N.J. Admin. Code § 19:61-6.5

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024

Section 19:61-6.5 - Attendance at an event sponsored by an entity other than an interested party

(a) The State official shall secure the prior approval of his or her supervisor and the agency Ethics Liaison Officer to attend such an event.

(b) The State official, acting in a scholarly capacity, may attend, participate in, or make presentations at colloquia, seminars, conferences, or similar scholarly gatherings, so long as the State official notifies his or her department head of his or her attendance, participation or presentation, in which case (a) above need not apply. The direct or indirect benefit provided to the State official, acting in a scholarly capacity, may include the acceptance of reasonable travel and subsistence expenses and allowable entertainment expenses. The State official, acting in a scholarly capacity, may accept an honorarium, academic prize or other thing of value if the honorarium, academic prize or other thing of value reflects payment for orally sharing his or her intellectual property.

(c) The State may pay the reasonable expenses of the State official associated with attending the event or may permit the State official to accept direct or indirect benefits. Direct or indirect benefits may include the following:

1. Reimbursement or payment of actual and reasonable expenditures for travel or subsistence and allowable entertainment expenses associated with attending an event in New Jersey if expenditures for travel or subsistence and entertainment expenses are not paid for by the State of New Jersey;

2. Reimbursement or payment of actual and reasonable expenditures for travel or subsistence outside New Jersey, not to exceed $ 500.00 per trip, if expenditures for travel or subsistence and entertainment expenses are not paid for by the State of New Jersey. The $ 500.00 per trip limitation shall not apply to State officials acting in a scholarly capacity or if the reimbursement or payment is made by:

i. A nonprofit organization of which the State official is, at the time of reimbursement or payment, an active member as a result of the payment of a fee or charge for membership to the organization by the State;

ii. A nonprofit organization that does not contract with the State to provide goods, materials, equipment, or services; or

iii. Any agency of the Federal government, any agency of another state or of two or more states, or any political subdivision of another state.

(d) An interested party shall not provide a direct or indirect benefit to the State official in order to facilitate his or her attendance unless in accordance with (b) above.

(e) A State official making a speech or presentation at the event shall not accept an honorarium or fee from the sponsor unless in accordance with (b) above.

(f) Under no circumstances shall a State official accept entertainment collateral to the event, such as a golf outing, or meals taken other than in a group setting with all attendees, or reimbursement therefor.

Examples

An employee of the Commerce, Economic Growth and Tourism Commission has been invited, by the Mexican Tourist Bureau, an agency of the Mexican government, to attend a series of meetings on promoting tourism in both countries. The employee will be giving a speech at dinner on the final day of the meetings and has been offered a $ 500.00 honorarium. The employee may attend the meetings but is not permitted to accept an honorarium in connection with his speech. He may accept, directly or by reimbursement, actual expenditures for travel and reasonable subsistence for which no payment or reimbursement is made by the State, not to exceed the statutory limit of $ 500.00.

A local non-profit organization would like to hold a dinner/fundraiser honoring a Technical Assistant at the Department of Insurance who has been a long-time supporter of the organization. The organization plans to use the Technical Assistant's picture, name and official title on the promotional literature. The Technical Assistant may attend the event but is prohibited from allowing such use of his official title for fundraising purposes.

A history professor at a State college has been asked by his department head to attend the dedication of a restored historic house museum and speak about the importance of maintaining New Jersey's historic resources. The professor has produced several films about New Jersey historic houses. The historic association has offered to provide the professor with a $ 300.00 honorarium for his attendance and speech. The professor may attend the event and accept the honorarium since the professor is attending in his scholarly capacity, the event relates to his scholarly activities and the honorarium is essentially a payment for his oral presentation of his own intellectual property.

N.J. Admin. Code § 19:61-6.5

Amended by R.1997 d.88, effective 2/18/1997.
See: 28 N.J.R. 4755(b), 29 N.J.R. 593(a).
Deleted (b); and recodified former (c) through (e) as (b) through (d).
Amended by R.2004 d.390, effective 10/18/2004.
See: 36 N.J.R. 2316(a), 36 N.J.R. 4842(a).
Rewrote the section.
Amended by R.2006 d.292, effective 8/21/2006.
See: 38 N.J.R. 1804(a), 38 N.J.R. 3318(a).
In (b)2i, deleted "or" from the end; in (b)2ii, inserted "; or" at the end; added (b)2iii; and in " Examples", substituted "the Commerce, Economic Growth and Tourism Commission" for "Travel and Tourism at the Department of Commerce".
Amended by R.2007 d.357, effective 11/19/2007.
See: 39 N.J.R. 3286(a), 39 N.J.R. 4951(a).
Added new (b); recodified former (b) through (e) as (c) through (f); in (c)2, inserted "to State officials acting in a scholarly capacity or"; in (d) and (e), inserted "unless in accordance with (b) above"; and in the Examples, added the third paragraph.
Amended by R.2012 d.045, effective 2/21/2012.
See: 43 N.J.R. 1515(a), 44 N.J.R. 519(a).
In (a), substituted "his or her supervisor and the agency Ethics Liaison Officer" for "the department head".