Gift Made with Intent to Influence

281A.400. General Requirements; Exceptions

A code of ethical standards is hereby established to govern the conduct of public officers and employees:

  1. A public officer or employee shall not seek or accept any gift, service, favor, employment, engagement, emolument or economic opportunity, for the public officer or employee or any person to whom the public officer or employee has a commitment in a private capacity, which would tend improperly to influence a reasonable person in the public officer’s or employee’s position to depart from the faithful and impartial discharge of the public officer’s or employee’s public duties.

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 281A.400(1).

281A.420. Requirements Regarding Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest and Abstention from Voting Because of Certain Types of Conflicts; Effect of Abstention on Quorum and Voting Requirements; Exceptions

  1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a public officer or employee shall not approve, disapprove, vote, abstain from voting or otherwise act upon a matter:
    1. (a) Regarding which the public officer or employee has accepted a gift or loan;
    2. (b) In which the public officer or employee has a significant pecuniary interest;
    3. (c) Which would reasonably be affected by the public officer’s or employee’s commitment in a private capacity to the interests of another person; or
    4. (d) Which would reasonably be related to the nature of any representation or counseling that the public officer or employee provided to a private person for compensation before another agency within the immediately preceding year, provided such representation or counseling is permitted by NRS 281A.410,
      1. without disclosing information concerning the gift or loan, the significant pecuniary interest, the commitment in a private capacity to the interests of the other person or the nature of the representation or counseling of the private person that is sufficient to inform the public of the potential effect of the action or abstention upon the person who provided the gift or loan, upon the public officer’s or employee’s significant pecuniary interest, upon the person to whom the public officer or employee has a commitment in a private capacity or upon the private person who was represented or counseled by the public officer or employee. Such a disclosure must be made at the time the matter is considered. If the public officer or employee is a member of a body which makes decisions, the public officer or employee shall make the disclosure in public to the chair and other members of the body. If the public officer or employee is not a member of such a body and holds an appointive office, the public officer or employee shall make the disclosure to the supervisory head of the public officer’s or employee’s organization or, if the public officer holds an elective office, to the general public in the area from which the public officer is elected.
  2. The provisions of subsection 1 do not require a public officer to disclose:
    1. (a) Any campaign contributions that the public officer reported in a timely manner pursuant to NRS 294A.120 or 294A.125; or
    2. (b) Any contributions to a legal defense fund that the public officer reported in a timely manner pursuant to NRS 294A.286.
  3. Except as otherwise provided in this section, in addition to the requirements of subsection 1, a public officer shall not vote upon or advocate the passage or failure of, but may otherwise participate in the consideration of, a matter with respect to which the independence of judgment of a reasonable person in the public officer’s situation would be materially affected by:
    1. (a) The public officer’s acceptance of a gift or loan;
    2. (b) The public officer’s significant pecuniary interest; or
    3. (c) The public officer’s commitment in a private capacity to the interests of another person.
  4. In interpreting and applying the provisions of subsection 3:
    1. (a) It must be presumed that the independence of judgment of a reasonable person in the public officer’s situation would not be materially affected by the public officer’s acceptance of a gift or loan, significant pecuniary interest or commitment in a private capacity to the interests of another person where the resulting benefit or detriment accruing to the public officer, or if the public officer has a commitment in a private capacity to the interests of another person, accruing to the other person, is not greater than that accruing to any other member of any general business, profession, occupation or group that is affected by the matter. The presumption set forth in this paragraph does not affect the applicability of the requirements set forth in subsection 1 relating to the duty of the public officer to make a proper disclosure at the time the matter is considered and in the manner required by subsection 1.
    2. (b) The Commission must give appropriate weight and proper deference to the public policy of this State which favors the right of a public officer to perform the duties for which the public officer was elected or appointed and to vote or otherwise act upon a matter, provided the public officer makes a proper disclosure at the time the matter is considered and in the manner required by subsection 1. Because abstention by a public officer disrupts the normal course of representative government and deprives the public and the public officer’s constituents of a voice in governmental affairs, the provisions of this section are intended to require abstention only in clear cases where the independence of judgment of a reasonable person in the public officer’s situation would be materially affected by the public officer’s acceptance of a gift or loan, significant pecuniary interest or commitment in a private capacity to the interests of another person.
  5. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 241.0355, if a public officer declares to the body or committee in which the vote is to be taken that the public officer will abstain from voting because of the requirements of this section, the necessary quorum to act upon and the number of votes necessary to act upon the matter, as fixed by any statute, ordinance or rule, is reduced as though the member abstaining were not a member of the body or committee.
  6. The provisions of this section do not, under any circumstances:
    1. (a) Prohibit a member of a local legislative body from requesting or introducing a legislative measure; or
    2. (b) Require a member of a local legislative body to take any particular action before or while requesting or introducing a legislative measure.
  7. The provisions of this section do not, under any circumstances, apply to State Legislators or allow the Commission to exercise jurisdiction or authority over State Legislators. The responsibility of a State Legislator to make disclosures concerning gifts, loans, interests or commitments and the responsibility of a State Legislator to abstain from voting upon or advocating the passage or failure of a matter are governed by the Standing Rules of the Legislative Department of State Government which are adopted, administered and enforced exclusively by the appropriate bodies of the Legislative Department of State Government pursuant to Section 6 of Article 4 of the Nevada Constitution.
  8. As used in this section, “public officer” and “public employee” do not include a State Legislator.

