Virginia Law

Article 2. Generally Prohibited and Unlawful Conduct.

This article applies to generally prohibited conduct that shall be unlawful and to state and local government officers and employees.

1987, Sp. Sess., c. 1, § 2.1-639.3; 2001, c. 844.

No officer or employee of a state or local governmental or advisory agency shall:

1. Solicit or accept money or other thing of value for services performed within the scope of his official duties, except the compensation, expenses or other remuneration paid by the agency of which he is an officer or employee. This prohibition shall not apply to the acceptance of special benefits that may be authorized by law;

2. Offer or accept any money or other thing of value for or in consideration of obtaining employment, appointment, or promotion of any person with any governmental or advisory agency;

3. Offer or accept any money or other thing of value for or in consideration of the use of his public position to obtain a contract for any person or business with any governmental or advisory agency;

4. Use for his own economic benefit or that of another party confidential information that he has acquired by reason of his public position and which is not available to the public;

5. Accept any money, loan, gift, favor, service, or business or professional opportunity that reasonably tends to influence him in the performance of his official duties. This subdivision shall not apply to any political contribution actually used for political campaign or constituent service purposes and reported as required by Chapter 9.3 (§ 24.2-945 et seq.) of Title 24.2;

6. Accept any business or professional opportunity when he knows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the opportunity is being afforded him to influence him in the performance of his official duties;

7. Accept any honoraria for any appearance, speech, or article in which the officer or employee provides expertise or opinions related to the performance of his official duties. The term "honoraria" shall not include any payment for or reimbursement to such person for his actual travel, lodging, or subsistence expenses incurred in connection with such appearance, speech, or article or in the alternative a payment of money or anything of value not in excess of the per diem deduction allowable under § 162 of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended from time to time. The prohibition in this subdivision shall apply only to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Governor's Secretaries, and heads of departments of state government;

8. Accept a gift from a person who has interests that may be substantially affected by the performance of the officer's or employee's official duties under circumstances where the timing and nature of the gift would cause a reasonable person to question the officer's or employee's impartiality in the matter affecting the donor. Violations of this subdivision shall not be subject to criminal law penalties;

9. Accept gifts from sources on a basis so frequent as to raise an appearance of the use of his public office for private gain. Violations of this subdivision shall not be subject to criminal law penalties; or

10. Use his public position to retaliate or threaten to retaliate against any person for expressing views on matters of public concern or for exercising any right that is otherwise protected by law, provided, however, that this subdivision shall not restrict the authority of any public employer to govern conduct of its employees, and to take disciplinary action, in accordance with applicable law, and provided further that this subdivision shall not limit the authority of a constitutional officer to discipline or discharge an employee with or without cause.

1987, Sp. Sess., c. 1, § 2.1-639.4; 1994, cc. 663, 815, 851; 2001, c. 844; 2006, cc. 787, 892; 2015, c. 574.

A. For purposes of this section:

"Foreign country of concern" means any country designated by the Secretary of State to have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism pursuant to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, P.L. 115-232 § 1754(c), Aug. 13, 2018; the Arms Export Control Act § 40, 22 U.S.C. § 2780; or the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 § 620A, 22 U.S.C. § 2370.

"Person, organization, or business" includes individuals who are officers, directors, or owners of or who have a controlling ownership interest in such organization or business.

"Widely attended event" means an event at which at least 25 persons have been invited to attend or there is a reasonable expectation that at least 25 persons will attend the event and the event is open to individuals (i) who are members of a public, civic, charitable, or professional organization, (ii) who are from a particular industry or profession, or (iii) who represent persons interested in a particular issue.

B. No officer or employee of a local governmental or advisory agency or candidate required to file the disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117 or a member of his immediate family shall solicit, accept, or receive any single gift with a value in excess of $100 or any combination of gifts with an aggregate value in excess of $100 within any calendar year for himself or a member of his immediate family from any person that he or a member of his immediate family knows or has reason to know is (i) a lobbyist registered pursuant to Article 3 (§ 2.2-418 et seq.) of Chapter 4; (ii) a lobbyist's principal as defined in § 2.2-419; or (iii) a person, organization, or business who is or is seeking to become a party to a contract with the local agency of which he is an officer or an employee. Gifts with a value of less than $20 are not subject to aggregation for purposes of this prohibition.

