5901.1 The Director of Government Ethics may impose a non-public, informal admonition for low-level violations of the Code of Conduct, including or similar to the following:

1. (a) A one-time, minor misuse of government property;
2. (b) A time and leave issue, where it is not habitual and did not have a specific harmful impact;
3. (c) A non-uniform application of a regulation or policy by a supervisor, where it is not a regular occurrence and was not for an unlawful purpose;
4. (d) A relatively minor action based, at least in part, on advice or guidance sought in good faith from another, such as a supervisor, and given in good faith, though erroneous; or
5. (e) Any minor, incidental ethics violation where the person made amends and rectified the situation.

5901.2 Respondents who receive a non-public, informal admonition imposed by the Director of Government Ethics may request the Director to reconsider the imposition of a non-public, informal admonition by submitting a written application therefore within fifteen (15) days of being served with the admonition. Except for good cause shown, the Director shall not review any late-filed application.

5901.3 An application for reconsideration shall include the following items and information:

1. (a) A detailed statement that respondent did not commit the conduct at issue or a detailed statement explaining why the conduct at issue does not violate the Code of Conduct;
2. (b) Any evidence supporting respondent's statement; and
3. (c) The names and contact information of any fact witnesses who may be able to provide relevant and material evidence regarding the conduct at issue or the circumstances surrounding the conduct.

5901.4 All the materials required by § 5901.3 shall be submitted with the application for reconsideration. The Director of Government Ethics is not required to accept materials submitted subsequent to the filing of the application except upon a

showing of good cause by respondent. The decision of the Director not to review items and information submitted by respondent is not appealable to the Ethics Board.

5901.5 The Director of Government Ethics shall respond, in writing, with a determination on the request for reconsideration within thirty (30) days of the receipt of the application; provided, that, if the Director accepts any late-filed item or piece of information as provided in § 5901.4, he or she shall determine the request for reconsideration within thirty (30) days of the receipt of the last-filed item or piece of information.

5901.6 If the Director of Government Ethics requires additional time to determine a request for reconsideration for any reason other than as provided in § 5901.5, he or she shall notify respondent, in writing, of the need for an additional thirty (30) to ninety (90) days to reach a determination of the request.

5901.7 Respondent may appeal the denial of a request for reconsideration to the Ethics Board. The appeal shall be in writing, set forth the specific reasons why the respondent disagrees with the denial, and shall be filed with the Ethics Board within fifteen (15) days of service of the denial on respondent.

5901.8 The Ethics Board shall consider on appeal only the items and information that were part of the Director of Government Ethic's final determination of the request for reconsideration.

5901.9 Within sixty (60) days after the filing of the appeal, the Ethics Board shall render its decision, which shall set forth the reasons for the decision and, if the Director's denial of reconsideration is upheld, shall also instruct respondent to refer to § 5404 to determine his or her right to appeal.

SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 61 DCR 12222 (November 28, 2014).