Sec. 602.1001. - Ethics education program.

Officers and employees of the City, as public servants, are considered stewards of the public's trust and should aspire to the highest level of integrity and character. Officers and employees shall be informed of their ethical responsibilities at the start of their work with the City and shall receive updates and training materials on ethics issues throughout the span of their public service, as designated by the City Ethics Office and Ethics Officer(s). (a) Every officer and employee of the City must be responsible for understanding and complying with the provisions of this Chapter. (b) Every elected official shall attend an Ethics in Government Program within a time period set by the Ethics Director, with notification to the Office of General Counsel. Upon fulfillment of this requirement, each elected official will be issued a digital confirmation of completion by the Jacksonville Ethics Office. Constitutional Officers complying with the State requirements and who submit proof of same and affirm that they have also read and understood the requirements of Chapter 602 , Jacksonville Ethics Code, Ordinance Code, shall be issued a digital confirmation of completion by the Jacksonville Ethics Office. (c) Every employee (regular and appointed) of the City shall complete an Employee Ethics Training Program within the first six months of his/her employment with the City. Current employees shall complete training as designated in a schedule developed by the City Ethics Office. Upon fulfillment of this requirement, each employee will be issued a certificate of completion by the City Ethics Office. (d) The City Ethics Office shall provide ethics education materials to appointed officials, and encourage appointed officials to attend an Ethics in Government Program. (e) The Ethics in Government Program and Employee Ethics Training Program shall be created and delivered by the City Ethics Office with assistance from the City's Ethics Officer(s) and the General Counsel's Office. (f) The programs shall include topics as determined necessary to explain the provisions of this Chapter, the Florida Statutes concerning ethics and general ethics issues. Topics shall be determined based upon State law requirements and other issues as identified by the Ethics Director, Office of General Counsel and the Ethics Commission. This training shall not duplicate the training requirements of F.S. § 112.3142. (Ord. 97-890-E, § 1; Ord. 2007-770-E, § 1; Ord. 2007-329-E, § 3; Ord. 2016-6-E , § 1; Ord. 2023-53-E , § 1)