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 281A.420.

Extra Compensation for Official Duties

281A.400. General Requirements; Exceptions

  1. A public officer or employee shall not accept any salary, retainer, augmentation, expense allowance or other compensation from any private source, for the public officer or employee or any person to whom the public officer or employee has a commitment in a private capacity, for the performance of the public officer’s or employee’s duties as a public officer or employee.

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 281A.400(4).

281A.510. Public Officer or Employee Prohibited from Accepting or Receiving Honorarium; Penalty

  1. A public officer or public employee shall not accept or receive an honorarium.
  2. An honorarium paid on behalf of a public officer or public employee to a charitable organization from which the officer or employee does not derive any financial benefit is deemed not to be accepted or received by the officer or employee for the purposes of this section.
  3. This section does not prohibit:
    1. (a) The receipt of payment for work performed outside the normal course of a person’s public office or employment if the performance of that work is consistent with the applicable policies of the person’s public employer regarding supplemental employment.
    2. (b) The receipt of an honorarium by the spouse of a public officer or public employee if it is related to the spouse’s profession or occupation.
  4. As used in this section, “honorarium” means the payment of money or anything of value for an appearance or speech by the public officer or public employee in the officer’s or employee’s capacity as a public officer or public employee. The term does not include the payment of:
    1. (a) The actual and necessary costs incurred by the public officer or public employee, the officer’s or employee’s spouse or the officer’s or employee’s aid for transportation and for lodging and meals while the public officer or public employee is away from the officer’s or employee’s residence.
    2. (b) Compensation which would otherwise have been earned by the public officer or public employee in the normal course of the officer’s or employee’s public office or employment.
    3. (c) A fee for a speech related to the officer’s or employee’s profession or occupation outside of the officer’s or employee’s public office or employment if:
      1. Other members of the profession or occupation are ordinarily compensated for such a speech; and
      2. The fee paid to the public officer or public employee is approximately the same as the fee that would be paid to a member of the private sector whose qualifications are similar to those of the officer or employee for a comparable speech.
    4. (d) A fee for a speech delivered to an organization of legislatures, legislators or other elected officers.
  5. In addition to any other penalties provided by law, a public officer or public employee who violates the provisions of this section shall forfeit the amount of the honorarium.

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 281A.510.

Gift Regardless of Giver Status

No current state statute or regulation falls under the category of “Gift Regardless of Giver’s Status.”

Gift from Lobbyist or Regulated Entity

  1. A lobbyist shall not knowingly or willfully give any gift to a member of the Legislative Branch or a member of his or her immediate family or otherwise directly or indirectly arrange, facilitate or serve as a conduit for such a gift, whether or not the Legislature is in a regular or special session.
  2. A member of the Legislative Branch or a member of his or her immediate family shall not knowingly or willfully solicit or accept any gift from a lobbyist, whether or not the Legislature is in a regular or special session.

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 218H.930(2), (3).

Definitions and Exceptions

Gift Defined and Definition Exceptions

  1. “Gift” means any payment, conveyance, forbearance, subscription, pledge or rendering of money, services or anything else of value, unless consideration of equal or greater value is received. transfer, distribution, deposit, advance, loan,
  2. The term does not include:
    1. (a) Any political contribution of money or services related to a political campaign.
    2. (b) Any commercially reasonable loan made in the ordinary course of business.
    3. (c) Anything of value provided for an educational or informational meeting, event or trip.
    4. (d) The cost of a party, meal, function or other social event to which every Legislator is invited, including, without limitation, the cost of food or beverages provided at the party, meal, function or other social event. For the purposes of this paragraph, there is a presumption that every Legislator is invited if the party, meal, function or other social event is held at any governmental building, facility or other property or the invitation for or notice of the party, meal, function or other social event indicates that it is a legislative event.
    5. (e) Any ceremonial gifts received for a birthday, wedding, anniversary, holiday or other ceremonial occasion from a donor who is not a lobbyist.
    6. (f) Anything of value received from a person who is:
      1. Related to the recipient, or to the spouse or domestic partner of the recipient, by blood, adoption, marriage or domestic partnership within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity; or
      2. A member of the recipient’s household.
    7. (g) Anything of value received by a person as part of his or her bona fide employment or service as an employee or independent contractor or otherwise paid for or reimbursed to the person as part of his or her bona fide employment or service as an employee or independent contractor.

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 218H.060.

Notes/Resources

Resource(s)

Ethics in Government Manual for Nevada Public Officers and Public Employees: NRS 281A (July 2014)

Learn more about state gift laws