Page 39 - The Edge2023 - Spring

VENDOR/BUYER CONFERENCE

BY DON HARRIS
Jennifer MacLennan
What To Do if There Is a Conflict of Interest Possibility

If you have some question regarding a conflict of other than a remote interest. Remote interests are
interest, when in doubt, bow out. That’s the advice defined by statute and could include examples
of Jennifer MacLennan, an attorney with Gust such as serving on a nonprofit board or expensive
Rosenfeld, who spelled out in detail how conflict of reimbursements.
interest affects school district employees.
To determine if a substantial conflict exists, you
In a breakout session at the AASBO Vendor/Buyer may wish to ask:
Conference, MacLennan cited a court ruling that
“public officers must have no personal interests • If the decision could affect, positively or
in transactions with the government which they negatively, an interest of the employee or
represent.” dependent child?

She explained that conflict of interest laws are • Is the interest financial or ownership?
interrelated with the School Procurement Code
and Uniform Antitrust Act that are intended to • Is the interest not statutorily designated as a
protect and promote competition and ensure that remote interest?
vendors are competing on a fair and level playing
field. What’s more, these laws and rules enforce the MacLennan emphasized that a board member
principle that a school district should get the best or employee who has a conflict of interest as
value for the money. statutorily defined must not participate in any
way in the decision. “He or she must not make
“If you have to ask if you have a conflict, you may recommendations, give advice, or otherwise

have a problem,” MacLennan said. communicate in any manner with anyone involved
in the decision-making process,” she said.
Any public officer or employee of a public agency
who has, or whose relative has, a substantial interest A person convicted of intentionally or knowingly
in any decision of that agency, must disclose that violating any provision of Arizona Revised Statutes
interest in writing and refrain from voting on or 38-503 through 38-505 is guilty of a class 6 felony
otherwise participating in the decision, MacLennan and could forfeit their job, MacLennan said.
said. A relative includes spouse, child, child's Someone who recklessly or negligently violates
child, parent, grandparent, brother, sister, their any provision of those statutes is guilty of a class
spouses and others. Substantial interest means any 1 misdemeanor. In addition, a contract entered into
pecuniary or proprietary interest in a matter before by any public agency, including a school district, in
the Governing Board, either direct or indirect, violation of the conflict of interest statute, may be
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