1999 Legislation
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SENATE BILL NO. 1005 – Gov’t ethics/official action define

SENATE BILL NO. 1005

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Daily Data Tracking History



S1005................................................by JUDICIARY AND RULES
GOVERNMENT ETHICS - Amends existing law relating to the Ethics in
Government Act to change the term "administrative action" to "official
action."

01/19    Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
01/20    Rpt prt - to Jud
02/08    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/09    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
02/10    3rd rdg - PASSED - 33-0-2
      AYES--Andreason, Branch, Bunderson, Burtenshaw, Cameron, Crow,
      Danielson, Darrington, Deide, Dunklin, Frasure, Geddes, Hawkins,
      Ingram, Ipsen, Keough, King, Lee, McLaughlin, Noh, Parry, Richardson,
      Riggs, Risch, Sandy, Schroeder, Sorensen, Stegner, Stennett, Thorne,
      Twiggs, Wheeler, Whitworth
      NAYS--None
      Absent and excused--Boatright, Davis
    Floor Sponsor - Dunklin
    Title apvd - to House
02/11    House intro - 1st rdg - to Jud
03/10    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/11    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/16    3rd rdg - PASSED - 58-0-12
      AYES -- Alltus, Barrett, Bell, Bieter, Bruneel, Callister, Campbell,
      Chase, Clark, Crow, Cuddy, Deal, Ellsworth, Field(13), Field(20),
      Gagner, Geddes, Gould, Hadley, Hammond, Hansen(23), Hansen(29),
      Henbest, Hornbeck, Jaquet, Judd, Kellogg, Kempton, Kendell, Kunz,
      Lake, Linford, Mader, Marley, McKague, Meyer(Duncan), Moyle,
      Pischner, Pomeroy, Reynolds, Ridinger, Ringo, Robison, Sali,
      Schaefer, Sellman, Smith, Smylie, Stevenson, Stoicheff, Stone,
      Taylor, Tilman, Tippets, Watson, Wheeler, Williams, Zimmermann
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Barraclough, Black, Boe, Denney, Jones,
      Limbaugh, Loertscher, Montgomery, Mortensen, Trail, Wood, Mr Speaker
    Floor Sponsor - Judd
    Title apvd - to Senate
03/17    To enrol - rpt enrol - Pres signed
03/18    Sp signed
03/19    To Governor
03/23    Governor signed
         Session Law Chapter 145
         Effective: 07/01/99

Bill Text


S1005


                                                                        
 ||||              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ||||
Fifty-fifth Legislature                 First Regular Session - 1999
                                                                        

                                      IN THE SENATE

                                   SENATE BILL NO. 1005

                             BY JUDICIARY AND RULES COMMITTEE

 1                                        AN ACT
 2    RELATING TO THE ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT ACT OF  1990;  AMENDING  SECTION  59-703,
 3        IDAHO  CODE,  TO  CHANGE  THE  DEFINED  TERM  "ADMINISTRATIVE  ACTION"  TO
 4        "OFFICIAL ACTION" AND TO MAKE A TECHNICAL CORRECTION.

 5    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:

 6        SECTION  1.  That  Section  59-703, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
 7    amended to read as follows:

