GENERAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY
APPLICATION OF POLICY
This policy applies to board members, employees, relatives of employees, and certain volunteers of NHS of Baltimore, Inc. (NHS), hereafter referred to as Staff. A volunteer is covered under this policy if that person has been granted significant independent decision-making authority with respect to financial or other resources of the organization. Customers of NHS are here in after referred to as “interested parties.”
DETERMINING A CONFLICT OF INTEREST
A conflict of interest may exist when the interests or concerns of Staff may be seen as competing with the interests or concerns of an Interested Party. There are a variety of situations, which raise conflict of interest concerns including, but not limited to, the following:
FINANCIAL INTERESTS
A conflict may exist where Staff directly or indirectly benefits or profits as a result of a decision or transaction entered into with an Interested Party. Examples include situations were:
• Staff contracts to purchase or lease goods, services, or property from an Interested
Party.
• Staff purchases an ownership interest in or invest in property owned by an Interested
Party.
• Staff is provided with a gift, gratuity or favor of a substantial nature from a person or
business entity for referring an Interested Party to that person or business entity.
OTHER INTERESTS
A conflict may also exist where Staff obtains a non-financial benefit or advantage that they would not have obtained absent their relationship with an Interested Party. Examples include:
• Staff seeks to make use of confidential information obtained from an Interested Party
for their own benefit or for the benefit of a relative, business associate, or other
organization.
• Staff seeks to take advantage of an opportunity which they have reason to believe
would be of interest to an Interested Party.
DISCLOSURE OF ACTUAL OR POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
Staff is under a continuing obligation to disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest as soon as it is known or reasonably should be known. Staff shall complete a disclosure statement at such time as an actual or potential conflict arises and shall be provided to the Chief Executive Officer of the organization. For board members, the disclosure statement shall be provided to the President (Chairman) of the Board. The President’s (Chairman’s) disclosure statement shall be provided to the Secretary of the Board.
In the case of volunteers with significant decision-making authority, the disclosure statements shall be provided to the Chief Executive Officer of the organization. The Chief Executive Officer’s disclosure statement shall be provided to the President (Chairman) of the board. The Secretary of the Board shall file copies of all disclosure statements with the official corporate records of the organization. Further, interested parties who believe that a conflict of interest may or does exist as a result of Staff's interaction with said interested party, may file a formal written complaint with the Chief Executive Officer of NHS. Whenever there is reason to believe that an actual or potential conflict of interest exists between Staff of NHS and an interested party, the board of directors shall determine the appropriate organizational response. This shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, invoking the procedures described below, with respect to a specific proposed action or transaction.
PROCEDURES FOR ADDRESSING CONFLICTS OF INTEREST – SPECIFIC TRANSACTIONS
Where an actual or potential conflict exists between Staff of NHS and an interested party with respect to a specific proposed action or transaction, Staff shall refrain from the proposed action or transaction until such times as the proposed action or transaction has been approved by the disinterested members of the board of directors of the organization. The following procedures shall apply:
Staff who has an actual or potential conflict of interest with respect to a proposed action or transaction of the corporation shall not participate in or be present during the deliberations and decision making of the organization with respect to such action or transaction. Staff member, upon request, will be available to answer questions or provide material factual information about the proposed action or transaction.
The disinterested members of the board of directors may approve the proposed action or transaction upon finding that it is in the best interest of the corporation. The board shall consider whether the terms of the proposed transaction are fair and reasonable to the organization and whether it would be possible, with reasonable effort, to find a more advantageous arrangement with an entity that is not an interested party.
Approval by the disinterested members of the board of directors shall be by vote or a majority of directors in attendance at a meeting at which a quorum is present. An interested party shall not be counted for purposed of determining whether a quorum is present, or for purposes of determining what constitutes a majority vote of directors in attendance. The minutes of the meeting shall reflect that the conflict disclosure was made, the vote taken and, where applicable, the abstention from voting and participation by the interested party.
VIOLATIONS OF CONFLICT-OF-INTEREST POLICY
If the board of directors has reason to believe that Staff has failed to disclose an actual or potential conflict
of interest, it shall inform the person of the basis for such belief and take the appropriate action.
COMPLAINT PROCESS
Occasionally, customers of NHS may not be satisfied with the level of service provided and may wish to file a formal complaint. If the nature of the complaint deals with the services provided by a third party, such as a lender or contractor, then the complaint should be submitted directly to the appropriate party with a copy to NHS. While we are not able to exert influence over third party providers, we are always striving to work with only those businesses that provide the highest quality of service to our customers.
If your complaint deals specifically with NHS, the following steps must be taken: You must provide, in writing, a complete explanation outlining the nature of the complaint including any NHS employees involved. You must provide a phone number where you may be reached during the day should additional questions be necessary. The written complaint must be delivered, either via mail or in person, to the attention of the Chief Operating Officer of NHS of Baltimore at 25 E 20th Street, Suite 170, Baltimore, MD 21218. Upon receipt of your complaint, the Chief Operating Officer will investigate and respond in writing within ten (10) days.
If your complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may request a review by the Executive Director of NHS. The request for the Executive Director’s review must also be made in writing and delivered to the address listed above. Upon receipt of the request, the Executive Director will review the complaint and issue a written response within ten (10) days. The decision of the Executive Director shall be viewed as final.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY AND COMPLAINT PROCESS: DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
By signing below, I hereby affirm that I have received the Conflict-of-Interest Policy for staff, customers and volunteers of NHS of Baltimore, Inc. (NHS). I have also been advised that NHS’ activities include the purchase, sales and rehabilitation of properties, and that I, as a customer, are under no obligation to sell to, or purchase, or use the rehabilitation services of NHS. I further understand that NHS, Inc. is a charitable organization and that in order to maintain its federal tax exemption it must engage primarily in activities which accomplish one or more of its tax-exempt purposes. Lastly, I’ve been provided a copy of NHS' Customer Complaint process and understand the steps I must take to submit a complaint.