Conflicts of Interest In Romantic Relationships

Question: My boyfriend is considering applying for an open position at my city agency. Can I recommend him for the job?

Answer: If you and your boyfriend live together, then definitely not. Although nothing in the city’s Conflicts-of-Interest Law specifically addresses boyfriends—or girlfriends, fiancés, and casual dates, for that matter—applicable definitions and provisions of that law expressly apply to persons in a dating relationship. One provision prohibits any public servant from using his or her city position to give anyone with whom the public servant is “associated” a private or personal advantage. Parents, spouses, siblings, and children are definitively associated with a public servant, as is anyone with whom the public servant has a business or other financial relationship. Within the context of a dating relationship, sharing a household or having a child are common examples of financial relationships.