April 10, 2023
To: Members of the Ethics Commission
From: Gayathri Thaikkendiyil, Acting Executive Director
Prepared by Steven Massey, Acting Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer
Subject: Agenda Item 4 – Acting Executive Director’s Report for April 2023
Summary and Action Requested
This report provides various programmatic and operational highlights since the last report.
No action is required by the Commission, as this item is for informational purposes only.
Budget Update
On March 30, the Mayor sent a memo to department heads instructing all departments to propose additional budget reductions of at least 5 percent of General Fund support in each year of the budget. This would increase the total target reductions in FY 23-24 and FY 24-25 to 10 percent ($679,194) and 13 percent ($882,952), respectively. In addition to the impacts described at the January and February meetings, including 2 limited-term positions expiring in FY 23-24 and 8 limited-term positions expiring in FY 24-25, preliminary estimates are that the Commission would be unable to fill at least 7 vacant positions to retain existing staff in FY 23-24. The Commission’s current position vacancy rate is 26 percent, or 9 positions including the Executive Director.
In addition, the Mayor’s Budget Office requested a reduction of $131,496 from the Commission’s continuing project funds. This would impact the funding that supports the Commission’s Form 700 electronic filing system and other related technologies.
Annual Disclosures
On April 3, annual filings, including the Statements of Economic Interests (form 700) and Ethics & Sunshine Training Declarations were due. The Engagement & Compliance team aided over 400 individual cases and saw over 90% on-time compliance. The team complied a report on these filings. Financial disclosures and a list of non-compliant officers and employees can be found on the Commission’s website.
Annual SIA Review Reminder Notice Distributed to all City Departments
On March 14, our office issued annual reminder notices to City departments to circulate their departmental Statement of Incompatible Activities (SIAs) to all departmental officers and employees. The notice serves to remind all city officers and employees to review their departmental SIAs and the activities their departments have deemed incompatible with their duties as a City officer or employee. A copy of the 2023 SIA notice is viewable online here.
Revenues Report
| Account Description | FY22-23 Original Budget | FY22-23 Actuals |
|---|---|---|
| Campaign Consultant Registration Fee | $7,000 | $6,800 |
| Lobbyist Registration Fee | $85,000 | $116,500 |
| Campaign Consultant Fines | $2,000 | $50 |
| Campaign Disclosure Fines | $50,000 | $6,039 |
| Statement of Economic Interests Fines | $1,250 | $0 |
| Lobbyists Fines | $2,000 | $2,700 |
| Other Ethics Fines | $7,500 | $23,638 |
| Other General Government Charges | $2,450 | $0 |
| Total | $157,200 | $155,727 |