pages: RecreationandParkCommission/2018-02-08.pdf, 3
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RecreationandParkCommission | 2018-02-08 | 3 | Exhibit 1 City of Alameda DATE: January 24, 2018 TO: Chair and Members of the Recreation and Park Commission FROM: Janet C. Kern, City Attornely Ock RE: Conflicts of Interest When you were appointed to the Recreation and Park Commission, you filed with the City Clerk a form prepared by the Fair Political Practices Commission (Form 700) stemming from the Political Reform Act of 1974 (Government Code, section 81000 and following) addressing financial conflicts of interest. That law requires public officials (which under the City's Conflict of Interest Code includes persons appointed to the Recreation and Park Commission) to disqualify themselves from participating in governmental decisions in which they know, or should know, that such decisions will have a material financial effect on the official's economic interests, such sources of income, real property interests or business entity interests. Other state statutes prohibit a city official or employee from having a financial interest in contracts by the official/employee or by any board or body of which the official is a member. See Government Code, Section 1090. But in addition to these statutes, there is a common law doctrine against conflicts of interest which doctrine is applied to require public officials from participating in decisions where the official's private interests may conflict with his or her official duties. That is, by holding public office, a public official is impliedly bound to exercise the powers bestowed by the office with disinterested skill, zeal and diligence for the benefit of the public. Such official bears a fiduciary duty to the public not to use the powers of the office for the benefit of private interests. A person who serves on a board of directors of an organization, as contrasted with a person who simply is a member of such organization, likewise owes that organization a duty of loyalty to act with skill, zeal and diligence for the benefit of the organization. Accordingly, there is a common law conflict of interest where matters concerning an organization of which the public official is on the board of directors comes before the public official's committee or commission. Under those circumstances, the member 1 | RecreationandParkCommission/2018-02-08.pdf |