Statement of Economic Interests

General Questions regarding the filing of the Statement of Economic Interests Form

 What criteria are used to determine who must complete a Statement of Economic Interests form?

• Persons who are or who function as the head of a department or other administrative unit

• Those who have supervisory authority over, or direct responsibility for the formulation, negotiation, issuance or execution of contracts entered into by the State in the amount of $5,000 or more.

• Those who have supervisory responsibility for 20 or more employees.

• Those individuals who are a Principal Investigator (PI) or Co-PI on a grant

 The names of employees whose responsibilities may be expected to include one or more of the above criteria are certified to the Office of the Secretary of State by the Ethics Office, after consultation with the campus Human Resources offices.

Questions regarding certification of names to the Secretary of State should be directed to the following Human Resource staff members: 

Carbondale Campus

Human Resources:  Tara Moore 618-453-6604

 

School of Medicine

Human Resources:  Donna Hall 217-545-3964

 

Edwardsville Campus

Human Resources:  Joyree Chura 618-650-2190

What are the filing procedures?

In March, the Office of the Secretary of State will send notification letters and forms to Southern Illinois University employees who are required to file Statements under the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act.  All completed Statements must be submitted to the Southern Illinois University Ethics Officer, who will forward them to the Office of the Secretary of State.

Employees who receive notification from the Secretary of state should return their completed Statements by April 17 via campus or U.S. Mail to:

Ethics Office

1205 W. Chautauqua, MC 6823

Carbondale, IL 62901

Please Note:

• Individuals required to file Illinois Statement of Economic Interest forms for more than one agency, board, or commission are only mandated to complete one statement; however, copies should be forwarded to each agency, board or commission with which they hold a position

• Employees hired in the month of April have until May 31 to file statements

• The Office of the Secretary of State will not accept any faxed copies or copies of the Statement.  They will file original Statements ONLY.  Any unsigned forms are considered incomplete and will be returned for a signature.  If a Statement is returned and received back at the Office of the Secretary of State after the deadline, a late fee and/or penalty will be charged

  If a University employee is out of the country and cannot meet the deadline, what should they do?

• Per the Office of the Secretary of State, a letter should be written describing the circumstances and requesting a temporary removal from the list for the current year with a reinstatement for the next year.  This letter should be sent along with the form to the Ethics Officer for review and forwarding to the Office of the Secretary of State.  This letter must be sent before the deadline to submit completed forms for filing.

 I started employment with the University in the middle of the reporting period.  Do I need to report any activity prior to my employment with Southern Illinois University?

• The answer to this question is subjective.  If the activities were prior to your employment with Southern Illinois University and you are no longer benefiting from those activities, you do not have to report them.  However, if you were involved in those activities prior to you employment with the University and continue to benefit from them, you are required to report them.

  I did not receive a Statement of Economic Interests form in the mail, and I know it is the time of the year to complete it.  I have completed the form in previous years and am concerned since there are penalties for not filing on-time.  Who do I need to contact to verify whether or not I need to complete the form?

• Contact the Ethics Office to verify if you are on the master list sent to the Office of the Secretary of State at:  618-453-8645 or via e-mail at:  ethics1@siu.edu

• If you are on the list, verify your mailing address with the Ethics Office if you have moved within the last year.  The form may have been sent to the wrong address.  A form can be downloaded and printed from  http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/index/ixeei.pdf.

• If you are not on the list but meet the criteria listed above, request your name be added.

• If you are not on the list and do not meet the criteria listed above, you are not required to complete the Statement.

You can download a blank copy of the Statement of Economic Interests from the following link:  http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/index/ixeei.pdf

IMPORTANT!

The Office of the Secretary of State will not accept any fax copies or copies of Statement of Economic Interests forms.  Statements are filed with original signatures ONLY.  Any unsigned forms are considered incomplete and will be returned for a signature.  If a Statement is returned and received back at the Office of the Secretary of State after the deadline, a late fee and/or penalty will be charged.

DO NOT MAIL YOUR FORMS TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S OFFICE. 

Section 20-23(2) of the State Officials and Employee Ethics Act passed in 2003 requires the Ethics Office to review all Statements for University employees PRIOR to them being forwarded to the Office of the Secretary of State for review and filing.  To ensure compliance with the Legislation and avoid having your form returned, please mail your completed and signed Statements to:

Ethics Office

1205 W. Chautauqua, MC 6823

Carbondale, IL 62901

NOTE:  All Statements should be received by the Ethics Office by April 17, to provide adequate time for an appropriate review and forwarding to the Office of the Secretary of State.  The Ethics Office will forward all forms received by April 17 to the Office of the Secretary of State by the May 1 deadline.

The Secretary of State's Office requires that the name, home address, and organization of the person submitting a Statement be hand printed or typed on the first page of this form.  If this information is not provided, the form will not be accepted for filing.

Who is required to file a Statement?

• Persons who are or who function as the head of a department or other administrative unit.

• Those who have supervisory authority over, or direct responsibility for the formulation, negotiation, issuance or execution of contracts entered into by the State in the amount of $5,000 or more.

• Those who have supervisory responsibility for 20 or more employees.

• Those individuals who are a Principal Investigator

 Who is NOT required to file a Statement?

