Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A) Each county family services agency (CFSA)
and Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) local
area shall maintain written standards of conduct covering conflicts of
interest and governing the performance of their officers and employees engaged
in awarding, recommending, approving, monitoring, administering contracts,
other purchases of goods and services, and sub-awards. The
CFSA and WIOA
local area are responsible for the conduct of agents who are not CFSA and
WIOA local area
employees. For the purpose of this rule, an "agent" is anyone that is
acting on behalf of an agency in awarding, recommending, approving, monitoring,
administering contracts, other purchases of goods and services, and
sub-awards. The CFSA and WIOA local area
shall also ensure that this code governs the conduct of such agents.
(B) The CFSA and WIOA local area
shall provide a copy of the written standards of conduct to each employee or
agent engaged in awarding or administering contracts and shall ensure that such
employees and agents receive sufficient training to understand how to apply the
written standards of conduct.
(C)
The CFSA's and WIOA local area's written standards of conduct shall
at a minimum comply with the following federal and state requirements:
(1) All provisions included in
2 C.F.R.
200.318,
2 C.F.R.
400.2(b),
29
C.F.R. 97.36(b)(3), and
45 C.F.R.
75.327(c); and
(2) Chapter 102. and sections
187.01,
2921.42,
and
2921.43
of the Revised Code.
(D)
In addition to meeting the requirements of state and federal law listed in
paragraph (C) of this rule, the CFSA's and WIOA local
area's written standards of conduct shall, at a minimum, include all of
the following requirements and prohibitions.
(1) The CFSA and WIOA local area
employees or agents shall not solicit or accept gratuities, favors, or anything
of value, as defined in section
102.01
of the Revised Code from anyone doing business with or seeking to do business
with, or regulated by the agency, including:
(a) Contractors and potential contractors;
(b)
Sub-recipients and potential
Sub-recipients.
(2) The CFSA and WIOA local area
employees or agents shall not participate in the following contract, purchase,
or grant related activities if a real, potential, or apparent conflict of
interest could arise:
(a)
Selections;
(b) Award
recommendations;
(c)
Approval;
(d) Monitoring;
and
(e) Administering contract,
purchase, or grant.
(3)
A conflict of interest could arise when the entities listed in paragraphs
(D)(3) (a) to (D)(3)(c) of this rule have a financial, personal, or other
interest in the individual or company selected for the award of a contract,
purchase, or grant in the following instances:
(a) The employee or agent or any member of
his or her immediate family as defined in division (D) of section
102.01
of the Revised Code;
(b) The
partner or business associate of the employee or agent; or
(c) Any person or organization that employs
or is about to employ the employee or agent, a member of his or her immediate
family, his or her partner or business associates.
(4) The written standards of conduct shall
ensure that each CFSA and WIOA local area employee or agent engaged in awarding,
recommending, approving, or administering a CFSA and WIOA local area
contract, purchase, or grant receives a copy of the Ohio ethics commission's
Ohio ethics law (Chapter 102. of the Revised Code). The written standards of
conduct shall advise such employees and agents on the following information:
(a) How to obtain educational information
related to Ohio ethics law;
(b) The
identification of the contact person in the CFSA, WIOA local
area or the prosecuting attorney's
office for any employee who is unsure as to whether any particular course of
conduct violates the requirements of the CFSA's or WIOA local
area's standards of conduct or Ohio's ethics law; and
(c) Employees/agents may discuss concerns on
the telephone or obtain an advisory opinion from the Ohio ethics commission.
The advice should be obtained before the employee engages in the
conduct.
(5) CFSA and
WIOA local
area employees are prohibited from selling or attempting to sell any
goods or services to the Ohio department of job and family services (ODJFS), a
county department of job and family services (CDJFS), a public children's
services agency (PCSA), a child support enforcement agency (CSEA), a
WIOA local
area or an Ohio means jobs center agency
with whom they are employed or otherwise affiliated.
