GBEBC Gifts To and Solicitations By Staff

GBEBC

GIFTS TO AND SOLICITATIONS BY STAFF

The acceptance of gifts worth fifty dollars ($50) or more by school personnel in the calendar year in which the gifts are given because of the position they hold, or because of some action the recipient could take or has taken in his or her public role, violates the conflict of interest law. Acceptance of gifts worth less than fifty dollars ($50), while not prohibited by the conflict of interest law, may require a written public disclosure to be made.

In keeping with this policy, no employee of the Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School District will accept a gift worth fifty dollars ($50) or more that is given because of the employee’s public position, or anything that the employee could do or has done in his or her public position. Gifts worth less than fifty dollars ($50) may be accepted, but a written disclosure to the employee’s appointing authority (or in the case of School Committee, publically disclosed and entered into the minutes of a regularly scheduled meeting) must be made if the gift and the circumstances in which it was given could cause a reasonable person to think that the employee could be improperly influenced. The value of personal gifts accepted is aggregated over a calendar year (4 gifts of $20 value is the same as 1 gift of $80 if given in the same calendar year).

No employee of the School District will accept a personal gift from a business concern supplying, or with an interest in supplying, goods, materials, equipment, or services to the school system. This restriction does not preclude the acceptance of gifts for the school system, nor to the acceptance of small and clearly identifiable advertising and promotional materials.

In general, homemade gifts without an easily identifiable retail value are permissible because a reasonable person would not expect an employee would unduly show favor to the giver, so no disclosure is required. Such gifts could include homemade food items (cookies, candy, etc), handpicked flowers, and handmade craft items.

Class/Activity Gifts

There is a specific exception to the prohibition against accepting gifts worth fifty dollars ($50) or more, when the employee knows only that the gift is from the class/activity, not from specific donors. A single class/activity gift per calendar year valued up to one hundred fifty ($150) or several class/activity gifts in a single year with a total value up to one hundred fifty ($150) from parents and students in a class/activity may be accepted provided the gift is identified only as being from the class/activity and the names of the givers and the amounts given are not identified to the recipient. The recipient may not accept an individual gift from someone who contributed to the class/activity gift. It is the responsibility of the employee to confirm that the individual offering such gift did not contribute to the class/activity gift.

Gifts for School Use

Gifts given to an employee solely for classroom use or to purchase classroom supplies are not considered gifts to an individual employee and are not subject to the fifty dollar ($50) limit. However, an employee who accepts such gifts must keep receipts documenting that money or gift cards were used for classroom supplies.

Solicitations

In spirit, the School Committee supports the many worthwhile charitable drives that take place in the community and is gratified when school employees give them their support. However, the conflict of interest law prohibits the solicitation of funds from staff members through the use of school personnel and school time. Therefore, no solicitations of funds for charitable purposes should be made among staff members. Whenever such solicitations are made, no pressure will be exerted to obtain contributions even though the drive is one that the building Principal or the Superintendent has specifically approved.

Staff members, of course, remain free to support charitable causes of their own selection.

SOURCE: MASC

LEGAL REF: M.G.L. 268A:3; 268A:23; 930 CMR 5.00

CROSS REF: GBEA Staff Ethics / Conflict of Interest

First Reading: 4/11/17 Second Reading: 4/25/17 ADOPTED: 5/9/17