North Carolina § 138A-14 - Ethics education program.

§ 138A-14. Ethics education program.

The Commission shall develop and implement an ethics education and awareness program designed to instill in all covered persons and their immediate staffs, and legislative employees, a keen and continuing awareness of their ethical obligations and a sensitivity to situations that might result in real or potential conflicts of interest. The Commission shall offer basic ethics education and awareness presentations to all public servants and their immediate staffs, upon their election, appointment, or employment, and shall offer periodic refresher presentations as the Commission deems appropriate. Every public servant shall participate in an ethics presentation approved by the Commission within six months of the public servant's election, reelection, appointment, or employment, and shall attend refresher ethics education presentations at least every two years thereafter in a manner as the Commission deems appropriate. A public servant appointed to a board determined and designated as nonadvisory under G.S. 138A-10(a)(3) shall attend an ethics presentation approved by the Commission within six months of notification of the designation by the Commission and at least every two years thereafter in a manner as the Commission deems appropriate. The Commission, jointly with the Committee, shall make basic ethics education and awareness presentations to all legislators and legislative employees upon their election, reelection, appointment, or employment and shall offer periodic refresher presentations as the Commission and the Committee deem appropriate. Every legislator shall participate in an ethics presentation approved by the Commission and Committee within two months of either the convening of the General Assembly to which the legislator is elected or within two months of the legislator's appointment, whichever is later. Every legislative employee shall participate in an ethics presentation approved by the Commission and Committee within three months of employment, and shall attend refresher ethics education presentations at least every two years thereafter, in a manner as the Commission and Committee deem appropriate. Upon request, the Commission shall assist each agency in developing in-house education programs and procedures necessary or desirable to meet the agency's particular needs for ethics education, conflict identification, and conflict avoidance. Each agency head shall designate an ethics liaison who shall maintain active communication with the Commission on all agency ethical issues. The ethics liaison shall attend ethics education and awareness programs as provided under this section and lobbying education and awareness programs as provided under G.S. 120C-103 and continuously assess and advise the Commission of any issues or conduct which might reasonably be expected to result in a conflict of interest and seek advice and rulings from the State Board as to their appropriate resolution. The Commission shall publish a newsletter containing summaries of the Commission's opinions, policies, procedures, and interpretive bulletins as issued from time to time. The newsletter shall be distributed to all covered persons and legislative employees. Publication under this subsection may be done electronically. The Commission shall assemble and maintain a collection of relevant State laws, rules, and regulations that set forth ethical standards applicable to covered persons. This collection shall be made available electronically as resource material to public servants, and ethics liaisons, upon request. This section shall not apply to judicial officers. History (2006-201, s. 1; 2007-347, s. 9(a); 2008-213, ss. 59, 60; 2009-10, s. 4; 2009-549, s. 12; 2010-169, s. 22(a); 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), (b).) Editor's Note. - This section was recodified as now former G.S. 163A-158 by Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3. Former G.S. 163A-158 was then re-recodified as this section by Session Laws 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), effective January 31, 2019. The historical citation from the former section has been added to this section as re-recodified. Session Laws 2018-146, s. 3.1(b), effective January 31, 2019, repealed Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3, which had recodified this section. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2007-347, s. 9(a), effective August 9, 2007, in subsection (a), deleted "interest or appearances of conflicts of" preceding "interest" at the end; and, in subsection (c), inserted "and every legislative employee shall attend refresher ethics education presentations at least every two years thereafter," in the last sentence. Session Laws 2008-213, ss. 59 and 60, effective August 15, 2008, in subsection (b), substituted "public servant's" for "person's" in the last sentence; and in subsection (c), substituted "legislator or legislative employee's" for "person's" in the last sentence. Session Laws 2009-10, s. 4, effective March 26, 2009, rewrote subsection (c). Session Laws 2009-549, s. 12, effective August 28, 2009, deleted "and the immediate staff of every public servant" following "Every public servant" in the last sentence of subsection (b); added subsection (b1); inserted "attend ethics education and awareness programs as provided under this section and lobbying education and awareness programs as provided under G.S. 120C-103 and" in the second sentence of subsection (e); and deleted former subsection (h), which read: "As used in this section, 'immediate staff' means those individuals who report directly to the public servant." Session Laws 2010-169, s. 22(a), effective August 2, 2010, substituted "shall offer" for "shall make" the first time it appears in the first sentence of subsection (b).