US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

                                  TITLE  18
                            CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS
                                  CHAPTER 13
                            BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION
    18-1356.  GIFTS TO PUBLIC SERVANTS BY PERSONS SUBJECT TO THEIR
JURISDICTION. (1) Regulatory and law enforcement officials. No public servant
in any department or agency exercising regulatory functions, or conducting
inspections or investigations, or carrying on civil or criminal litigation on
behalf of the government, or having custody of prisoners, shall solicit,
accept or agree to accept any pecuniary benefit from a person known to be
subject to such regulation, inspection, investigation or custody, or against
whom such litigation is known to be pending or contemplated.
    (2)  Officials concerned with government contracts and pecuniary
transactions. No public servant having any discretionary function to perform
in connection with contracts, purchases, payments, claims or other pecuniary
transactions of the government shall solicit, accept or agree to accept any
pecuniary benefit from any person known to be interested in or likely to
become interested in any such contract, purchase, payment, claim or
transaction.
    (3)  Judicial and administrative officials. No public servant having
judicial or administrative authority and no public servant employed by or in a
court or other tribunal having such authority, or participating in the
enforcement of its decisions, shall solicit, accept or agree to accept any
pecuniary benefit from a person known to be interested in or likely to become
interested in any matter before such public servant or a tribunal with which
he is associated.
    (4)  Legislative officials. No legislator or public servant employed by
the legislature or by any committee or agency thereof shall solicit, accept or
agree to accept any pecuniary benefit in return for action on a bill,
legislation, proceeding or official transaction from any person known to be
interested in a bill, legislation, official transaction or proceeding, pending
or contemplated before the legislature or any committee or agency thereof.
    (5)  Exceptions. This section shall not apply to:
    (a)  fees prescribed by law to be received by a public servant, or any
    other benefit for which the recipient gives legitimate consideration or to
    which he is otherwise legally entitled; or
    (b)  gifts or other benefits conferred on account of kinship or other
    personal, professional or business relationship independent of the
    official status of the receiver; or
    (c)  trivial benefits not to exceed a value of fifty dollars ($50.00)
    incidental to personal, professional or business contacts and involving no
    substantial risk of undermining official impartiality.
    (6)  Offering benefits prohibited. No person shall knowingly confer, or
offer or agree to confer, any benefit prohibited by the foregoing subsections.
    (7)  Grade of offense. An offense under this section is a misdemeanor and
shall be punished as provided in this chapter.