(1) A reporting
individual or procurement employee, or any other person on the individual's or
employee's behalf, is prohibited from knowingly accepting, directly or
indirectly, a gift from a lobbyist who lobbies the individual's or employee's
agency, or directly or indirectly on behalf of the partner, firm, employer, or
principal of such a lobbyist, or from a vendor doing business with the
individual's or employee's agency, if he knows or reasonably believes that the
gift has a value in excess of $100.
(2) A vendor; a lobbyist who lobbies a
reporting individual's or procurement employee's agency; the partner, firm,
employer, or principal of a lobbyist; or another on behalf of the lobbyist or
partner, firm, principal, or employer of the lobbyist or vendor is prohibited
from giving, either directly or indirectly, a gift that has a value in excess
of $100 to the reporting individual or procurement employee or any other person
on his behalf.
(3) A reporting
individual, or his or her parent, spouse, child, or sibling, is prohibited from
soliciting or knowingly accepting, directly or indirectly, anything of value
that is not primarily related to contributions, expenditures, or other
political activities authorized pursuant to Chapter 106, F.S., from a political
committee.
(4) A political
committee is prohibited from giving anything of value that is not primarily
related to contributions, expenditures, or other political activities
authorized pursuant to Chapter 106, F.S., to a reporting individual or
procurement employee, or his or her parent, spouse, child, or
sibling.
(5) The prohibitions
expressed in this rule apply as of the time the gift is given by the
donor.
(6) Reasonable inquiry shall
be made by the reporting individual or procurement employee of the source of
the proposed gift to determine whether it is prohibited.
(7) Where a gift is to be provided by
multiple donors, the value of the gift provided by any one donor is equal to
the portion of the gift's value attributable to that donor based upon the
donor's contribution to the gift. The value of the portion provided by any
lobbyist, partner, firm, employer or principal of a lobbyist, or vendor cannot
exceed $100, and the reporting individual or procurement employee cannot accept
the gift if the value of that portion of the gift exceeds $100.
(8) Indirect Gifts.
(a) Where a gift is provided to a person
other than the reporting individual or procurement employee by a political
committee or vendor, by a lobbyist who lobbies the agency of the reporting
individual or procurement employee, or by the partner, firm, employer, or
principal of a lobbyist, where the gift or the benefit of the gift ultimately
is received by the reporting individual or procurement employee, and where the
gift is provided with the intent to benefit the reporting individual or
procurement employee, such gift will be considered an indirect gift to the
reporting individual or procurement employee.
(b) Where a gift or the benefit of a gift is
provided to a reporting individual or procurement employee by someone other
than a political committee, a lobbyist, or the partner, firm, employer, or
principal of a lobbyist, or a vendor, but the gift or the expense of the gift
has been provided by or paid for by a political committee, a vendor, or a
lobbyist, or the partner, firm, employer, or principal of a lobbyist, who
intends thereby to benefit the reporting individual or employee, such gift will
be considered an indirect gift to the reporting individual or procurement
employee.
(c) Factors which the
Commission will consider in determining whether an indirect gift has been made
include but are not limited to:
1. The
existence or nonexistence of communications by the donor indicating the donor's
intent to make or convey the gift to the reporting individual or procurement
employee rather than to the intervening third person;
2. The existence or nonexistence of any
relationship between the donor and the third person, independent of the
relationship between the donor and the reporting individual or procurement
employee, that would motivate a gift to the third person;
3. The existence or nonexistence of any
relationship between the third person and the reporting individual or
procurement employee that would motivate the gift.
4. Whether the same or similar gifts have
been or are being provided to other persons having the same relationship to the
donor as the third person;
5.
Whether, under the circumstances, the third person had full and independent
decision-making authority to determine whether the reporting individual or
procurement employee, or another, would receive the gift;
6. Whether the third person was acting with
the knowledge or consent of, or under the direction of, the donor;
7. Whether there were or were intended any
payments or bookkeeping transactions between the third person and the donor,
reimbursing the third person for the gift; and
8. The degree of ownership or control the
donor has over the third person.
(d) The provisions of this subsection may be
illustrated by the following examples:
Example 1: A law firm which lobbies the agency of Reporting
Individual C ("C") invites all of its attorneys to attend a weekend retreat.
The attorneys are encouraged to bring their spouses or significant others at
the firm's expense. C is married to an attorney in the firm and has been asked
by her spouse to attend the retreat. The lodging provided to C for the retreat
would be considered a gift to C from her spouse and thus not prohibited,
because the firm's invitation was extended to C's spouse by virtue of his
employment with the firm.
Example 2: Reporting Individual D ("D") hosts a fox hunt
attended by other reporting individuals. Lobbyists who lobby the agency of D
give money to a third person, who is not a reporting individual, to pay for the
food and beverages which will be served at the fox hunt. D orders and prepares
the food and beverages. The money provided to the third person by the lobbyists
would be a gift to D, because it was given with the intent of benefiting D and
his guests at the fox hunt.
Example 3: A principal which employs 10 lobbyists who lobby
the agency of Reporting Individual M ("M") channels a gift costing $1, 000 to M
through its 10 lobbyists. Although each lobbyist's share of the gift is $100,
the gift would be prohibited because it is an indirect gift from the principal
with a value of excess of $100.
Example 4: Reporting Individual N ("N") and N's spouse have
arranged to take a vacation trip together. A lobbyist who lobbies N's agency
meets with the spouse and offers to pay for the spouse's travel expenses, which
would exceed $100. The lobbyist and N's spouse know each other only through the
lobbyist's involvement with N. This would constitute an indirect gift to N, and
would be prohibited because its value exceeds
$100.
