Revised Code of Washington - RCW Title 42 Public Officers And Agencies - Chapter 42.52 Ethics In Public Service

42.52.010 Definitions
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter. (1) "Agency" means any state board, commission, bureau, committee, department, ...

42.52.020 Activities incompatible with public duties
No state officer or state employee may have an interest, financial or otherwise, direct or indirect, or engage in a business or transaction or professional ...

42.52.030 Financial interests in transactions
(1) No state officer or state employee, except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, may be beneficially interested, directly or indirectly, in a ...

42.52.040 Assisting in transactions
(1) Except in the course of official duties or incident to official duties, no state officer or state employee may assist another person, directly or ...

42.52.050 Confidential information -- Improperly concealed records
(1) No state officer or state employee may accept employment or engage in any business or professional activity that the officer or employee might reasonably ...

42.52.060 Testimony of state officers and state employees
This chapter does not prevent a state officer or state employee from giving testimony under oath or from making statements required to be made under ...

42.52.070 Special privileges
Except as required to perform duties within the scope of employment, no state officer or state employee may use his or her position to secure ...

42.52.080 Employment after public service
(1) No former state officer or state employee may, within a period of one year from the date of termination of state employment, accept employment ...

42.52.090 Limited assistance by former state officers and employees
This chapter shall not be construed to prevent a former state officer or state employee from rendering assistance to others if the assistance is provided ...

42.52.100 Conditions on appearance before state agencies or doing business with the state -- Hearing -- Judicial review
(1) The head of an agency, upon finding that any former state officer or state employee of such agency or any other person has violated ...

42.52.110 Compensation for official duties or nonperformance
No state officer or state employee may, directly or indirectly, ask for or give or receive or agree to receive any compensation, gift, reward, or ...

42.52.120 Compensation for outside activities
(1) No state officer or state employee may receive any thing of economic value under any contract or grant outside of his or her official ...

42.52.130 Honoraria
(1) No state officer or state employee may receive honoraria unless specifically authorized by the agency where they serve as state officer or state employee. ...

42.52.140 Gifts
No state officer or state employee may receive, accept, take, seek, or solicit, directly or indirectly, any thing of economic value as a gift, gratuity, ...

42.52.150 Limitations on gifts
(1) No state officer or state employee may accept gifts, other than those specified in subsections (2) and (5) of this section, with an aggregate ...

42.52.160 Use of persons, money, or property for private gain
(1) No state officer or state employee may employ or use any person, money, or property under the officer's or employee's official control or direction, ...

42.52.170 Giving, paying, loaning, etc., any thing of economic value to state employee
No person shall give, pay, loan, transfer, or deliver, directly or indirectly, to any other person any thing of economic value believing or having reason ...

42.52.180 Use of public resources for political campaigns
(1) No state officer or state employee may use or authorize the use of facilities of an agency, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of ...

42.52.185 Restrictions on mailings by legislators
(1) During the twelve-month period beginning on December 1st of the year before a general election for a state legislator's election to office and continuing ...

42.52.190 Investments
(1) Except for permissible investments as defined in this section, no state officer or state employee of any agency responsible for the investment of funds, ...

42.52.200 Agency rules
(1) Each agency may adopt rules consistent with law, for use within the agency to protect against violations of this chapter. (2) Each agency proposing ...

42.52.220 Universities -- Administrative processes
(1) Consistent with the state policy to encourage basic and applied scientific research by the state's research universities as stated in RCW 28B.140.005, each university ...

42.52.310 Legislative ethics board
(1) The legislative ethics board is created, composed of nine members, selected as follows: (a) Two senators, one from each of the two largest caucuses, ...

42.52.320 Authority of legislative ethics board
(1) The legislative ethics board shall enforce this chapter and rules adopted under it with respect to members and employees of the legislature. (2) The ...

42.52.330 Interpretation
By constitutional design, the legislature consists of citizen-legislators who bring to bear on the legislative process their individual experience and expertise. The provisions of this ...

42.52.340 Transfer of jurisdiction
On January 1, 1995, any complaints or other matters under investigation or consideration by the boards of legislative ethics in the house of representatives and ...

42.52.350 Executive ethics board
(1) The executive ethics board is created, composed of five members, appointed by the governor as follows: (a) One member shall be a classified service ...

42.52.360 Authority of executive ethics board
(1) The executive ethics board shall enforce this chapter and rules adopted under it with respect to statewide elected officers and all other officers and ...

42.52.370 Authority of commission on judicial conduct
The commission on judicial conduct shall enforce this chapter and rules adopted under it with respect to state officers and employees of the judicial branch ...

42.52.380 Political activities of board members
(1) No member of the executive ethics board may (a) hold or campaign for partisan elective office other than the position of precinct committeeperson, or ...

42.52.390 Hearing and subpoena authority
Except as otherwise provided by law, the ethics boards may hold hearings, subpoena witnesses, compel their attendance, administer oaths, take the testimony of a person ...

42.52.400 Enforcement of subpoena authority
In case of refusal to obey a subpoena issued to a person, the superior court of a county within the jurisdiction of which the investigation, ...

42.52.410 Filing complaint
(1) A person may, personally or by his or her attorney, make, sign, and file with the appropriate ethics board a complaint on a form ...

