Section 27-1-6-101 - DEFINITIONS OF TERMS USED IN THIS CHAPTER(a)Confidential Information means any information which is available to an employee only because of the employee's status as an employee of the State of Mississippi and is not a matter of public knowledge or available to the public on request. (b)Conspicuously means written in such special or distinctive format, print, or manner that a reasonable person against whom it is to operate ought to have noticed it. (c)Direct or Indirect Participation means involvement through decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation, preparation of any part of a purchase request, influencing the content of any specification or procurement standard, rendering of advice, investigation, auditing, or in any other advisory capacity. (d)Financial Interest means: (1) ownership of any interest or involvement in any relationship from which, or as a result of which, a person within the past year has received, or is presently or in the future entitled to receive, monetary compensation or material gratuity; (2) ownership of such interest in any property or any business or income received from any property or business as may be specified by the Ethics Commission; or, (3) holding a position in a business such as an officer, director, trustee, partner, employee, or the like, or holding any position of management. (e)Gratuity means a payment, loan, subscription, advance, deposit of money, services, or anything of more than nominal value, present or promised, unless consideration of substantially equal or greater value is received. (f)Immediate family means a spouse, children, parents, brothers and sisters, and such other relatives as may be designated by the Ethics Commission. (g)Official Responsibility means direct administrative or operating authority, whether intermediate or final, either exercisable alone or with others, either personally or through subordinates, to approve, disapprove, or otherwise direct Mississippi action. (h)Purchase Request means that document whereby a using agency requests that a contract be entered into for a specified need, and may include, but is not limited to, the description of the requested service, expected length of service, criteria for evaluation, and information supplied for the making of any written determination required by this Code. (i)Bona Fide Employee means a person employed by a prospective contractor and subject to the prospective contractor's supervision and control as to the time, place, and manner of performance, which neither exerts nor proposes to exert improper influence to solicit or obtain Mississippi contracts. In determining whether a bona fide employment relationship exists, the following factors should be considered: (1) whether the employment is continuous; (2) whether the person is subject to the supervision and control of the prospective contractor; (3) whether the size of any contingent fee is reasonable in relation to the service performed; (4) whether the method of payment of the contingent fee is customary in the trade; and, (5) whether the person is employed solely by the prospective contractor. (j)Bona Fide Established Commercial Selling Agency means a business that neither exerts nor proposes to exert improper influence to solicit or obtain public contracts. In determining whether a business is a bona fide established commercial selling business, the following factors should be considered: (1) whether the business is one which has either been active for a considerable period of time or is presently a going concern and is likely to continue as such; (2) whether the business uses its own name and is characterized by the customary indicia of the conduct of a regular business; (3) the degree to which the business' activities are directed toward the solicitation of contracts of the State; (4) whether the size of any contingent fee is reasonable in relation to the services performed; and, (5) whether the method of payment of the contingent fee is customary in the trade. (k)Business Employee means a person, whether compensated or not, who performs personal services for a business. (l)Employee, as defined in Section 1-201 (Definitions, Employee) is hereinafter referred to as "Mississippi Employee." As used throughout this section, the term "Mississippi Employee" shall include: (1) a person elected to a Mississippi office; (2) a non-elected person, whether appointed or selected through a personnel selection procedure, receiving a salary, wages, or other compensation from the State; and, (3) a non-compensated or minimally compensated person who is performing personal services for the State. The term "Mississippi Employee" does not include a person who, as an independent contractor, or contract worker as defined in Mississippi Code Annotated § 25-9-120(1)(1972, as amended) performs professional, scientific, technical, or advisory service for a state agency and who receives a fee, honorarium, or similar consideration for the services performed.
27 Miss. Code. R. 1-6-101