Gifts
Effective: Moved to Policy Library from UPM 2.5(4)
Contact: Office of General Counsel
Introduction
This policy is in accordance with conflict interest of public officers and employees from Chapter 68B, Code of Iowa.
Policy Statement
Employees of the University and the immediate family members shall not, directly or indirectly, solicit, accept, or receive from any one donor in any one-calendar day, a gift as defined below.
Employees of the University and immediate family members of each shall not, directly or indirectly, offer or make a gift as defined below to an official, employee, local official, local employee, member of the General Assembly, candidate, or legislative employee in any one calendar day.
Gifts Defined
A gift is a rendering of money, property, services, discount, loan forgiveness, payment of indebtedness, or anything else of value in return for which legal consideration of equal or greater value is not given and received, if the donor is in any of the following categories:
- Donor is doing or seeking to do business of any kind with the Board of Regents, State of Iowa or an institution it governs.
- Donor is engaged in activities that are regulated or controlled by the Board of Regents, State of Iowa or an institution it governs.
- Donor has interest that may be substantially and materially affected, in a manner distinguishable from the public generally, by the performance or nonperformance of the official duty of the Board or any of the Board's employees.
- Donor is a lobbyist with respect to matters within the jurisdiction of the State Board of Regents.
The definition of "gift" in Chapter 68B of the Iowa Code is written in terms of the government official or employees as the recipient of a gift. The statute also prohibits government officials or employees from making gift to officials or employees of other state agencies, in the circumstances described above. In such cases, the employee is the donor and the other state official or employee is the donee.
Gifts are not:
- Campaign contributions.
- Information material relevant to a public servant's official functions as an employee of the University. Examples of such material are books, pamphlets, reports, documents, or periodicals.
- Registration fees or tuition not including travel, at which the employee receives information relevant to the employees' official function.
- Anything received form a person related within the fourth degree by kinship or marriage, unless the donor is acting as an agent or intermediary for another person not so related.
- An inheritance.
- Anything available to or distributed to the public generally without regard to official status of the recipient.
- Actual expenses for food, beverages, travel, and lodging for a meeting, which is given in return for participation in a panel or speaking engagement at the meeting when the expenses relate directly to the day or days on which the donee has participation or presentation responsibilities.
- Plaques or items of negligible resale value given as recognition of public service.
- Non-monetary items with a value of less than three dollars that are received from any one donor during one calendar day.
- Items or services solicited or given to a state, national, or regional organization in which the University is a member.
- Items or services that are part of a conference or similar meeting and sponsored by a state, regional, or national organization of which the University is a member.