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Preventing Conflicts of Interest by Answering Your Questions

The Conflicts of Interest Board always prefers to prevent violations of the City’s conflicts of interest law, found in Chapter 68 of the City Charter, before they occur. To do that, the Board and its attorneys are ready to answer your questions, confidentially -- just call or write us.

  • For general advice about Chapter 68, fill out our online Legal Advice Request Form or call the Board's Attorney of the Day at (212) 437-0707, weekdays between the hours of 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM.
  • Most questions will be answered by telephone or email that same day.
  • If you need something more formal, write us a letter, and Board Staff will provide you a letter in response.
  • Sometimes a Chapter 68 question is novel or complex. Those questions are considered by the full five-member at one of its monthly meetings and will result in a formal letter from the Board (an “advisory opinion”).

Advice provided by Board Staff, or the five members of the Conflicts of Interest Board, is confidential under the City Charter. Public servants are free to share the advice they have received, but the Board will not even disclose whether it has provided advice.

Waivers

A public servant may seek to engage in conduct that would technically violate the conflicts of interest law but would not actually conflict with the purposes and interests of the City. For example, the City’s conflicts of interest law prohibits a full-time City employee from having a second job with any firm that does business with any City agency, even if the employee has no dealings with that agency in their City job.

The City Charter authorizes the Board to grant waivers of the conflicts of interest law to allow public servants to hold otherwise prohibited second jobs (called “moonlighting waivers”) – as well as to engage in certain otherwise prohibited conduct. To grant a waiver, the Board must first receive a written request from the head of the public servant’s City agency. The Board then reviews the relevant facts and circumstances to determine that the public servant’s proposed conduct does not conflict with the purposes and interests of the City.

  • If you don’t know whether or not you need a waiver, call all the Board's Attorney of the Day at (212) 437-0707, weekdays between the hours of 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM.
  • If you already know you need a moonlighting waiver, fill out our online Moonlighting Waiver Request Form.

Waivers are public documents and are available if you Submit a Freedom of Information Law Request.

Agency Ethics Liaisons

In addition to Board Staff, you also can talk to a designated employee at your City agency about your Chapter 68 question or your waiver request.