PRINTER'S NO. 2600
No. 2072 Session of 1978
INTRODUCED BY WILSON, J. L. WRIGHT JR., HOPKINS, LETTERMAN,
DeWEESE, BROWN, KOLTER, D. S. HAYES, POLITE, NOYE, LINCOLN,
GEESEY, SCIRICA, KERNICK, O'KEEFE AND SALVATORE,
FEBRUARY 15, 1978
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT, FEBRUARY 15, 1978
AN ACT
1 Providing for the public disclosure of income by all public
2 officials and candidates for elective office and employees;
3 defining certain terms; regulating the time and manner of
4 filing such disclosures; imposing certain powers and duties
5 on certain public administrative officers; and providing
6 penalties.
7 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
8 hereby enacts as follows:
9 Section 1. Short title.
10 This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Public
11 Official Disclosure Act."
12 Section 2. Definitions.
13 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
14 have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the
15 meanings given to them in this section:
16 "Administrative officer."
17 (1) The Secretary of the Commonwealth in the case of
18 disclosure statements to be filed by officers and candidates
19 for elective office or employees of the Executive Department
1 of the Commonwealth or any agency thereof.
2 (2) The State Court Administrator in the case of members
3 and candidates for elective office and employees of the
4 judicial branch of the Commonwealth, including justices,
5 judges, district justices and justices of the peace.
6 (3) The Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives in
7 the case of members and candidates for the office of member,
8 officers and employees of the House of Representatives.
9 (4) The Secretary of the Senate in the case of members
10 and candidates for the office of member, officers and
11 employees of the Senate and joint legislative agencies.
12 (5) The prothonotary of the court of common pleas in the
13 case of officers and employees of local political
14 subdivisions or agencies thereof.
15 "Agency." Any department, agency, commission, board,
16 committee, authority, instrumentality or other legal entity
17 which is created by or under the Constitution or laws of the
18 Commonwealth or by executive order, including local political
19 subdivisions or agencies.
20 "Income." The reception of any thing of economic value,
21 however designated, which is paid, loaned, granted, given,
22 donated or transferred or to be paid, loaned, granted, given,
23 donated or transferred to any public official.
24 "Joint legislative agency." Any agency of the Legislature
25 operated jointly by the Senate and House of Representatives for
26 the benefit of the General Assembly including but not limited to
27 the Joint State Government Commission, the Legislative Budget
28 and Finance Committee, the Local Government Commission, the
29 Joint Legislative Data Processing Committee, the Legislative
30 Reference Bureau and the Joint Legislative Air and Water
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1 Pollution Control and Conservation Committee.
2 "Public official." Any elected or appointed officer of the
3 Commonwealth without regard to compensation paid by the
4 Commonwealth for his services and any candidate for an elective
5 office, including any member of the General Assembly, any member
6 of an agency, any justice, judge, district justice or justice of
7 the peace; it shall also mean any elected or appointed officer
8 of any local political subdivision or agency thereof without
9 regard to compensation paid; it shall also mean any employee of
10 the Executive Department, or any agency, the judicial system, or
11 the General Assembly, or any local political subdivision or
12 agency thereof, whose annual gross income is $10,000 or more.
13 "Thing of economic value." Money in excess of $50 or other
14 thing of economic value in excess of $50 except for gifts
15 received from a spouse or person related by blood or marriage.
16 It shall include, without limiting the generality of the
17 foregoing:
18 (1) Any loan, except:
19 (i) a bona fide loan made by a duly licensed or
20 authorized lending institution at the prevailing rate of
21 interest; and
22 (ii) loans by and between spouses or persons related
23 by blood or marriage.
24 (2) Any property interest, interest in a contract,
25 merchandise, service and employment or other arrangement
26 involving the right to compensation or income.
27 (3) Any option to obtain a thing of economic value,
28 irrespective of the conditions to the exercise of such
29 option.
30 (4) Any fee or other honorarium not representing
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1 reimbursement of expenses actually incurred, received for or
2 in connection with:
3 (i) the preparation or delivery of any speech or
4 address; or
5 (ii) attendance at any convention or other assembly
6 of individuals.
7 (5) Any promise or undertaking for present or future
8 delivery of a thing of economic value. In the case of an
9 option, promise or undertaking, the time of receipt of the
10 thing of economic value shall be deemed to be, respectively,
11 the time the right to the option becomes fixed, regardless of
12 the conditions to its exercise, and the time when the promise
13 or undertaking is made, regardless of the conditions of its
14 performance.
