Executive Order

Conflicts of Interest in Externally - Sponsored Activities E.O.

July x, 2001

[ This Executive Order supercedes the Executive Order "Conflict of Interest in Grants and Contracts" of May 15, 1996. ]{new and replacement wording is underlined below}

The required disclosure of certain personal financial interests is provided for in 42 CFR part 50 subpart F and 45 CFR subtitle A., and in the CSU Conflict of Interest Code which is incorporated as Article 20 of Subchapter 7, Chapter 1, Part V of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations, as approved by the California Fair Political Practices Commission and The Office of Administrative Law, State of California.

This CSULB Presidential Executive Order is issued in accordance with and to implement the policies of the Federal and State governments concerning the disclosure of (University and Foundation employee private financial interests which could reasonably appear to constitute a conflict of interest when external ( public and private) funds are spent in the conduct of extramurally funded activities, including research, and, equally, with the overall objective of promoting objectivity in research and other academic and ademically-related activities.

As a fundamental consideration, the resources of this University shall not be diverted to exclusive, inappropriate, or disproportionate private interests and, equally, private interests shall not determine the priorities of allocation of University resources.

Employees of the University or of the University Foundation applying for or requesting acceptance of external funding from the Federal government, or from persons, businesses, or other agencies and entities as required by the California Fair Political Practices Act (Brown Act), who decline to provide the requisite disclosure of financial interests or who submit false or incomplete disclosures may be subject to disciplinary action, in accordance with the applicable Memorandum of Understanding, CSU regulations governing their employment, and the State Education Code.

In no case shall the University or the University Foundation accept funds from an external person or entity on behalf of an employee or project in the absence of a complete disclosure and satisfactory completion of actions required by the provisions of public law and this Executive Order to manage, reduce, or eliminate conflicts of interest.

Accordingly, all persons applying for or otherwise requesting acceptance of external funds from non-governmental external sources or from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and any other federal, state, or local governmental agency which implements such a requirement, shall execute the appropriate Disclosure of Economic Interests and provide this Disclosure to the Director, Office of University Research prior to the beginning of the proposal clearance process . The Director shall review each Disclosure and act as provided below.

This Order re-establishes the University Independent Review Committee. The Committee shall be composed of:

the Director, Office of University Research,
the Director, Office of Grants and Contracts Administration, CSULB Foundation,
the Executive Assistant to the President,
the Chair of the Scholarly and Creative Activities Committee,
at least one additional member of the faculty selected by the Provost.

Each member of the Committee is to be familiar with the State and Federal regulations governing conflicts of interest.

The Committee shall review all statements regarding potential conflicts of interest submitted to it by the Director, Office of University Research, or discovered in connection with its own periodic reviews of the official logs of proposals sent to external funding agencies.

When the Committee believes a "significant" conflict of interest exists under either the State and Federal regulations then in effect, it shall:

inform the employee, the Provost, and the Executive Director of the CSULB Foundation;
provide the employee with information regarding acceptable methods of managing, reducing, or eliminating the conflict of interest prior to acceptance of funding;
refer the matter to the appropriate University or Foundation representative to manage, reduce, or eliminate the conflict of interest in accordance with the relevant regulations or laws.

The Independent Review Committee shall also:

periodically review the records of the Office of University Research, (i.e., the logs of proposals submitted to external funding agencies and disclosures received) to insure that all University and University Foundation employees are in compliance with this order; and,
provide the President, Provost, and Director, Office of University Research with advice concerning this Order and any other matters related thereto.

The Director, Office of University Research is charged with responsibility:

to solicit and review a Disclosure of Economic Interests,
1. as a part of the internal clearance of the proposal for external funding*,
2. when other external funds are presented for acceptance by the University or Foundation in support of academic or academically-related activities**; *Each applicant for external funding in the grant and contract process named as a principal in the activity will signify on the Internal Clearance Form or whether they have relevant financial interests and, if so, will complete either California Form 730-U or the CSULB Disclosure of Financial Interest Form (attached);

** Each employee requesting acceptance of external funds outside the grant and contract application process will complete either California Form 730-U or the CSULB Federal Disclosure of Financial Interest Form (attached);

to provide the appropriate Federal agencies with all documentation necessary to fulfill the University's obligations regarding the reporting of conflicts of interest;
to convene the Independent Review Committee of the University as necessary to comply with Federal and State regulations regarding conflicts of interest; and,
to oversee timely processes for managing, reducing, or eliminating conflicts of interest, where possible. If a conflict of interest cannot be managed, reduced, or eliminated in accordance with all applicable laws, the Director shall inform the Provost and the Executive Director of the CSULB Foundation and, unless another remedy can be found, on the instructions of the Provost withdraw the proposal from consideration by the external agency.

Effective: Immediately

/ss/ Robert C. Maxson, President

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