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1 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: April 14, 2022 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 2 <br /> SUBJECT: Discussion on Board Members Voting on County Funding for, or Contracts with, <br /> a Non-Profit While Serving on a Non-Profit's Governing Board <br /> DEPARTMENT: County Attorney <br /> ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br /> John Roberts, County Attorney, <br /> 919-245-2318 <br /> PURPOSE: To discuss and consider options for addressing a new state law regarding BOCC <br /> members voting on County funding for, or contracts with, a non-profit while serving on a non- <br /> profit's governing board. <br /> BACKGROUND: The state adopted a new law last year prohibiting elected public officials from <br /> participating "in making or administering a contract, including the award of money in the form of a <br /> grant, loan, or other appropriation, with any nonprofit with which that public official is associated." <br /> The law describes the covered officials as those who serve on nonprofit boards or entities that <br /> are "organized or operating in the State primarily for religious, charitable, scientific, literary, public <br /> health and safety, or educational purposes and of which the public official is a director, officer, or <br /> governing board member." It further requires covered officials to recuse themselves from votes <br /> on funding for or contracts with these nonprofits. Since outside agencies are funded by County <br /> grants through contracts with those agencies, the determination of how much funding to give to <br /> individual outside agencies is most likely covered by this prohibitive language. Violation of this <br /> law is a Class 1 misdemeanor. The prohibition does not extend to nonprofits or other entities that <br /> are created by the state or a local government. <br /> This is a prohibition on individuals engaging in activity while serving as elected officials rather than <br /> a prohibition on the BOCC itself, and ultimately it will be up to covered commissioners to determine <br /> for themselves whether they may be in violation of the statute. As noted above, the statute <br /> requires covered commissioners to recuse themselves from voting on these matters presumably <br /> because each individual commissioner is in the best position to know on what outside boards that <br /> Board member sits. <br /> Although there may be other ways to address this issue, four options in order of the ease with <br /> which they may be implemented include: <br />