42.52.420 Investigation
(1) After the filing of any complaint, except as provided in RCW 42.52.450, the staff of the appropriate ethics board shall investigate the complaint. The ...

42.52.425 Dismissal of complaint
(1) Based on the investigation conducted under RCW 42.52.420 or 42.52.450, and subject to rules issued by each board, the board or the staff of ...

42.52.430 Public hearing -- Findings
(1) If the ethics board determines there is reasonable cause under RCW 42.52.420 that a violation of this chapter or rules adopted under it occurred, ...

42.52.440 Review of order
Except as otherwise provided by law, reconsideration or judicial review of an ethics board's order that a violation of this chapter or rules adopted under ...

42.52.450 Complaint against legislator or statewide elected official
(1) If a complaint alleges a violation of RCW 42.52.180 by a legislator or statewide elected official other than the attorney general, the attorney general ...

42.52.460 Citizen actions
Any person who has notified the appropriate ethics board and the attorney general in writing that there is reason to believe that RCW 42.52.180 is ...

42.52.470 Referral for enforcement
As appropriate, an ethics board may refer a complaint: (1) To an agency for initial investigation and proposed resolution which shall be referred back to ...

42.52.480 Action by boards
(1) Except as otherwise provided by law, an ethics board may order payment of the following amounts if it finds a violation of this chapter ...

42.52.490 Action by attorney general
(1) Upon a written determination by the attorney general that the action of an ethics board was clearly erroneous or if requested by an ethics ...

42.52.500 Optional hearings by administrative law judge
If an ethics board finds that there is reasonable cause to believe that a violation has occurred, the board shall consider the possibility of the ...

42.52.510 Rescission of state action
(1) The attorney general may, on request of the governor or the appropriate agency, and in addition to other available rights of rescission, bring an ...

42.52.520 Disciplinary action
(1) A violation of this chapter or rules adopted under it is grounds for disciplinary action. (2) The procedures for any such action shall correspond ...

42.52.530 Additional investigative authority
In addition to other authority under this chapter, the attorney general may investigate persons not under the jurisdiction of an ethics board whom the attorney ...

42.52.540 Limitations period
Any action taken under this chapter must be commenced within five years from the date of the violation. However, if it is shown that the ...

42.52.550 Compensation of ethics boards
The citizen members of the legislative ethics board and the members of the executive ethics board shall be compensated as provided in RCW 43.03.250 and ...

42.52.560 Communications from an employee organization or charitable organization -- Distribution by state employee
(1) Nothing in this chapter prohibits a state employee from distributing communications from an employee organization or charitable organization to other state employees if the ...

42.52.570 Private business activity policy -- Department of fish and wildlife -- Parks and recreation commission
(1) The department of fish and wildlife and the parks and recreation commission may approve private business activity in state-owned housing provided under Title 77 ...

42.52.800 Exemptions -- Solicitation for state capitol historic furnishings and preservation and restoration of state legislative building
(1) When soliciting charitable gifts, grants, or donations solely for the limited purposes of RCW 27.48.040, members of the capitol furnishings preservation committee are exempt ...

42.52.801 Exemption -- Solicitation to promote tourism
When soliciting charitable gifts, grants, or donations solely for the purposes of promoting the *expansion of tourism as provided for in RCW 43.330.090, state officers ...

42.52.802 Exemption -- Solicitation for Washington state legacy project, state library, and archives account
This chapter does not prohibit the secretary of state or a designee from soliciting and accepting contributions to the Washington state legacy project, state library, ...

42.52.803 Exemption -- Solicitation for legislative oral history account
This chapter does not prohibit the secretary of the senate, the chief clerk of the house of representatives, or their designee from soliciting and accepting ...

42.52.804 Exemption -- Health profession board or commission -- Professional opinions
Members of a health profession board or commission as identified in RCW 18.130.040(2)(b) may express their professional opinions to an elected official about the work ...

42.52.805 Solicitation for charitable activities of executive branch state employees -- Limitations -- Definitions
(1) When soliciting gifts, grants, or donations solely to support the charitable activities of executive branch state employees conducted pursuant to RCW 9.46.0209, the executive ...

42.52.810 Solicitation for the legislative international trade account -- Report
(1) When soliciting charitable gifts, grants, or donations solely for the legislative international trade account created in *RCW 44.04.270, the president of the senate is ...

42.52.820 Solicitation for hosting national legislative association conference
When soliciting gifts, grants, or donations to host an official conference within the state of Washington of a national legislative association as approved by both ...

42.52.900 Legislative declaration
Government derives its powers from the people. Ethics in government are the foundation on which the structure of government rests. State officials and employees of ...

42.52.901 Liberal construction
This chapter shall be construed liberally to effectuate its purposes and policy and to supplement existing laws as may relate to the same subject.[1994 c ...

42.52.902 Parts and captions not law -- 1994 c 154
Parts and captions used in this act do not constitute any part of the law.[1994 c 154 § 302.] ...

42.52.903 Serving on board, committee, or commission not prevented
Nothing in this chapter shall be interpreted to prevent a member of a board, committee, advisory commission, or other body required or permitted by statute ...

42.52.904 Effective date -- 1994 c 154
Sections 101 through 121, 203, 204, 207 through 224, and 301 through 317 of this act shall take effect January 1, 1995.[1994 c 154 § ...

42.52.905 Severability -- 1994 c 154
If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application ...