CITY OF GRANTS, N.M. – The City of Grants was established by and for the people who live in the city. The city was established thanks to the charter which creates controls and holds on the power of city government. It does this by creating the government with the intention of working on behalf of all the people in the city.
The charter establishes the three branches of government, how division and department heads are created and designated, the process for selecting people to head those departments and divisions, how vacancies in appointed positions may be filled, it declares how city council districts work, and the process surrounding various elections in the city.
Article VIII: CONFLICT OF INTEREST; ETHICS
Article VIII is one of the shortest, having only three sections, each with a series of subsections. This article explores the different types of conflicts of interest, and how to handle them when they arise. This article explains that by following the conflict-of-interest rules, the city will be in line ethically with this charter.
Section One: Conflict of Interest
Section One has eight subsections; Subsection A is just an explanation of different terms which explain who the conflict-of-interest section affects. Primarily, this whole section is a marriage of the New Mexico’s Gift Law, which prohibits gifts being given to elected officials, and the New Mexico’s Anti-Donation clause, which is part of the state constitution which bars government from giving their credit – items, support (finically or otherwise), money, or any other kind of uncontracted thing – to an individual or business without a contract in place where the government and the overall people will benefit from the arrangement. This section primarily affects the elected employees of the city (mayor, councilors), and the appointed employees (manager, department, and division heads).
Subsection B details what happens when a councilor or the mayor has a conflict of interest over something that requires a council vote.
1. The mayor or any councilor with a conflict of interest must disclose that issue before the vote. The clerk must record the conflict of interest in the minutes for that meeting.
2. The mayor or councilor(s) with a conflict of interest is not allowed to vote on any action item in which they have declared a conflict.
Subsection C: all voting members in the city, whether they are part of the governing body, an advisory committee, or are in any other form of authority where they may vote on something, must first disclose when they have a conflict of interest on an item they are supposed to be voting on. The affected person will have to disclose this conflict of interest to the governing body and will have their conflict of interest recorded in the minutes for that meeting. This subsection has a title calling it the “Disqualification” section. However, this subsection does not explicitly disqualify affected person from voting on an action item in which they have a conflict of interest; councilors and the mayor are already disqualified from voting on items in which they have a conflict of interest thanks to Subsection B above.
Subsection D allows the governing body to enact an ordinance which details all their conflicts of interest, at which point the governing body can determine whether it is acceptable for a member to vote on items in which they have declared a conflict. This is the only exemption made and can only be used when the governing body has disclosed their personal interests and potential conflicts to the people of the city at the beginning of the fiscal year (the first regular meeting of the city council following June 30).
Subsection E denies all elected officials, employees, and advisory board members from receiving or asking for a gift or loan – for themselves or anyone else – if,
1. The gift or loan is meant to influence that person’s decision or vote.
2. The gift-receiver has done business with the gift-giver in the last two years.
3. The gift-receiver knows the gift will be leveraged in the future by the gift-giver to have an action item passed, or to improve someone’s official position.
Subsection F allows all elected officials, employees, and advisory board members to accept or receive gifts if,
1. The gift is worthless, meaning without monetary value.
2. The award is presented as a thank you for public/community service.
3. The laws of the State of New Mexico allow for the gift-receiver to accept the gift or loan as reasonable under traditional business (like buying a car).
4. The gift or loan is a campaign contribution that is used for campaigning and nothing else.
Subsection G denies the city the ability to enter a contract with a current elected official’s business, and former elected official’s business unless it has been more than one year that the official in question served the city, unless
1. The financial conflict of interest has been previously disclosed.
2. The contract is bid out and is kept sealed or given appropriate public notice with the ability for competitive bidding.
Subsection H is a demand that the governing body adopt an ordinance to ensure that this entire section of the charter is enforced.
Section Two: Holding Other Office
This section is made up of four subsections which affect only the elected officials of the city.
Subsection A declares that the mayor, nor any councilor, nor the municipal judge may hold another elected position in the state unless explicitly allowed by New Mexico state law. If other elected positions are ever created within the city, this subsection would also affect those new elected positions.
Subsection B prohibits all elected officials in the city from being employed by the city in any capacity other than their elected position. This means, hypothetically, the mayor cannot also be working for the road department.
Subsection C establishes that any employee running for an elected position within the city must take off no more than 14-days (using either vacation time, paid leave, or resigning) before election day. This is theoretically done to ensure that campaigning does not interfere with that employee’s job performance.
Subsection D declares that no employee may use their time at work to campaign, raise campaign funds, or engage in any political activity regarding the municipal election which they are involved in during their time on the clock.
Subsection E demands that the governing body pass an ordinance which will enforce the rules established in this article.
There is only one article left to explore in the city charter - the article detailing the city’s compliance with the charter. For an exceptionally long time up until January of last year, and occasionally between then and now, the city has had to declare that they were out of compliance with the charter. The final article – Article IX of the Grants City Charter, explores how the city is meant to ensure its compliance with the charter. It explores what citizens can do to keep the government in line, and what the government must do to keep itself in line.