Financial Disclosure

Who must file?

As a general matter, the following public servants must file financial disclosure statements:

• Officials and many non-clerical employees of City agencies and instrumentalities (§§ 7-7 and 7-8); 
  • "Non-clerical” means any compensated public servant who is not employed solely in a secretarial, clerical, or custodial capacity.
• Members of most City boards and commissions (§§ 7-7 and 7-8); 
• Individuals filling procurement, enforcement, and legislative liaison functions (§ 7-9);
• Individuals vacating any of these positions (§ 7-11).
• Individuals filling a vacancy in any of these positions (§ 7-12).
• Candidates for qualifying elected positions (§ 7-13).
• Designees of the Mayor and of the City Council President (§ 7-14). 

When should I file?

Annual Disclosure Statement

Each qualifying non-elected official/employee must file their statement:

• On or before April 30 of each year;
• Must cover the preceding calendar year;
• Must be signed under oath/affirmation, subject to the penalties of perjury.

Each qualifying elected official must file on or before January 30 of each year.

Entry/Initial Disclosure Statement

New official/employee filling a qualifying position must file statement:

• Within 30 days of appointment/start date;
• Must cover preceding calendar year;
• Must cover same information as annual statement

*Exception: No entry statement required if already filed disclosure statement for previous calendar year in another position, if disclosure was as extensive as previous position's.

Departure Disclosure Statement  

Official/employee departing a qualifying position must file a statement:

• Within 60 days of departure;
• Must cover preceding calendar year (if not already filed), and period of current calendar year up to departure.

*Exception: No departure statement required if official/employee taking new position for which annual statement is required, if that statement is as extensive as previous position's.

Candidates for Elected Office Disclosure Statement

Candidates for qualifying elected positions must file statement:

• Initially, no later than filing certificate of candidacy;
• Annually thereafter, up through year of election,
• On or before April 30, OR
• The last day for withdrawal of candidacy under State Election Law Art., § 5-502;
• Must cover preceding calendar year;

• Must be filed with Board of Elections, which must forward to Ethics Board.*

Exception: No candidate statement required if already filed disclosure statement for previous calendar year. 

Late Fees and Other Penalties

Ethics Board may charge fees for late filings; currently $10 per day, up to a maximum of $1,000.

What should I disclose?

Generally, the following “interests” of the public servant during the reporting period are required to be disclosed, as well as certain interests that are “attributable” to the public servant. “Attributable interests” are those held:

• By the public servant’s spouse, parent, child, or sibling, IF the public servant directly or indirectly controlled the interest;
• By a business entity in which the public servant holds an equity interest of 30% or more; or
• By a trust or estate in which the public servant holds a reversionary interest, is a beneficiary, or, if a revocable trust, was a settlor.  There are certain exclusions for blind trusts.

Please review Article 8, § 7-16 to § 7-29 for detailed content requirements, or call/email the Ethics Board for assistance. 

Real Property

Must include a schedule of each interest in real property, including interests held by attributable business entity. Schedule must include:

• Identity of property and nature of interest held (e.g., ownership or rental interest);
• Identity of other person(s) with an interest in the property;
• Date and manner of acquisition;
• Description of any transfer of the interest during the reporting period

Business Entities

Must include a schedule of each interest in a business entity (e.g., corporation, partnership, limited liability company, or any other business entity) whether or not that entity does business with or is regulated by the City.  Schedule must include:

• The name and principal address of the business entity;
• The nature and amount of interest held, including any conditions/encumbrances;
  • Equity interests may be reported by percentage of equity interest held and/or number of shares held, depending on type of entity. 
• Date and manner of acquisition; and
• Description of any transfer of the interest during the reporting period.

Gifts

Must include a schedule of each significant gift (more than $20) accepted by the public servant, or someone else at direction of public servant, that was given directly or indirectly by any person the public servants knows or should have known was:

• A lobbyist;
• A person regulated by the City; or
• A person doing business with the City.

Schedule must include:

• The nature and value of each gift; and
• The identity of the person from whom the gift was received.

Exceptions: Need not disclose:

• Gifts from spouse, parent, child, or sibling;
• Campaign contributions otherwise reported as required by law; or
• Tickets/free admission to charitable, cultural, or political event if given to elected official as courtesy or as ceremony to office. 

Offices, Employment, etc.

Must include a schedule of each office, directorship, salaried employment, and other similar interest:

• Held by the public servant or by the public servant’s spouse, child, parent, or sibling in any business entity that:
  • Was a lobbyist;
  • Was regulated by the City; OR
  • Was doing business with the City.
• Must include directorship held by public servant in any business entity.

Schedule must include:

• The name and address of the principal office of the business entity;
• The title and nature of the position or interest;
• The date when the position or interest began;
• If applicable, the name of each agency with which the entity is doing business, by which it is regulated, or in connection with which it is a lobbyist;
• If applicable, the nature of the entity’s relationship to the City, and
• If the position or interest is held by someone other than the public servant, the identity of the individual who held the position or interest.

Indebtedness

Must include a schedule of each debt that was owed:

• By the public servant or
• By the public servant’s spouse, parent, child, or sibling, IF the public servant was involved in the transaction giving rise to the debt,

To any business entity that was:

• A lobbyist;
• Regulated by the public servant’s agency; or
• Doing business with the public servant’s agency.

Schedule must include:

• The identity of the person to whom the debt was owed;
• The date the debt was incurred;
• The amount owed at the end of the reporting period;
• The terms of payment;
• The extent to which the principal was increased or decreased during the reporting period; and
• Any security given.

*Exceptions: Does not apply to retail credit accounts, retail installment sales accounts, or utility accounts.

Family Employed by City

Must include a schedule of any spouse, parent, child, or sibling employed by the City at any time during the reporting period.

Schedule must include:

• The individual’s name and relationship to the public servant; and
• The agency and position in which the individual was employed.

Sources of Income: General

Must include a schedule of other earned income for the public servant and for public servant’s spouse/children, including:

• Each place of compensated employment during the reporting period; and
• Each business entity in which the public servant, spouse, or child was a sole or partial owner, and from which they received earned income.

Schedule must include:

• The name and address of employer or business entity;
• For each family member, that individual’s name and relationship to the public servant; and
• If the individual’s spouse is a lobbyist, any entity that has engaged the spouse for lobbying purposes.

Sources of Income: Substantial Interests of Elected Officials

Applicable only to elected officials: If official or their spouse holds an equity interest of 30% or more in one or more business entities, must disclose name and address of any person making payments to those entities if that person is:

• A lobbyist;
• A person regulated by the City; or
• A person doing business with the City, AND IF
  • Payment(s) is more than $1,000 in aggregate, or
  • Payment constitutes 5% or more of entity’s gross income, if entity’s gross income is less than $20,000. 

What happens with my form?

Disclosure statements are retained by the Ethics Board and are available for public inspection upon request.

Public Inspection

Ethics Board must:

• Provide for public inspection of disclosure statements;
• Redact official/employee’s home address;
• Record identity and contact info of persons inspecting statements; and
• Record names of officials/employees whose statements are inspected.