Senior federal officials, nominees and candidates file public financial disclosure reports listing income sources, investment assets, liabilities, transactions, outside positions and agreements about future employment. Values are stated in categories rather than exact amounts, because the purpose is to identify conflicts rather than to measure net worth. Reports are reviewed and certified by an ethics official, are available to the public, and carry penalties for a knowing failure to file.
An adjustment clause allows a utility to change the portion of its rates attributable to fuel and purchased power without a general rate case. Recoverable costs are defined by rule and typically cover fuel consumed in the utility's own plants, the identifiable fuel component of purchased energy, and qualifying purchased economic power. Amounts collected are reconciled against amounts incurred, and the purchases are reviewed for prudence.
A general obligation bond is secured by a pledge of the issuer's taxing power, sometimes unlimited and sometimes capped by the same law that authorized the borrowing. A revenue bond is secured only by receipts of an identified enterprise, applied through a flow of funds set out in the indenture. The pledge determines the covenants, the remedies on a shortfall, and the financial information the issuer must keep publishing.
A federal executive branch employee may not solicit or accept a gift given because of the employee's official position, or given by a prohibited source. The regulation then removes certain items from the definition of gift altogether and supplies a list of exceptions, including a low-value allowance, personal friendship, widely attended gatherings and informational materials. Separate rules of each chamber govern the legislative branch, and registered lobbyists face their own prohibition.
A paperwork penalty is assessed for each individual with respect to whom a violation occurred, within a range the statute fixes and regulation adjusts. The proportion of defective forms in the population produces an error rate that positions the starting figure within the range. Five factors then adjust it: the size of the business, the good faith of the employer, the seriousness of the violation, whether the individual was unauthorized, and the history of previous violations.
A trustee of a trust with two or more beneficiaries must act impartially in investing, managing and distributing the property, giving due regard to their respective interests. Impartiality is not equality. Where one beneficiary takes income and another takes what is left, the principal and income act classifies each receipt and expense, and the resulting accounting income may bear little relation to total return. Most states supply a power to adjust between the two accounts.
An independent expenditure is a payment for a communication expressly advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate that is not made in cooperation, consultation or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate or a candidate's agents or party committee. Spenders report on the periodic schedule once an aggregate threshold is reached and on short notice as an election approaches. Loss of independence converts the payment into an in-kind contribution.
Arbitration under the industry code is required when a written agreement calls for it or when the customer requests it, the dispute is between a customer and a member or associated person, and it arises in connection with the business activities of that member or person. Panels are constituted from ranked lists after each side strikes candidates. Awards need not be explained unless jointly requested, and a court may vacate one only on the narrow grounds the Federal Arbitration Act supplies.
A trustee must invest and manage trust assets as a prudent investor would, considering the purposes, terms, distribution requirements and other circumstances of the trust. Individual holdings are not evaluated in isolation but as part of an overall strategy with risk and return objectives suited to the trust. Diversification is required unless special circumstances make the trust better served without it. Delegation is permitted where the trustee takes care in selecting and monitoring the agent.
A joint check is an instrument payable to two or more payees together, which under the negotiable instruments rules may be negotiated, discharged or enforced only by all of them. Where a supplier endorses such a check, many jurisdictions apply a presumption that the supplier received the amount owed on that project, whatever the internal allocation between the payees. The presumption is rebuttable in some states and close to conclusive in others.
Claims of a certified class, or of a class proposed to be certified for settlement, may be settled only with the court's approval. The parties must first supply information sufficient to decide whether to give notice, and the court directs notice only if satisfied it will likely be able to approve the proposal and certify the class. Approval follows a hearing and requires a finding that the proposal is fair, reasonable and adequate.
It is unlawful to hire, or to continue to employ, a worker known to be unauthorized. Knowing includes actual knowledge and knowledge fairly inferred from facts that would lead a person exercising reasonable care to know the condition. The regulation gives three examples of constructive knowledge and prohibits any inference drawn from foreign appearance or accent. Penalties escalate across three tiers, and a pattern or practice carries criminal exposure.
