The legal entity for enforcing the Conflict of Interest Laws of New York is the Conflict of Interest Board. It consists of five members, appointed by the Mayor and through the advice and consent of the Council. These members are not permitted to hold any public office not seek election to any public office, be a public employee in any jurisdiction, hold any political party office, or appear as a lobbyist before the city, parallel to their Board membership.

The members serve for six years each and the Board meets at least once a month. The Mayor is empowered to remove any board member from office for neglect of duty, gross misconduct or inability to discharge the powers of office.

It is this Board that is given the duty of informing public servants of the provisions of the Conflict of Interest Laws and assisting them in understanding the law. They develop education materials and programmes for educating the public servants on the provisions of this law, and train all individuals who become public servants.

The Board provides advisory opinions with respect to all matters covered in the law and ensures that financial disclosures are examined to determine compliance with the regulations on financial disclosures. It also receives complaints and directs the department of investigation to conduct investigations into matters related to its responsibilities.

The Board is also empowered to review the provisions of the Conflict of Interest Laws and recommend to the Council from time to time any changes or additions that it may consider appropriate or desirable.

Source: www.nyc.gov/html/conflicts/home/home.shtml