Conflict of Interest Rules Applicable to Neighborhood Advisory Boards and Community Action Board Members

A member of a Neighborhood Advisory Board ("NAB"), the Community Action Board ("CAB"), or a designated representative to the CAB, must avoid situations and relationships which are, or may appear to others to be, in conflict with the best interests of the Community Action Program (CAP) of the City of New York. To ensure the integrity of the CAP, the private and commercial interests and personal relationships of NAB and CAB members and their representatives must take a secondary place to the proper discharge of their official duties and responsibilities.

In support of that effort, DYCD, in accordance with federal and state regulations relating to conflict of interest, has established the following Conflict of Interest Rules applicable to individual NAB members and designated representatives to the CAB.

The rules contain a listing of impermissible conduct, activities, and relationships involving participants that might detract from the integrity, propriety, and impartiality of the CAP.

Accordingly, the following situations shall constitute conflicts of interest and require remediation:

• Commercial Conflicts
  1. An NAB member, or a CAB representative, may not have financial interests or business dealings, direct or indirect, or make personal investments in, or any commercial agreement with, a CDA funded contract agency in the member's NDA or CAB region, or an agency seeking CDA funds in the member's NDA or CAB region.
  2. An NAB member, or CAB representative, may not act as an attorney, agent, broker, director, officer, employee or consultant for any person, firm or commercial entity interested directly or indirectly in any manner whatsoever in business dealings with a DYCD-funded contracted CBO in the member's NDA or CAB region, or a CBO seeking DYCD funds in the member's NDA or CAB region.
  3. An NAB member, or CAB representative, may not accept any valuable gift whether in the form of service, loan, thing, promise, or in any other form, from any other person, firm, organization or entity which to his knowledge is interested directly or indirectly in dealings with a DYCD-funded CBO in the member's NDA or CAB region, or a CBO seeking DYCD funds in the member's NDA or CAB region.
  4. An NAB member, or CAB representative, may not use or attempt to use his position to obtain financial gain, contract, privilege or other private or personal advantage, directly or indirectly, for himself or any person, firm, organization or other entity with which he is associated.
• Personal Conflicts
  1. An NAB member, or a CAB representative, may not simultaneously serve as a board member or staff/consultant of any agency or organization applying for or receiving Neighborhood Development Area ("NDA"') allocation funds in the member's NDA or CAB region, as the case may be.
  2. An NAB member, or CAB representative, may not serve on an NAB, if his or her spouse, parent (natural, foster or step), unemancipated child (natural, foster or step), in-law, sibling (natural, foster or step), or other member of his or her household is currently serving as a board member or staff/consultant in any agency or organization applying for or receiving NDA allocation funds in the member's NDA or CAB region, as the case may be.
  3. An NAB member, or CAB representative, or his or her spouse, parent unemancipated child, in-law, sibling, or other member of his or her household may not be employed by DYCD as staff/consultant.
  4. An NAB member, or CAB representative, or the spouse of such person may not simultaneously serve DYCD, or its component agencies, as a managerial employee.
• Other Restrictions
  1. Any NAB member, or CAB representative, who may have a direct or indirect commercial or personal interest in any proposed matter coming before an NAB or the CAB which has not been addressed above, shall publicly disclose on the official records of the NAB or CAB, as the case may be, the nature and extent of such interest.
  2. Notwithstanding the specific provisions contained herein, DYCD retains the right to investigate any allegations of conflict of interest situations, affiliations, relationships, or improprieties involving NAB and CAB participants and to make a determination that a particular activity or relationship is in conflict with the best interest of the Community Action Program of the City of New York.