1 City Council Meeting: September 24, 2024 Santa Monica, California ORDINANCE NUMBER _________ (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA ADDING SECTION 2.32.291 PROHIBITING THE GIVING OF GIFTS
TO COUNCILMEMBERS OR ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS BY COUNCILMEMBERS WHEREAS, the Council believes it is unacceptable for City Councilmembers to receive gratuities or gifts of any type in connection with their official capacity, and hereby formalizes the prohibition on so doing.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 2.32.291 is hereby added to read as follows:
2.32.291. PROHIBITION ON GIFTS TO COUNCILMEMBERS
(a) No person shall provide, and no City Councilmember shall receive, accept, take, seek, or solicit, directly or indirectly, any gift, as defined in this Section. This Section shall be in addition to the provisions of Charter Section XXII, the Taxpayer Protection Act. (b) “Gift” means, except as provided in subdivision (c), any payment, property, or service that confers a personal benefit on the recipient, to the extent that consideration of equal or greater value is not received and includes a rebate or discount in the price of anything of value unless the rebate or discount is made in the regular course of business to members of the public without regard to official status. Any person, other than a defendant in a criminal action, who claims that a payment is not a gift by reason of receipt 2 of consideration has the burden of proving that the consideration received is of equal or greater value.
(c) The term “gift” does not include:
(1) Informational material such as books, reports, pamphlets, calendars, or periodicals. No payment for travel or reimbursement for any expenses shall be deemed “informational material.”
(2) Gifts which are not used and which, within 30 days after receipt, are either returned to the donor or delivered to a nonprofit entity exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code without being claimed as a charitable contribution for tax purposes.
(3) Gifts from an individual's spouse, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, brother, sister, parent-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, nephew, niece, aunt, uncle, or first cousin or the spouse of any such person; provided that a gift from any such person shall be considered a gift if the donor is acting as an agent or intermediary for any person not covered by this paragraph.
(4) Campaign contributions required to be reported under state or local law. (5) Any devise or inheritance.
(6) Personalized plaques and trophies with an individual value of less than two hundred fifty dollars ($250).
(7) Commemorative items from City departments generally offered to attendees at City sponsored events.
(8) Meals, transportation, or lodging provided or paid for by the City in connection with attendance at City sponsored events.
3 (9) Anything excluded from the definition of “gift” under the Political Reform Act, as memorialized in 2 C.C.R. Sec. 18942.
(d) Each violation of the provisions of this Section shall constitute a misdemeanor. Alternatively, a civil action may also be brought by the City or any interested party before any court of competent jurisdiction. In addition to all other remedies authorized by law, the court may impose a fine of up to five hundred dollars for each violation of this Chapter. Additionally, all gifts received in violation this Section must be returned to the donor or the value of the gift fully reimbursed within 30 days of receipt.
SECTION 2. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 3. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_________________________
Douglas Sloan, City Attorney