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Public Service Act 2020

Offence, immunity, and public service reorganisations - Offence to solicit or attempt to improperly influence public service leaders

103: Offence to solicit or attempt to influence public service leaders

You could also call this:

"It's against the law to try to unfairly influence important public service decision makers."

If you try to influence a public service leader in a way that is not right, you can commit an offence. This happens when you try to influence them while they are making a decision about certain matters, such as those described in section 45 or 54. You are trying to influence them when they are supposed to be making decisions on their own.

If you commit this offence, you can be fined up to $2,000 when you are convicted. The term public service leader has a specific meaning, which is explained in section 5. This meaning includes some specific groups, such as interdepartmental executive boards, but only includes a Deputy Commissioner when they are doing the Commissioner's job.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS356943.

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Crime and justice > Criminal lawGovernment and voting > Government departments
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"Getting info from the Commissioner doesn't override other laws, like privacy laws."

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Part 5Offence, immunity, and public service reorganisations
Offence to solicit or attempt to improperly influence public service leaders

103Offence to solicit or attempt to influence public service leaders

  1. A person commits an offence if—

  2. they directly or indirectly solicit or attempt to improperly influence a public service leader or a delegate of a public service leader; and
    1. they do so when the leader or delegate is making a decision on any of the matters described in section 45 or 54 (which relate to duties to act independently when making decisions about individual chief executives and individual employees, respectively).

      1. A person who commits an offence against this section is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000.

      2. In this section, public service leader has the meaning given in section 5, but—

      3. includes a Deputy Commissioner only if they are carrying out functions of the Commissioner; and
        1. includes interdepartmental executive boards and the boards of interdepartmental ventures.

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