C. No officer or employee of a state governmental or advisory agency or candidate required to file the disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117 or a member of his immediate family shall solicit, accept, or receive any single gift with a value in excess of $100 or any combination of gifts with an aggregate value in excess of $100 within any calendar year for himself or a member of his immediate family from any person that he or a member of his immediate family knows or has reason to know is (i) a lobbyist registered pursuant to Article 3 (§ 2.2-418 et seq.) of Chapter 4; (ii) a lobbyist's principal as defined in § 2.2-419; or (iii) a person, organization, or business who is or is seeking to become a party to a contract with the state governmental or advisory agency of which he is an officer or an employee or over which he has the authority to direct such agency's activities. Gifts with a value of less than $20 are not subject to aggregation for purposes of this prohibition.

D. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections B and C, such officer, employee, or candidate or a member of his immediate family may accept or receive a gift of food and beverages, entertainment, or the cost of admission with a value in excess of $100 when such gift is accepted or received while in attendance at a widely attended event and is associated with the event. Such gifts shall be reported on the disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117.

E. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections B and C, such officer or employee or a member of his immediate family may accept or receive a gift from a foreign dignitary with a value exceeding $100 for which the fair market value or a gift of greater or equal value has not been provided or exchanged so long as such foreign dignitary is not a representative of a foreign country of concern. Such gift shall be accepted on behalf of the Commonwealth or a locality and archived in accordance with guidelines established by the Library of Virginia. Such gift shall be disclosed as having been accepted on behalf of the Commonwealth or a locality, but the value of such gift shall not be required to be disclosed.

F. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections B and C, such officer, employee, or candidate or a member of his immediate family may accept or receive certain gifts with a value in excess of $100 from a person listed in subsection B or C if such gift was provided to such officer, employee, or candidate or a member of his immediate family on the basis of a personal friendship. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person listed in subsection B or C may be a personal friend of such officer, employee, or candidate or his immediate family for purposes of this subsection. In determining whether a person listed in subsection B or C is a personal friend, the following factors shall be considered: (i) the circumstances under which the gift was offered; (ii) the history of the relationship between the person and the donor, including the nature and length of the friendship and any previous exchange of gifts between them; (iii) to the extent known to the person, whether the donor personally paid for the gift or sought a tax deduction or business reimbursement for the gift; and (iv) whether the donor has given the same or similar gifts to other persons required to file the disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117 or 30-111.

G. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections B and C, such officer, employee, or candidate or a member of his immediate family may accept or receive gifts of travel, including travel-related transportation, lodging, hospitality, food or beverages, or other thing of value, with a value in excess of $100 that is paid for or provided by a person listed in subsection B or C when the officer, employee, or candidate has submitted a request for approval of such travel to the Council and has received the approval of the Council pursuant to § 30-356.1. Such gifts shall be reported on the disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117.

H. During the pendency of a civil action in any state or federal court to which the Commonwealth is a party, the Governor or the Attorney General or any employee of the Governor or the Attorney General who is subject to the provisions of this chapter shall not solicit, accept, or receive any gift from any person that he knows or has reason to know is a person, organization, or business that is a party to such civil action. A person, organization, or business that is a party to such civil action shall not knowingly give any gift to the Governor or the Attorney General or any of their employees who are subject to the provisions of this chapter.

I. The $100 limitation imposed in accordance with this section shall be adjusted by the Council every five years, as of January 1 of that year, in an amount equal to the annual increases for that five-year period in the United States Average Consumer Price Index for all items, all urban consumers (CPI-U), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, rounded to the nearest whole dollar.

J. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, judge of the Court of Appeals of Virginia, judge of any circuit court, or judge or substitute judge of any district court. However, nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the acceptance of any gift if such acceptance would constitute a violation of the Canons of Judicial Conduct for the State of Virginia.

2014, cc. 792, 804; 2015, cc. 763, 777; 2017, cc. 829, 832; 2023, cc. 291, 293.

No person shall be in violation of any provision of this chapter prohibiting the acceptance of a gift if (i) the gift is not used by such person and the gift or its equivalent in money is returned to the donor or delivered to a charitable organization within a reasonable period of time upon the discovery of the value of the gift and is not claimed as a charitable contribution for federal income tax purposes or (ii) consideration is given by the donee to the donor for the value of the gift within a reasonable period of time upon the discovery of the value of the gift provided that such consideration reduces the value of the gift to an amount not in excess of $100 as provided in subsection B or C of § 2.2-3103.1.

