City & County of San Francisco
San FranciscoEthics Commission

Statement of Economic Interests

Forms for Public Officials, Designated Employees, and Filing Officers

The Form 700: Statement of Economic Interests (SEI) is a form that state and local public officials and designated employees must file to disclose their financial interests when assuming office, annually, and leaving office.  Any officer or employee of the City and County of San Francisco who holds a position designated in the Conflict of Interest Code (San Francisco Campaign and Government Conduct Code, Article III, Chapter I) is required to disclose his or her financial interests.

Elected officials, department heads, and members of decision-making boards and commissions file with the Ethics Commission.  Advisory board and committee members and designated employees file with their department or commission.

Filing Officers are the department heads or an appointed staff member selected by the department head to handle filing officer duties.  Filing Officers must file the Certification of Delivery and Filing Officer Report with the Ethics Commission annually.  The Certification of Delivery provides an updated list of elected officials, department head, and members of decision-making boards and commissions and certifies that your department has notified all filers in your department of these filing obligations.  The Filing Officer Report provides names and contact information for all filers including designated employees who have not filed their SEIs. 

Sunshine Ordinance

All City officers and employees who file SEIs with the Ethics Commission must annually declare that they have read and have been or will be trained on the Sunshine Ordinance, by filing this form with the Ethics Commission. A filer who assumes office must file this form within 30 days of the date that he or she is sworn in or assumes employment.  Thereafter, a filer must annually file the completed form no later than April 1 of each year.  A filer may satisfy the training requirement by watching the Sunshine Ordinance portion of the “Rules of Conduct for Public Officials” training video from the City Attorney’s Office.

Ethics Training (AB 1234)

All City officers who are required to file SEIs with the Ethics Commission must receive ethics training under California Government Code section 53235 (AB 1234) within one year of assuming office and again within two years of the prior training.  You may satisfy this training requirement by watching the “Rules of Conduct for Public Officials” training video that is available on the City Attorney’s website.   File the Certification of Ethics Training with the Ethics Commission upon completion of each training, pursuant to Ethics Commission Regulation 15.102-1

Gifts of Travel

Under section 3.216(d) of the San Francisco Campaign and Governmental Conduct Code, this form must be filed by an elected officer who either:

• accepts a gift of transportation, lodging, or subsistence for any out-of-state travel that is paid for in part by an entity other than the City and County of San Francisco, another governmental body, or a bona-fide educational institution as defined in section 203 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, or that is paid for by the City in whole or in part with funds donated from any entity other than another governmental body or bona fide educational institution as defined in Section 203 of the Revenue and Taxation Code; or
• reimburses the entity for the gift of transportation, lodging or subsistence in order to avoid receiving a gift.

Contract Approval

Each City elective officer who approves a contract that has a value of $50,000 or more in a fiscal year must file this form with the Ethics Commission within five business days of approval. This filing requirement applies if the contract is approved by:

• the City elective officer,
• any board on which the City elective officer serves, or
• the board of any state agency on which an appointee of the City elective officer serves.

Payments Made at the Behest of an Elected Officer

Behested payments are payments made principally for legislative, governmental, or charitable purposes under Government Code Section 82015(b)(2)(B)(iii). These payments are not for personal or campaign purposes. Generally, a donation is made at the behest if it is requested, solicited, or suggested by the official, or otherwise made to a person in cooperation, consultation, coordination with, or at the consent of, the elected officer or CPUC member. This includes payments behested by the official or by his or her agent or employee on the official’s behalf. This report is for use by elected officers and members of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to disclose payments made at their behest, principally for legislative, governmental, or charitable purposes.

Advance Written Determination

Under section 3.218 of the San Francisco Campaign and Governmental Conduct Code, each Department, Board, or Commission has adopted a Statement of Incompatible Activities (“SIA”) that lists those outside activities that are inconsistent or incompatible with the duties of the officers and employees of the Department, Board, or Commission. Section III.C of the SIA permits an officer or employee to seek an Advance Written Determination whether a proposed outside activity is prohibited because it is inconsistent or otherwise in conflict with the officer’s or employee’s duties. A written Determination by the Decision-Maker that an activity is not incompatible with the SIA provides the Requestor immunity from any subsequent enforcement action for a violation of the SIA, if the material facts are as presented in the Requestor’s written submission. A written Determination does not provide immunity from any other laws that prohibit the proposed activity. An officer or employee may also seek a written opinion from the Ethics Commission to determine whether the person’s proposed activities violate the SIA or any other local law relating to conflicts of interest and governmental ethics.

To obtain a written Determination, please fill out Sections A-E legibly and completely, and submit this form to the Decision-Maker indentified in Section C. Please note that the Decision-Maker may require you to provide additional information in order to make a Determination. At any time, the Decision-Maker may revoke the Determination, by providing written notice to you specifying the changed facts, circumstances or other good cause that warrants the revocation.

Summary of Gift Rules

The Commission has compiled a summary of gift rules. These are general gift rules that apply to City officers and employees.   Special rules apply to gifts given directly to the City.  There are a number of complicated exceptions; thus, officers and employees should ask the Ethics Commission for advice about specific circumstances.  Officers and employees may be subject to stricter rules adopted by their departments.  In cases where there is a discrepancy between this summary and the law,  the law governs.

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