2007-08-08 Board of Ethics Minutes mc

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make sure everyone sees it. Mr. Ashida said that he believed all matters addressed to the Board of Ethics had been placed on the Board's agendas. Mr. Ashida stated that the resignation letter of Board member Kendall Sharpless was addressed to him personally. The Board's secretary did ask him whether it should be agendized, but he told her no, that it was not a matter of Board business and the Board would not get to vote on it. He said that reporter Jason Armstrong had asked him why Ms. Sharpless' letter was not agendized as were those of prior Board members, such as Kerry Inouye. Ms. Lum said she believed Mr. Inouye's letter was addressed to the Board, and the Chair said it was addressed to the Mayor, with copies to the Board. Mr. Ashida said that henceforth, if he receives a letter concerning a Board matter, and as long as it is a matter of public record, he will ask the secretary to assign a communication number and place it on the agenda for review. This will include issues not requiring a vote by the Board. The Chair said that as the Board members' names and email addresses appear on the County's website, it should be their policy that if a member receives any email on Board business, he /she should not reply and should forward it to the secretary. Mr. Ashida agreed, but said it would be acceptable to reply with a thank you and statement that the email would be forwarded to the Board's secretary. The Chair asked if there was any further discussion regarding Communication No. 2007- 79; and there being none, he called for a vote. Vote: All members voted aye on the motion to accept and file Communication No. 2007 -79. 5. NEW BUSINESS Mr. Ashida explained what gift disclosures are to new Board member Tricia Malanka. In a nutshell, the golden rule is that no County employee or officer should be accepting gifts from anyone under circumstances in which it could be inferred that the gift was meant to influence the officer's or employee's official decision - making. However, the law does allow the receipt of certain gifts, as long as there is no conflict and it is given under appropriate circumstances. But if a gift is given under circumstances in which someone could reasonably infer that it might be a reward, and it is worth over $100, the law requires the disclosure of the gift. All County employees, who total about 2,300, are required to file the disclosures. However, only about a dozen disclosures are received each year. If someone is filing a gift disclosure, it is because he or she has received a gift under circumstances where it could be inferred the gift was intended to affect that person's official decision - making. The Chair stated that the gift disclosures had been reviewed. Motion and vote: Ms. Lum moved to accept and file the gift disclosures, and Ms. Malanka seconded the motion. All members present voted aye.