 8        59-703.  DEFINITIONS. For purposes of this chapter:
 9        (1)  " Administrative  Official  action"  means  any
10    decision  on,  or proposal, consideration, enactment, defeat, or making of any
11    rule, regulation, rate-making proceeding or policy action or  nonaction  by  a
12    governmental  body  or  any  other  policy matter which is within the official
13    jurisdiction of the governmental body.
14        (2)  "Business" means any undertaking operated for economic gain,  includ-
15    ing,  but  not  limited to, a corporation, partnership, trust, proprietorship,
16    firm, association or joint venture.
17        (3)  "Business with which a public official is associated" means any busi-
18    ness of which the public official or member of his household  is  a  director,
19    officer,  owner,  partner, employee or holder of stock over five thousand dol-
20    lars ($5,000) or more at fair market value.
21        (4)  "Conflict of interest" means any official action or any  decision  or
22    recommendation  by  a  person  acting  in a capacity as a public official, the
23    effect of which would be to the private pecuniary benefit of the person  or  a
24    member  of  the  person's  household, or a business with which the person or a
25    member of the person's household is associated, unless the  pecuniary  benefit
26    arises out of the following:
27        (a)  An interest or membership in a particular business, industry, occupa-
28        tion or class required by law as a prerequisite to the holding by the per-
29        son of the office or position;
30        (b)  Any  action  in  the person's official capacity which would affect to
31        the same degree a class consisting of an industry or occupation  group  in
32        which  the  person, or a member of the person's household or business with
33        which the person is associated, is a member or is engaged;
34        (c)  Any interest which the person has by virtue of his profession,  trade
35        or  occupation  where his interest would be affected to the same degree as
36        that of a substantial group or class of others similarly  engaged  in  the
37        profession, trade or occupation;
38        (d)  Any  action by a public official upon any revenue measure, any appro-
39        priation measure or any measure imposing a tax,  when  similarly  situated
40        members of the general public are affected by the outcome of the action in
41        a substantially similar manner and degree.
42        (5)  "Economic  gain" means increase in pecuniary value from sources other
43    than lawful compensation as a public official.


                                      2

 1        (6)  "Governmental entity" means:
 2        (a)  The state of Idaho and all agencies, commissions and other governmen-
 3        tal bodies of the state; and
 4        (b)  Counties and municipalities of the state of Idaho, all other  politi-
 5        cal  subdivisions  including, but not limited to, highway districts, plan-
 6        ning and zoning commissions or governmental bodies not  specifically  men-
 7        tioned in this chapter.
 8        (7)  "Members  of a household" mean s  the spouse and dependent
 9    children of the public official and/or persons whom  the  public  official  is
10    legally obligated to support.
11        (8)  "Person"  means  an individual, proprietorship, partnership, associa-
12    tion, trust, estate, business trust, group or  corporation,  whether  operated
13    for profit or not, and any other legal entity, or agent or servant thereof, or
14    a governmental entity.
15        (9)  "Public  office"  means  any  position  in which the normal and usual
16    duties are conducted on behalf of a governmental entity.
17        (10)  "Public official" means any person holding public office in the fol-
18    lowing capacity:
19        (a)  As an elected public  official  meaning  any  person  holding  public
20        office of a governmental entity by virtue of an elected process, including
21        persons  appointed  to  a  vacant elected office of a governmental entity,
22        excluding members of the judiciary; or
23        (b)  As an elected legislative public official meaning any person  holding
24        public office as a legislator; or
25        (c)  As  an  appointed  public  official meaning any person holding public
26        office of a  governmental  entity  by  virtue  of  formal  appointment  as
27        required by law; or
28        (d)  As  an  employed  public  official  meaning any person holding public
29        office of a governmental entity by  virtue  of  employment,  or  a  person
30        employed by a governmental entity on a consultive basis.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact


                       STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

                             RS 08533

This bill is one of a series of bills that the Justices of
the Supreme Court transmitted to the Governor in their annual
"defects in the law" report under Art. 5, Sec. 25 of the Idaho
Constitution.

The Ethics in Government Act of l990 defines several terms
in I.C.  59-703 to aid in its interpretation. One of the terms
defined in this section is "administrative action,"  but this term
does not appear in any other section of the Act. Conversely, the
term "official action" appears in I.C.  59-703(4) and 59-704 of
the Act but is not defined and therefore lacks a clearly
expressed legislative meaning.

This bill amends I.C.  59-703(l) of the definition section
to change the descriptive term "administrative action" to
uofficial actionN to give meaning to the latter term as used in
the substantive provisions of the Act.

                            FISCAL NOTE

This bill will not have an impact on state or local funds.

Contact Person: 
Patricia Tobias 
Administrative Director of the Courts 
Idaho Supreme Court 
(208) 334-2246

                                              Statement of Purpose/Fiscal Note    S1005