• Employees who do not meet one of the criteria above

• Employees of University Related Organizations (UROs), including employees of the Southern Illinois University Foundation and Southern Illinois University Alumni Association

Late Filing Penalties:

• $15 for any form not filed by the May 1  statutory deadline

• $100 per day for any form not filed after May 16

• Failure to file by May 31  may result in forfeiture of the position of employment by the employee

For more information on the Statement, please visit the Illinois Secretary of State's website at:  http://www.sos.state.il.us/

Statement of Economic Interests Form-Related FAQs

NOTE:  The question numbers listed below relate to the question numbers on the Statement of Economic Interests form and provide "helpful hint" for completing those sections of the form.  Please remember while completing you form, that all blanks must have an answer (i.e., you must put an "N/A" in the blank if the question does not apply to you).

"IF IN DOUBT, LIST IT"

Question #1:  List the name and instrument of ownership in any entity doing business in the State of Illinois, in which the ownership interest held by the person at the date of filing is in excess of $5,000 fair market value or from which dividends in excess of $1,200 were derived during the preceding calendar year.  (In the case of real estate, location thereof shall be listed by street address, or if none, then by legal description.)  No time or demand deposit in a financial institution, nor any debt instrument need be listed.

What does "Business Entity" mean?

• Single blocks of stock

• Real Estate (other than personal residence)

• Rental Property (address)

• Farmland (brief description and County)

• Trust Funds

• Mutual Funds (if not in a retirement account - you do not need to list individual funds, more the group you have invested with: i.e., Fidelity Investments, Merrill Lynch, etc.)

• NO Savings Accounts, CD's, Tax Exempt Bonds, Bank Accounts, etc.

 What is an "Instrument of Ownership"?

• Partner

• Sole Owner

• Stock Holder

• Trustee

• Joint-ownership by spouse or immediate family member

• Spouse or immediate family member owns

Question #2: List the name, address and type of practice of any professional organization in which the person making the statement was an officer, director, association, partner or proprietor or served in any advisory capacity, from which income in excess of $1,200 was derived during the preceding calendar year.

What types of professions need to be listed?

• Attorneys

• Physicians

• Accountants

• Bankers

• Engineers

• Architects

• Dentists

• Clinical Psychologists

Question #3:  List the nature of professional services rendered (other than to the State of Illinois) to each entity from which income exceeding $5,000 was received for professional services rendered during the preceding calendar year by the person making the statement.

What are some examples of professional services?

• Consulting

• Contracting

Question #4:  List the identity (including the address or legal description of real estate) of any capital asset from which a capital gain of $5,000 or more was realized during the preceding calendar year.

What do you consider a capital asset?

• Sale of land, house, etc.

• Single blocks of stock

• NO CARS

• Only the name of stock and/or address of property need to be listed (NO dollar amounts)

• The capital gain is before taxes or re-investment.

NOTE:  CAPITAL LOSSES DO NOT NEED TO BE REPORTED

Question #5:  List the identity of any compensated lobbyist with whom the person making the statement maintains a close economic association, including the name of the lobbyist and specifying the legislative matter or matters which are the object of the lobbying activity, and describing the general type of economic activity of the client or principal on whose behalf that person is lobbying.

Lobbyist "extras"

• If your spouse is a lobbyist, it must be indicated on the Statement

• This question commonly has a "N/A" response

Question #6:  List the name of any entity doing business in the State of Illinois from which income in excess of $1,200 was derived during the preceding calendar year other than for professional services and the title or description of any position held in that entity.  (In the case of real estate, location thereof shall be listed by street address, or if none, then by legal description.) 

• Most of the time people can use the terms (same as number 1 or see number 1) to complete this section

• Most business, rental property, etc., will gross a $1,200.00 per year income

Question #7:  List the name of any unit of government which employed the person making the statement during the preceding calendar year other than the unit or units of government in relation to which the person is required to file.

What are examples of being employed by another "unit of government"?

• If the individual making the statement teaches at another school part-time, or is on a Park Board, School Board, Zoning Board or County Board, etc.

• If the individual making the statement previously held a position in another State Department

• If the individual making the statement is a member of the Army Guard, Air Guard, etc.

• If the individual making the statement has a consulting contract with other State agencies

• Rule of thumb, "If controlling tax dollars or being paid from tax dollars, it should be listed"

Question #8:  List the name of any entity from which a gift or gifts, or honorarium or honoraria, valued singly or in the aggregate in excess of $500, was received during the preceding calendar year.

• List the name of the person from which a gift was received if the value exceeds $500.  The actual amount is not necessary.

• Inheritance must be listed here.  Examples:  Inheritance from the Estate of John Doe.  The amount of the inheritance is not required to be listed.

1. The Ethics Office provides a certified list of employees who are required to file a statement of economic interests to the Secretary of State.

2. Employees required to complete a Statement of Economic Interests are notified of their responsibility to file and to forward their statements to the Ethics Office for review and transmittal to the Index Department prior to the May 1^st deadline.

3. Notices are mailed to each employee at the address supplied by Human Resources. 

4. All original statements are mailed directly to the employees by the Secretary of State’s Index Department.  Statements are also available on the web. 

5. All statements must be completed, signed, and have original signatures. 

6. The Ethics Officer reviews statements of economic interest of employees before they are filed with the Secretary of State. 

7. Reminder notices are sent to employees who had not filed by the established due date. 

Ethics Office

1205 West Chautauqua, MC 6823

Carbondale, IL  62901

Phone: (618) 453-8645

Fax: (618) 453-5009

This site is maintained by the Office of the Vice President for Financial and Administrative Affairs and Board Treasurer and Ethics Office of Southern Illinois University.  The documents and information on this website are made available on the Internet as a public service.  We will make all reasonable efforts to ensure that the information is accurate and up to date but cannot guarantee the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of any information obtained from this website and may not be held liable for any losses caused by any person's reliance on such information.

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                                                      Last Updated:  10/26/2007

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