§ 4303 — Financial and employment interests

(a) Financial interests.--Except as may be provided for the judiciary by rule or order of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, an executive-level public employee, public official or party officer, or an immediate family member thereof, shall not intentionally or knowingly hold a financial interest in an applicant or a licensee, or in a holding company, affiliate, intermediary or subsidiary thereof, while the individual is an executive-level public employee, public official or party officer and for one year following termination of the individual's status as an executive-level public employee, public official or party officer.

(b) Employment.--Except as may be provided by rule or order of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and except as provided in section 1202.1 (relating to code of conduct) or 4304 (relating to additional restrictions), no executive-level public employee, public official or party officer, or an immediate family member thereof, shall be employed by an applicant or licensee, or by a holding company, affiliate, intermediary or subsidiary thereof, while the individual is an executive-level public employee, public official or party officer and for one year following termination of the individual's status as an executive-level public employee, public official or party officer.

(c) Complimentary services.--

(1) No executive-level public employee, public official or party officer, or an immediate family member thereof, shall solicit or accept a complimentary service from an applicant or licensee, or from an affiliate, intermediary, subsidiary or holding company thereof, which the executive-level public employee, public official or party officer, or an immediate family member thereof, knows or has reason to know is other than a service or discount which is offered to members of the general public in like circumstances.

(2) No applicant or licensee, or an affiliate, intermediary, subsidiary or holding company thereof, shall offer or deliver to an executive-level public employee, public official or party officer, or an immediate family member thereof, a complimentary service from the applicant or licensee, or an affiliate, intermediary, subsidiary or holding company thereof, that the applicant or licensee, or an affiliate, intermediary, subsidiary or holding company thereof, knows or has reason to know is other than a service or discount that is offered to members of the general public in like circumstances.

(d) Grading.--An individual who violates this section commits a misdemeanor of the third degree and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 or to imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.

(e) Divestiture.--

(1) An executive-level public employee, public official or party officer, or an immediate family member thereof, who holds a financial interest prohibited by this section shall divest the financial interest within three months of the effective date of this section, as applicable.

(2) An executive-level public employee, public official, party officer or immediate family member shall have 30 days from the date the individual knew or had reason to know of the violation or 30 days from the publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin under section 3301(b)(12) (relating to powers of board) of the application or licensure of the executive-level public employee, public official, party officer or immediate family member, whichever occurs earlier, to divest the financial interest.

(3) The State Ethics Commission may, for good cause, extend the time period under this subsection.

(f) State Ethics Commission.--The State Ethics Commission shall do all of the following:

(1) (i) Issue a written determination of whether a person is subject to subsection (a), (b) or (c) upon the written request of the person or another person that may have liability for an action taken with respect to the person.

(ii) A person that relies in good faith on a determination made under this paragraph shall not be subject to penalty for an action taken, provided that all material facts specified in the request for the determination are correct.

(2) (i) Publish a list of all State, county, municipal and other government positions that meet the definitions of "public official" as defined under subsection (g) or "executive-level public employee" as defined under section 3102 (relating to definitions).

(ii) The Office of Administration shall assist the State Ethics Commission in the development of the list, which list shall be published by the State Ethics Commission in the Pennsylvania Bulletin biennially and posted by the board on the board's publicly accessible Internet website.

(iii) Upon request, a public official shall provide the State Ethics Commission with adequate information to accurately develop and maintain the list.

(iv) The State Ethics Commission may impose a civil penalty under 65 Pa.C.S. § 1109(f) (relating to penalties) upon an individual, including a public official or executive-level public employee, who fails to cooperate with the State Ethics Commission under this subsection.

(v) A person that relies in good faith on the list published by the State Ethics Commission shall not be subject to penalty for a violation of this section.

(g) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Applicant."A person applying for a manufacturer license, supplier license or terminal operator license under this part.

"Financial interest."Owning or holding, or being deemed to hold, debt or equity securities or other ownership interest or profits interest. A financial interest shall not include a debt or equity security, or other ownership interest or profits interest, which is held or deemed to be held in any of the following:

(1) A blind trust over which the executive-level public employee, public official, party officer or immediate family member thereof may not exercise any managerial control or receive income during the tenure of office and the period under subsection (a). The provisions of this paragraph shall apply only to blind trusts established prior to the effective date of this section.

(2) Securities that are held in a pension plan, profit-sharing plan, individual retirement account, tax-sheltered annuity, a plan established pursuant to section 457 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (Public Law 99-514, 26 U.S.C. § 1 et seq.) or a successor provision deferred compensation plan whether qualified or not qualified under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or any successor provision or other retirement plan that:

(i) is not self-directed by the individual; and

(ii) is advised by an independent investment adviser who has sole authority to make investment decisions with respect to contributions made by the individual to these plans.

(3) A tuition account plan organized and operated under section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is not self-directed by the individual.

(4) A mutual fund where the interest owned by the mutual fund in a licensed entity does not constitute a controlling interest as defined in this part.

"Immediate family."A spouse, minor child or unemancipated child.

"Licensee."A manufacturer licensee, supplier licensee or a terminal operator licensee.

"Party officer."A member of a national committee; a chairperson, vice chairperson, secretary, treasurer or counsel of a State committee or member of the executive committee of a State committee; a county chairperson, vice chairperson, counsel, secretary or treasurer of a county committee in which a licensed facility is located; or a city chairperson, vice chairperson, counsel, secretary or treasurer of a city committee of a city in which a licensed facility is located.

"Public official."The term shall include the following:

(1) The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, a member of the Governor's cabinet, State Treasurer, Auditor General and Attorney General of the Commonwealth.

(2) A member of the Senate or House of Representatives of the Commonwealth.

(3) An individual elected or appointed to an office of a county or municipality that directly receives a distribution of revenue under this part.

(4) An individual elected or appointed to a department, agency, board, commission, authority or other governmental body not included in paragraph (1), (2) or (3) that directly receives a distribution of revenue under this part.

(5) An individual elected or appointed to a department, agency, board, commission, authority, county, municipality or other governmental body not included in paragraph (1), (2) or (3) with discretionary power that may influence or affect the outcome of an action or decision and who is involved in the development of regulation or policy relating to a licensed entity or is involved in other matters under this part.