Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024
Section 158-7-3 - Receipt of Free Admission, Travel and Lodging Expenses to Attend an Educational Seminar or Conference3.1. A public official or public employee may accept from an interested third party a reduced rate for or free admission to a privately sponsored conference or seminar, and reimbursement for reasonable meals, travel and lodging expenses, if his or her attendance will result in benefit to the governmental agency he or she serves by enhancing his or her job related skills and the performance of his or her public job responsibilities under each of the following: a. Attendance by the public official or employee must fulfill an existing agency need by significantly enhancing the attendee's occupational skill or knowledge to provide important information needed by the agency to meet its official mandate;b. The seminar or conference must be appropriate for the proposed attendee. A trip is appropriate for the attendee if he or she will use the information or job skill enhancement and is the person most suitable to acquire and transfer the skills or information to other appropriate agency personnel;c. The site of the proposed trip must be appropriate. A public employee or official may not accept payment for attendance at the seminar or conference and related costs if the same information is readily available locally;d. The seminar or conference must offer a reasonable return on the time spent. Attendance at the seminar or conference should represent a reasonable investment of the public official or employee's time when weighed against the information acquired or the degree of improvement in job skills or knowledge; and e. The benefit to the agency must be significantly greater than the incidental benefit to the traveler.3.2. An interested third party is any person whom the official or employee knows or has reason to know: a. Is doing or seeking to do business of any kind with his or her agency;b. Is engaged in activities which are regulated or controlled by his or her agency; or,c. Has financial interests which may be substantially and materially affected, in a manner distinguishable from the public generally, by the performance or nonperformance of his or her official duties.3.3. Public employees and appointed public officials shall obtain permission before attending a privately sponsored conference or seminar for which an interested third party pays, in whole or part, their attendance fees, travel or lodging expenses. Permission to attend the seminar or conference and reimbursement for costs must be obtained in the following manner: a. A public employee must obtain permission to attend the seminar or conference from the head of his or her agency;b. An appointed public official must obtain permission from the governing body on which he or she serves or the public official to whom he or she reports.3.4. Food and lodging expenses are "reasonable" if the expenses are limited to the usual and customary basic charges of the hotel and are comparable to those charged to other participants and hotel guests. Travel expenses are "reasonable" if the expenses are comparable to those ordinarily charged to other similar travelers.3.5. A public official or public employee may not accept payment or reimbursement for other expenses such as golf fees, carriage rides or health club fees if the total value of the fees exceeds twenty-five dollars ($25.00) unless these amenities are normally part of the standard hotel room charge and incidental to the use of the hotel room.3.6. A public official or public employee may not accept payment from an interested third party for food, lodging or travel expenses for a guest; Provided, That, a public official or public employee may take a guest to a privately sponsored seminar if no additional costs are incurred by the third party payer for the guest's travel, lodging or attendance at the seminar.