2015, cc. 763, 777.

For one year after the termination of public employment or service, no state officer or employee shall, before the agency of which he was an officer or employee, represent a client or act in a representative capacity on behalf of any person or group, for compensation, on matters related to legislation, executive orders, or regulations promulgated by the agency of which he was an officer or employee. This prohibition shall be in addition to the prohibitions contained in § 2.2-3103.

For the purposes of this section, "state officer or employee" shall mean (i) the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and officers appointed by the Governor, whether confirmation by the General Assembly or by either house thereof is required or not, who are regularly employed on a full-time salaried basis; those officers and employees of executive branch agencies who report directly to the agency head; and those at the level immediately below those who report directly to the agency head and are at a payband 6 or higher and (ii) the officers and professional employees of the legislative branch designated by the joint rules committee of the General Assembly. For the purposes of this section, the General Assembly and the legislative branch agencies shall be deemed one agency.

To the extent this prohibition applies to the Governor's Secretaries, "agency" means all agencies assigned to the Secretary by law or by executive order of the Governor.

Any person subject to the provisions of this section may apply to the Council or Attorney General, as provided in § 2.2-3121 or 2.2-3126, for an advisory opinion as to the application of the restriction imposed by this section on any post-public employment position or opportunity.

1994, cc. 727, 776, § 2.1-639.4:1; 2001, c. 844; 2013, c. 648; 2014, cc. 792, 804; 2015, cc. 763, 777.

A. Neither the Governor, his political action committee, or the Governor's Secretaries, if the Secretary is responsible to the Governor for an executive branch agency with jurisdiction over the matters at issue, shall knowingly solicit or accept a contribution, gift, or other item with a value greater than $50 from any bidder, offeror, or private entity, or from an officer or director of such bidder, offeror, or private entity, who has submitted a bid or proposal to an executive branch agency that is directly responsible to the Governor pursuant to the Virginia Public Procurement Act (§ 2.2-4300 et seq.), the Public-Private Transportation Act of 1995 (§ 33.2-1800 et seq.), or the Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act of 2002 (§ 56-575.1 et seq.)(i) during the period between the submission of the bid and the award of the public contract under the Virginia Public Procurement Act or (ii) following the submission of a proposal under the Public-Private Transportation Act of 1995 or the Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act of 2002 until the execution of a comprehensive agreement thereunder.

B. The provisions of this section shall apply only for public contracts, proposals, or comprehensive agreements where the stated or expected value of the contract is $5 million or more. The provisions of this section shall not apply to contracts awarded as the result of competitive sealed bidding as set forth in § 2.2-4302.1.

C. Any person who knowingly violates this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of $500 or up to two times the amount of the contribution or gift, whichever is greater, and the contribution, gift, or other item shall be returned to the donor. The attorney for the Commonwealth shall initiate civil proceedings to enforce the civil penalties. Any civil penalties collected shall be payable to the State Treasurer for deposit to the general fund and shall be used exclusively to fund the Council.

2010, c. 732; 2011, c. 624; 2013, c. 583; 2015, cc. 763, 777; 2016, c. 641.

In addition to the prohibitions contained in § 2.2-3103, no constitutional officer shall, during the one year after the termination of his public service, act in a representative capacity on behalf of any person or group, for compensation, on any matter before the agency of which he was an officer.

The provisions of this section shall not apply to any attorney for the Commonwealth.

Any person subject to the provisions of this section may apply to the Council or the attorney for the Commonwealth for the jurisdiction where such person was elected as provided in § 2.2-3126, for an advisory opinion as to the application of the restriction imposed by this section on any post-public employment position or opportunity.

2011, c. 591; 2020, c. 111.

The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed to prohibit or apply to the acceptance by (i) any employee of a local government, or (ii) a teacher or other employee of a local school board of an award or payment in honor of meritorious or exceptional services performed by the teacher or employee and made by an organization exempt from federal income taxation pursuant to the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

2001, c. 48, § 2.1-639.4:2; 2008, cc. 478, 497.

The governing body of any county, city, or town may adopt an ordinance setting a monetary limit on the acceptance of any gift by the officers, appointees or employees of the county, city or town and requiring the disclosure by such officers, appointees or employees of the receipt of any gift.

2003, c. 694.