the Enforcement Unit that shows these violators, as well as all City employees and citizens of the City of New York, that New York City government is serious about its ethics law. When notified of a possible violation of the Conflicts of Interest Law, the Enforcement Unit endeavors to respond quickly and fairly so that a just resolution is achieved, for the violator, his or her agency, and the City as a whole. The Enforcement Unit is an important part of COIB’s mission to empower all City employees to do the right thing, and an integral part of the Board’s education efforts, so all of its final dispositions are public, and available on this website, thus allowing other City employees to learn by example. | |
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Financial Disclosure Unit Julia Davis, Director New York City's financial disclosure law, Section 12-110 of the City's administrative code, requires that some 10,000 New York City employees, elected officials, and candidates for elective office, file annual reports of their financial affairs as well as the financial affairs of their spouses and dependent children. The purpose of the financial disclosure law is to provide accountability on the part of public servants and to help ensure that there are no prohibited conflicts of interest between the official responsibilities and private financial interests of City employees. The Unit assures compliance with the financial disclosure law. The Unit is responsible for collecting and filing financial disclosure reports, reviewing them for completeness and compliance, and for notifying non-filers and late filers of their non-compliance. These yearly, mandatory financial disclosure reports focus the attention of City officials on possible conflicts of interest that they or their family members might have. Because these documents are public, the Unit provides the public, the media, and the government with a source of reliable, yearly information regarding the potential conflicts of interest of public officials. The Unit also is charged with developing new standards for and means of financial disclosure reporting as well as preparing reports of findings, and making recommendations to the Conflicts of Interest Board's Executive Director and Board members. | |
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Information Technology Derick Yu, Director The mission of the Information Technology Unit is to apply computer technology to facilitate and support all the Board's activities. As part of its efforts to "do more with less," the Board continues to increase its investment in information technology. Many of the Board's employees are involved in projects centered on computer technology: electronic filing, a CD based clearing house, relational database systems, online services, and even this Web site. In support of these activities and to further the Board's endeavors in office automation, the Management Information Systems Unit actively researches and considers new vendor products for possible application. | |
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Administrative Unit Ute O'Malley, Director The Administrative Unit is responsible for ensuring that the Board adheres to City rules and regulations in a wide range of fiscal and managerial areas. The Unit is charged with observing budgetary deadlines and constraints; purchasing; personnel administration, including recruiting and hiring; providing information about pensions and benefits; and maintaining a safe and comfortable working environment. The Administrative Unit assures that the agency operates efficiently and economically. | |
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