15 Section 3. Time and place of filing.
16 (a) As a condition of entering upon or continuing in office
17 every public official shall file with the proper administrative
18 officer a sworn written statement. This statement shall be filed
19 within 30 days after the effective date of this act and on or
20 before February 1 of each year thereafter. In the case of a
21 candidate for elective office, this statement shall be filed on
22 or before the final date for filing candidacy, or equivalent, in
23 the year of such candidacy.
24 (b) Employees of joint legislative agencies shall file
25 duplicate copies of disclosure statements with the Chief Clerk
26 of the House of Representatives.
27 Section 4. Contents of statement.
28 (a) The sworn written statement required by this act shall
29 disclose the following:
30 (1) Title, name and address of the public official.
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1 (2) Public official's occupation, profession or
2 employment, together with the name and address of his firm or
3 enterprise, if self-employed, or if employed by another
4 person, the name and address of such employer: Provided, That
5 if said official has more than one occupation, profession or
6 employment, all shall be listed: And provided, further, That
7 if public office constitutes said official's only occupation,
8 profession or employment, only that fact need be listed.
9 (3) Each financial interest, direct or indirect, of
10 himself, his spouse, and his unemancipated minor children in
11 any corporation, partnership, firm, association, institution,
12 trust or other legal entity engaged in business for profit,
13 including the name of the entity in which the interest is
14 held and the type of interest held as of the end of the
15 preceding calendar year: Provided, however, That checking and
16 savings accounts and certificates of deposit shall not be
17 considered a financial interest for the purposes of this
18 paragraph.
19 (4) Every office and directorship held by him, his
20 spouse or his unemancipated minor children in any
21 corporation, partnership, firm, association, institution,
22 trust or other legal entity engaged in business for profit,
23 including the name of such legal entity in which the office
24 or directorship is held as of the end of the preceding
25 calendar year.
26 (5) The disclosure of each source of income by
27 profession, business, occupation or other general category
28 received during the preceding calendar year other than that
29 compensation, reimbursement of expenses, or thing of economic
30 value received as a public official, or political
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1 contribution for which an accounting is required by and is
2 made pursuant to election laws: Provided, however, That
3 nothing in this paragraph shall require the disclosure of the
4 amount of income received from such sources.
5 (6) As to each disclosure under paragraphs (2) to (5)
6 herein, the public official shall disclose whether the
7 respective position, interest or source of income involves
8 doing business with, or representation of others in
9 appearances before, any agency of the Commonwealth, and shall
10 state which agencies of the Commonwealth are involved in such
11 business or representation.
12 (b) Sixty days after the effective date of this act and
13 March 1 of each year thereafter, or, in the case of a candidate
14 for elective office, within one month of the filing of the
15 disclosure statement required to be filed, the administrative
16 officers shall make the disclosure statements required to be
17 filed by this act, accessible to public examination and
18 publication.
19 Section 5. Printed copies of law; certifications.
20 The administrative officers shall have printed copies of this
21 act available for all public officials and give the same without
22 charge to each public official on the day the public official is
23 sworn in and assumes his duties of office or commences
24 employment.
25 Section 6. Failure to file; procedure.
26 (a) In the event that any public official fails to file such
27 sworn disclosure statement within the time prescribed by this
28 act or in the event such statement is filed, but the statement
29 is incomplete, the administrative officer shall within 30 days
30 notify such public official in writing of such failure to file
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1 or that such statement is incomplete. The public official shall
2 have 30 days from receipt of such notification to file or
3 complete his statement.
4 (b) In case any public official shall willfully fail to file
5 or complete the sworn written statement required by this act,
6 the administrative officer shall in not less than 30 days nor
7 more than 60 days after such written notification petition the
8 appropriate court for a rule upon such public official to show
9 cause why his office should not be declared vacant. Such rule
10 shall be made returnable not less than two weeks from its date
11 of issue. Upon hearing and proof that the public official has
12 willfully failed to file or complete such sworn written
13 statement the court shall declare the office vacant. Petitions
14 by the Secretary of the Commonwealth, the Chief Clerk of the
15 House of Representatives, the State Court Administrator and the
16 Secretary of the Senate shall be filed in the Commonwealth
17 Court. Petitions filed by the prothonotary of the court of
18 common pleas shall be filed in the court of common pleas of the
19 applicable judicial district.
20 Section 7. Effective date.
21 This act shall take effect immediately.
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