(6) CFSA and WIOA local area
employees are prohibited from soliciting or accepting employment from anyone
doing business with such agencies unless the employee completely withdraws,
with the agency's approval, from the CFSA or WIOA local area
activities regarding the party offering employment.
(7) CFSA and WIOA local area
employees and the employee's immediate family members and business associates
are prohibited from benefiting from any contract, purchase, or grant authorized
or approved by the CFSA and WIOA local area unless all criteria established by
section
2921.42
of the Revised Code are met.
(8)
CFSA and WIOA
local area employees are prohibited from voting, authorizing,
recommending, or in any other way using his or her position to secure approval
of a CFSA and WIOA local area contract, purchase or grant in which any of the following have any
interest:
(a) Employee;
(b) A member of the employee's immediate
family; or
(c) Anyone with whom the
employee has a business or employment relationship.
(9) CFSA employees,
WIOA local
area employees, and previous employees that have left public employment
for twelve months or less shall not act in a representative capacity, in any
manner, before a public agency on behalf of any contractor or other person on
any matter in which the employee personally participated in any of the
following activities:
(a) Decisions;
(b) Approvals or disapprovals;
(c) Recommendations; or
(d) Other substantial exercise of
administrative discretion.
(10) Any contractor or grantee acting on
behalf of the CFSA or WIOA local area is prohibited from activities that
could result in violations of this rule. A contractor, grantee, individual,
company, or organization seeking a contract or grant or seeking to sell goods
or services to a CFSA and WIOA local area shall not:
(a) Promise or give to any CFSA and
WIOA local
area employee anything of value, including employment or promise of
employment within the scope of his or her job duties; nor
(b) Ask a CFSA and WIOA local area
employee to violate any of the standards of conduct requirements.
(11) A CFSA and
WIOA local
area shall reserve the right to exercise civil remedies against a
contractor that violates paragraph (D)(10) of this rule. Any contractor,
sub-grantee, or potential contractor or potential sub-grantee who violates the
requirements and prohibitions of paragraph (C)(2) or (D)(10) of this rule is
subject to the following actions:
(a) The CFSA
and WIOA local
area may refuse to enter into a contract;
(b) Contract termination; or
(c) Prosecution.
(12) Employees, contractors and sub-recipients
who violate the prohibitions or requirements in paragraph (C)(2) of this rule
may be prosecuted for criminal violations.
(13) The signature of any CFSA and
WIOA local
area employee on the following documents shall be considered to be a
certification that he or she has complied with the requirements and
prohibitions of this rule:
(a)
Requisitions;
(b) Invoices;
and
(c) Documents requesting or
approving the purchase of or payment for goods and services.
(E) When a CSFA or
WIOA local
area employee, agent, or contractor violates the standards of conduct,
the CFSA and WIOA local area shall enforce the requirements
contained in the agency's written standards governing the following:
(1) Penalties;
(2) Sanctions; and
(3) Disciplinary actions including
suspensions and removal.
(F) All CFSA and WIOA local area
contracts and sub-awards shall contain the following provisions:
(1) The contractor or grantee shall not
promise or give to any CFSA or WIOA local area anything of value that is of such
character as to manifest a substantial and improper influence upon the employee
with respect to his or her duties;
(2) The contractor or grantee agrees that it
shall not solicit a CFSA or WIOA local area employee to violate the county
agency's standards of conduct or prohibitions or requirements in paragraph
(C)(2) of this rule; and
(3) The
contractor or grantee shall not engage in direct or indirect conflicts of
interest.
(G) The CFSA
and WIOA local
area contract or grant shall also include the following:
(1) A certification by the contractor or
grantee that it is in compliance with and will maintain compliance with the
requirements described in paragraph (C)(2) of this rule;
(2) Portions of the CFSA's and
WIOA local
area's standards of conduct applicable to contractors and
Sub-recipients; and
(3) A provision stating that the contractor
or grantee shall promptly notify the CFSA and WIOA local area of
any newly arising conflicts of interest or potential violations of state ethics
law.
