Friday’s answer:
Today’s question concerned the USG’s Conflict of Interest Policy.
Which of the following statement(s) are true?
A. USG employees have an ongoing responsibility to report and fully disclose any personal, professional, or financial interest that has the potential to create an actual or apparent conflict of interest with respect to the employee’s USG duties.
B. USG employees are generally prohibited from consulting with or otherwise receiving compensation from a USG vendor or an entity seeking a vendor relationship with the USG.
C. A USG employee shall not engage in any occupation, pursuit, or endeavor that will interfere with the regular and punctual discharge of that employee’s official duties.
D. USG employees do not need approval to participate or volunteer in community activities for which they are not paid and which take place outside of work hours.
E. All of the above.
Correct Answer: E. All of the above.
The Board of Regents policy on Conflicts of Interest, Conflicts of Commitment and Outside Activities requires employees to report and fully disclose any personal, professional, or financial interest that has the potential to create an actual or apparent conflict of interest. USG employees are generally prohibited from consulting with or otherwise receiving compensation from a current vendor of, or an entity seeking a vendor relationship with, the USG institution where the employee works.
Additionally, USG employees shall not engage in any occupation, pursuit, or endeavor that will interfere with the regular and punctual discharge of that employee’s official duties. Finally, this policy encourages employees to participate in professional activities that do not interfere with the regular and punctual discharge of official duties. Service for some non-paid, professional associations that are relevant to an employee’s assigned duties would be considered work time. An example would be a USG internal auditor who is serving in an unpaid capacity on the board of the National Association of College and University Auditors (NACUA). Service in this capacity would be considered work hours for which the employee could also use their assigned laptop.