COMCOR 19A.12.01 Administrative Policies and Procedures for Outside Employment

This Regulation applies to the outside employment of all County employees, as those terms are defined below.

2.0 Definitions contained in Chapter 19A are hereby incorporated. See Section 19A-4, Montgomery County Code.

2.1 Confidential Information – Information, whether oral or written, in the custody of a County employee or an uncompensated appointed official which is not available to the public pursuant to Title 4 of the General Provisions Article, Annotated Code of Maryland. This information includes personnel records, confidential commercial information and information protected by law.

2.2 Compensation for Services – Includes receipt of any money or thing of value, regardless of form, paid for services rendered, including sharing in benefits from a business to which an employee provides services and active or earned income from a real estate or other investment business; compensation does not include the receipt of passive income from investment activities.

2.3 County Employee – Any person, including elected or appointed officials, who is compensated in whole or in part by the Montgomery County Government, but does not for purposes of this Regulation include employees of the following: Revenue Authority, Housing Opportunities Commission, or Board of License Commissioners, independent fire departments or rescue squads. A member of a County board, committee, or commission is not a County Employee for purposes of this Regulation.

2.4 County Property – All assets of the County, including but not limited to computers, office equipment, telephones, copiers, County letterhead, and County cars.

2.5 Outside Employment – The employment of a County employee performing work for compensation for other than the County or an agency, or the Revenue Authority, Housing Opportunities Commission, Board of License Commissioners, independent fire departments and rescue squads, Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery College, the State’s Attorney’s Office in Montgomery County, the Office of the Sheriff, and the Circuit Court. Outside employment does not include any military, National Guard or volunteer (non-paid) service.

2.6 Regulated by a County Agency – Subject to the authority of or doing business with the County agency.

2.7 Supervisor – A County employee who has authority to hire, fire, rate the performance of, or direct the day-to-day activities of a subordinate employee or to participate in these actions.

3.0 To set forth the policies associated with the requirement to obtain approval for outside employment for County employees. Approval for outside employment does not supersede any other conduct prohibition or need for a waiver.

4.0 Ethics Commission Approval – County employees must receive approval pursuant to these regulations for all outside employment, regardless of whether the employment is performed after hours or during vacation periods.

4.1 Prohibition on Referrals, Acceptance of Referrals and Solicitation of Referrals – County employees and uncompensated appointed officials, while on duty, may not refer, accept referrals, or solicit referrals for their outside employment, nor sell or offer to sell or otherwise market products or services related to their outside employment to other County employees during work hours.

4.2 Restriction on Supervisory Roles – In engaging in outside employment, County employees are prohibited from:

a. Supervising or being supervised by any person(s) the County employee supervises or is supervised by in County employment; and

b. Working for any business in which a person the County employee supervises or who supervises the County employee as part of County employment owns a five percent or greater interest.

4.3 Prohibited Outside Employment – County employees may not be employed by any business that is regulated by or negotiates or contracts with the County agency with which the employee is affiliated.

4.4 Use of County Property – County employees and uncompensated appointed officials may not use any County property whatsoever in the discharge of their outside employment including transport to and from their outside employment. The Commission may permit an employee to use County property if the employee obtains written approval by the agency head or pursuant to a regulation of the agency.

4.5 Agency Outside Employment Requirements – Individual County agencies may have directives in regard to outside employment activities in addition to but not less restrictive than Commission regulations.

4.6 Confidential Information – County employees and uncompensated appointed officials may not use or disclose confidential information gained in County employment for personal financial gain, gain of another, or for any purpose other than use in County employment.

4.7 Assistant State Fire Marshal – County employees with Assistant State Fire Marshal powers and responsibilities may not engage in any outside employment in the State of Maryland which involves fire safety practices, prevention or corrective activities, coordination of fire safety programs or critical analysis and evaluation of Maryland fire loss statistics.

4.8 Exemption for Limited Outside Employment – Employment of less than one day for services of $100 or less with a person or entity that does no business with the County employee’s employing agency and is not otherwise affected by the performance of County duties by the County employee is exempt from the requirement for outside employment approval by the Commission.

