October 17, 2024

Reminder on prohibited political activities

The SIU Ethics Office reminds all SIU Carbondale employees and appointees about the importance of individuals complying with the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, especially on the topic of political activity. 

In section 5-15(a), the Ethics Act provides: 

“State employees shall not intentionally perform any prohibited political activity during any compensated time (other than vacation, personal or compensatory time off). State employees shall not intentionally misappropriate any state property or resources by engaging in any prohibited political activity for the benefit of any campaign for elective office or any political organization.” 

For purposes of this prohibition, “prohibited political activity” includes (but is not limited to): 

  • Participating in any political event.
  • Soliciting votes on behalf of a candidate for elective office.
  • Distributing campaign literature or material on behalf of a candidate.
  • Campaigning for any elective office.
  • Working on a campaign for elective office. 

The prohibition extends to the use of personal devices and accounts if you are using them while on compensated time. 

An example can be found in Haling vs. McMechan, where the Executive Ethics Commission (EEC) imposed a fine on a state employee for using a personal device to make campaign posts on social media while on compensated time. In another instance, the Office of Executive Inspector General (OEIG) found where an employee violated the Ethics Act by soliciting and receiving a campaign donation during work time, as well as making campaign related telephone calls during work time (OEIG Case No. 22-02932).  

The SIU Ethics Office is not suggesting that every private expression of opinion with respect to your assessment of a candidate is necessarily a violation of the Ethics Act, but there is a large gray area. The more posts tend toward public, widely dispersed advocacy for a candidate, the more they could be interpreted as falling within the scope of the prohibitions. The office is simply reminding you of the restrictions so you can avoid getting too close to what would be considered violative behavior. As always, the SIU Ethics Office at ethics1@siu.edu remains available to discuss particular situations at your request.  

You may refer to the Ethics Act for more information, as well as the full definition of prohibited political activity.