Alpha Index :  Table of Contents :  Official University Policies & Procedures :  Questions :  UC Irvine 

UC IRVINE ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES & PROCEDURES

BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL AFFAIRS
General Administration
Sec. 700-09: Policies on Gifts, Gratuities and Conflict of Interest
Responsible Administrator: Conflict of Interest Coordinator / Administrative Policies Office
Revised: August 2008		  
References / Resources Contact: Conflict of Interest Coordinator at (949) 824-8713

A. Acceptance of Gifts and Gratuities by University Employees

It is the policy of the University of California that its officers and employees shall comply with the provisions of State and Federal law governing the acceptance of gifts and gratuities. In addition to compliance with the requirements of law, University officers and employees must avoid the appearance of favoritism in all of their dealings on behalf of the University. All University officers and employees are expected to act with integrity and good judgment and to recognize that the acceptance of personal gifts from those doing business or seeking to do business with the University, even when lawful, may give rise to legitimate concerns about favoritism depending on the circumstances. If a University officer or employee has any question regarding the propriety of a gift, disclosure of the gift or proposed gift should be made to a supervisor or other appropriate University official for a determination of the proper course of action.

B. Gifts to the University That Provide a Personal Benefit

If a gift to the University provides personal benefit to an official, such as an employee, the department head will select the individual who will use the gift and will report the payment to the Manager-Gift Administration-University Advancement. The Manager-Gift Administration is the designated Gift Reporting Filing Officer (IDA 458) responsible for filing the Gift to Agency Report (California Form 801) and for publishing reports online, as required by the California Code of Regulations, Title 2 § 18944.2.

The Fair Political Practices Commission has determined that a gift will be considered a gift to an agency, and not to an employee, when the following criteria are satisfied:

C. UC Conflict of Interest Code

The California Political Reform Act of 1974 requires certain state and local government officials to publicly disclose their private economic interests on an official Statement of Economic Interests (Form 700) and that all government (University) employees disqualify themselves from participating in decisions in which they have a personal financial interest. A conflict of interest code lists the position titles of those employees or officials (designated position) in an organization who are required to provide personal financial information, assigns disclosure categories to these positions, and indicates the types of economic interest which must be reported, such as investments, interests in real estate, or sources of income or gifts (see Designated Officials at UCI with Indicated Required Disclosure Categories ).

The University's Conflict of Interest Code is revised annually and submitted to the Fair Political Practices Commission for approval. The Commission is the state body that administers, interprets and enforces the California Political Reform Act. The University's approved Code has the force of law and any violation of the Code by a designated employee is deemed a violation of the Political Reform Act.


 Alpha Index :  Table of Contents :  Official University Policies & Procedures :  Questions :  UC Irvine