4.9 Exemption for Certain Job Classes – Uncompensated appointed officials, employees below grade 27 who work for the County less than 10 hours per week, and County employees in the classifications within Grades S1-S6 and 5-13 are exempt from the requirement for outside employment approval by the Commission, except from the classifications listed below:

Data Application Trainee

Computer Operator Trainee

Crossing Guard

Data Entry Operator I & II

Data Application Specialist I & II

Legislative Intern

However, all County employees and appointed officials remain subject to the provisions of all other Commission policies and the provisions of the Montgomery County Code, Chapter 19A.

4.10 Waiver – A County employee may request a waiver of these policies by the Commission in accordance with the criteria established in § 19A-8 of the Montgomery County Code.

5.0 Employee – A County employee must apply for outside employment using the Outside Employment Online System which will automatically forward the request to reviewing officials in the employee’s agency. If there are no reviewing officials for an employee, such as may be the circumstance for elected officials, the Chief Administrative Officer or the Council Administrator, the request will be reviewed by the Commission without agency review.

5.1 Agency Head and Supervisor – The Agency Head and Supervisor must recommend approval or disapproval of the employee’s request and forward the employee’s request with recommendations, including specific conditions when appropriate, to the Commission. If disapproval is recommended, the Agency Head or Supervisor should state the specific reasons for the disapproval recommendation. The Agency Head may delegate the recommendation function to a designee, but sub-delegation by a designee is not permitted. Requests for outside employment with a duration of six (6) weeks or less may be approved by the Agency Head or delegee and will be considered approved by the Commission without further review where there is no question by the approving official concerning conflicts of interest.

5.2 Commission – With the exception of requests with a duration of six (6) weeks or less, the Commission will review the request and make a final decision. The Commission will then notify the employee and agency head in writing of its final decision.

5.3 Date Work May Begin – County employees may begin outside employment when the employment is approved by the agency head, with the understanding that continuation of the outside employment is contingent upon final approval by the Commission.

5.4 Changes in Outside Employment – County employees who have outside employment approval must submit a new request for outside employment if there are changes in the identity of outside employer or the duties involved in the outside employment.

5.5 Changes in County Employment – A County employee who receives approval for outside employment and later transfers to another agency (or accepts another position within the agency) must within thirty (30) days of the transfer submit a new request for outside employment to continue the outside employment. If a new request is submitted within thirty (30) days after the transfer, the original approval will remain effective until the Commission either grants or denies the new request. If a new request is not submitted, the original approval will terminate thirty (30) days after the transfer.

5.6 Effective Dates – An approval of an outside employment request will be effective for no more than three (3) years after the approval of the request by the Commission. Employees may be granted outside employment approval for a specific period of time less than three years.

5.7 Submission of Continuation Requests – A County employee seeking to continue outside employment beyond the three year approval period or for a lesser specified period must submit a new request for outside employment thirty (30) days or more prior to the expiration of the applicable period. If a new request is submitted at least thirty (30) days prior to the expiration of the applicable period, the original approval will remain effective until the Commission either grants or denies the new request.

5.8 Violations – Failure to obtain Agency or Commission approval for outside employment, or failure to comply with any Agency or Commission imposed or adopted rules or conditions related to outside employment, violates the Ethics Law and may result in disciplinary action, the temporary or permanent revocation of permission to engage in outside employment, and other penalties as provided by law.

5.9 Revocation of Approval – After giving a County employee notice and an opportunity to respond, upon a determination by the Ethics Commission that any approved outside employment is inconsistent with the Public Ethics Law, the Commission may revoke a previously granted approval. An employee must respond within 30 days to a notice from the Commission regarding a proposed revocation of an outside employment approval.

In addition to the other provisions of this regulation, the following provisions also apply to police officers.

6.1 Use of County Equipment and Uniforms by Police Officers in Outside Employment – Police officers may use County equipment and uniforms in outside employment only as expressly authorized by regulation.

6.2 General Use of County Vehicles – Police officers may use County vehicles only as expressly authorized by regulation.