16 Pa. Stat. § 4217

Current through P.A. Acts 2024-18

Section 4217 - Political activity by sheriff's employes in counties of the second class

(a) No employe shall use his official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election.

(b) No employe shall take an active part in political management or in a political campaign. Activities prohibited by this subsection include, but are not limited to, the following activities:

(1) Serving as an officer of a political party, a member of a National, State or local committee of a political party or an officer or member of a committee of a partisan political club, or being a candidate for any of these positions.

(2) Organizing or reorganizing a political party organization or political club.

(3) Directly or indirectly soliciting, receiving, collecting, handling, disbursing or accounting for assessments, contributions or other funds for a partisan political purpose.

(4) Organizing, selling tickets to, promoting or actively participating in a fund-raising activity of a candidate in a partisan election or of a political party, or political club.

(5) Taking an active part in managing the political campaign of a candidate for public office in a partisan election or a candidate for political party office.

(6) Becoming a candidate for, or campaigning for, an elective public office in a partisan election.

(7) Soliciting votes in support of or in opposition to a candidate for public office in a partisan election or a candidate for political party office.

(8) Acting as recorder, watcher, challenger or similar officer at the polls on behalf of a political party or a candidate in a partisan election.

(9) Driving voters to the polls on behalf of a political party or a candidate in a partisan election.

(10) Endorsing or opposing a candidate for public office in a partisan election or a candidate for political party office in a political advertisement, a broadcast, campaign, literature or similar material.

(11) Serving as a delegate, alternate or proxy to a political party convention.

(12) Addressing a convention, caucus, rally or similar gathering of a political party in support of or in opposition to a partisan candidate for public office or political party office.

(13) Initiating or circulating a partisan nominating petition.

(14) Soliciting, paying, collecting or receiving a contribution at or in the workplace from any employe for any political party, political fund or other partisan recipient.

(15) Paying a contribution at or in the workplace to any employe who is the employing authority of the person making the contribution for any political party, political fund or other partisan recipient.

(c) An employe or individual to whom subsection (a) or (b) applies retains the right to vote and to express an opinion on political subjects and candidates, and may engage in the following activities:

(1) Register and vote in any election.

(2) Express an opinion as an individual privately and publicly on political subjects and candidates.

(3) Display a political picture, sticker, badge or button when not on duty and at locations other than the workplace.

(4) Participate in the nonpartisan activities of a civic, community, social, labor or professional organization, or of a similar organization.

(5) Be a member of a political party or other political organization or club and participate in its activities to the extent consistent with this section.

(6) Attend a political convention, rally, fund-raising function or other political gathering.

(7) Sign a political petition as an individual.

(8) Make a financial contribution to a political party or organization.

(9) Be politically active in connection with a question which is not specifically identified with a political party, such as a constitutional amendment, referendum, approval of a municipal ordinance or any other question or issue of a similar character.

(10) Otherwise participate fully in public affairs, except as prohibited by law, in a manner which does not materially compromise efficiency or integrity as an employe or the neutrality, efficiency or integrity of the sheriff's office.

(d) Notwithstanding anything in this section or any other act to the contrary, no person shall be deemed ineligible for the office of school director solely on the basis that such person's political activities are otherwise restricted under this section.

(e) Subsection (c) does not authorize an employe to engage in political activity while on duty or while in a uniform that identifies him as an employe. The sheriff of a county of the second class may prohibit or limit the participation of an employe or class of employes of the sheriff's office in an activity permitted by subsection (c), if participation in the activity would interfere with the efficient performance of official duties or create a conflict or apparent conflict of interests.

(f) An employe who violates this section shall be removed from employment and funds appropriated for the position from which removed thereafter may not be used to pay the employe or individual: Provided, That, the civil service commission created under section 1503 of this act at its discretion may impose a penalty of suspension without pay for at least thirty (30) days, but not more than one hundred twenty (120) days, if it finds that the violation does not warrant termination.

(g) An employe who is currently an officer in a political party or who holds a political office on the effective date of this section may fulfill the remainder of his term. Upon completion of the term, the provisions of this section shall apply.

(h) The following words and phrases when used in this section shall have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the meanings given to them in this subsection:

"Contribution" means any gift, subscription, loan, advance, deposit of money, allotment of money or anything of value given or transferred by one person to another, including in cash, by check, by draft, through a payroll deduction or allotment plan, or by pledge or promise, whether or not enforceable, or otherwise.

"Election" means a primary, municipal, special and general election.

"Employe" means a person employed in the office of sheriff of a county of the second class. The term includes management employes, deputy sheriffs and clerical employes. The term does not include a sheriff of a county of the second class.

"Employing authority" means an employe's supervisor.

"Partisan" when used as an adjective refers to a political party.

"Political fund" means any fund, organization, political action committee or other entity that, for purposes of influencing in any way the outcome of any partisan election, receives or expends money or anything of value or transfers money or anything of value to any other fund, political party, candidate, organization, political action committee or any other entity.

16 P.S. § 4217

1953, July 28, P.L. 723, No. 230, § 1217, added 1998, Jan. 27, P.L. 1, No. 1, § 1, imd. effective.