Ask the City Ethicist
Starting an Outside Business?

By ALEX KIPP

Question: I work for the city as an industrial hygienist. I have been thinking of opening a part-time private practice to supplement my income. Of course I would only practice during evenings and weekends since my city job is 9-5 Monday through Friday. Aside from making sure that my city and private practice hours don't overlap, is there anything else I need to worry about?

- Rachelle in Queens

Answer: Many city workers seek at one time or another to start outside businesses, such as consulting practices, tax preparation services, outside law practice, and the like. Generally, Chapter 68 of the City Charter, the city's "Conflicts of Interest Law," does not prohibit you from pursuing such endeavors, although there are some potential conflicts issues to avoid.

Unfortunately for you, Rachelle, it's not just Chapter 68 compliance issues you'll need to sort out before starting your private practice. There are two other areas you'll need to check as well. First, depending on your agency, you may have to seek permission from your agency to partake in any outside financial activities. Check with your agency counsel or personnel officer to see if this applies to you. Second, licensed professionals - industrial hygienists, lawyers, doctors, architects, accountants, auditors, etc. - have a code of professional responsibility. Check with the Web site of your licensing organization.

Now, while it not a violation of Chapter 68 to start an outside business, there are plenty of things you could do with that business that could put you in violation. They span several different parts of the law, but basically all come back to one central idea: as public servants, we are bound to protect the integrity of our city positions. That integrity can be compromised if we get into situations where it looks like our official duties get mixed with our private interests. Rachelle, you've already avoided one of the biggest ones when you said you were keeping your city hours distinctly separate from your private practice hours. There are a few other things to consider:

Money Between Supervisors and Subordinates: Quite simply, money (and anything else of value) shouldn't change hands. Supervisors and subordinates can't get into any financial relationship. It tends to cast suspicion on the motivation of a boss, particularly at evaluation time: Is your boss giving you a stellar review for your performance, or is he doing it because he owes you thousands of dollars in consulting fees? You could, however, get into a financial relationship with a co-worker who was not a supervisor or subordinate, but you'd still want to do that off the clock and away from the workplace.

Soliciting Business From City Contacts: Likewise, you could throw some serious suspicions onto your professional integrity if you start soliciting your city contacts for private work. Say you're on the clock, in the middle of handling a case for a city employee. It's your job to evaluate this employee's workstation and make recommendations for any necessary changes. During this evaluation, you tell the city employee that you've also got an occupational therapy practice on the side, (or, say, your brother does) and that he'd do well to come in for a visit. That person, and anyone who becomes aware of this solicitation, may feel like you're trying to poach clients from your city contacts. This throws the integrity of your city work into question: is the assessment you're giving of the workstation a product of your professional opinion, or a product of what you think might drum up more business for the private practice?

Representing Clients Before City Agencies: Another thing to watch out for is the kinds of work you do for your private clients. Anytime they need something from the city: licenses, audits, or inspections, or, say, they want to sue the city, you can't be their representative - it's a bit unseemly to have city employees be seen as serving as a "man on the inside" for private entities seeking a competitive advantage in their city dealings.

Furthermore, you should be careful if any client of yours has business dealings with the city, as you are prohibited by Chapter 68 from having a second job with any firm or company that has business dealings with the city. This may seem a bit draconian, but the city has a serious interest in making sure that its contracting processes, licensing processes, etc. aren't one huge "old boy" system, where success is based on who's got a city worker on their payroll. However, if your private clients have business dealings with the city, but that business has nothing to do with your city job, you may be eligible for a special dispensation from the Conflicts of Interest Board (the agency that deals with Chapter 68) in the form of a waiver, which basically allows you to go ahead and have those private clients as long as you don't get involved in their business dealings with the city.

That's a lot of different issues, Rachelle. In general, I would say that if you want to start this or any business, you should take advantage of the Board's Legal Advice Unit and get some free confidential advice about the do's and don'ts in writing. They're available 9-5, Monday through Friday. Just call 212-442-1400 and ask for the "Lawyer of the Day." You can also e-mail us through our Web site (http://www.nyc.gov/ethics ) by clicking on "Contact COIB." All calls and e-mails are confidential, and you may contact us anonymously.

Mr. Kipp is Director of Training & Education at the NYC Conflicts of Interest Board.