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eXpendit

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Miscellaneous Expenditures — Grants and Honoraria
Honoraria and Speaking Fees

Payment of honoraria by a state agency

A state agency may only pay an honorarium if it is given as compensation for services rendered. If an honorarium is an honorary gift or a gratuitous payment instead of being compensation for services rendered, a state agency may not constitutionally pay an honorarium.

Example

A state agency may not make a grant of public money to any organization or person.

Definition:

Honorarium
A payment of money or anything of value for an appearance, speech or article. (5 CFR 2634.105(i))

Sources [+]

Texas Constitution Article III, Section 51; Article VIII, Section 3; Article XVI, Section 6(a).

USAS Purchase Voucher Requirements

  1. A state agency must retain documentation in its files showing the services rendered and how the payment of the honorarium would be constitutional.
  2. The comptroller object corresponding to the services rendered must be used.

Acceptance of honoraria by a public servant

A public servant may not solicit or accept honoraria for services rendered if the subject matter is directly related to the person's official duties or if it occurs because of the person’s status with the government. However, a person who renders services at a conference or other event may accept lodging and transportation expenses, as well as meals, if the services are performed in connection with that event. In this instance, acceptance of lodging, transportation and meal expenses are not considered honoraria.

Example 1

A state employee is invited to speak at a global warming conference. The employee’s official position and duties with the State of Texas are in the area of industrial emissions, and that is the topic on which he has been invited to speak at the conference. The employee may not receive honoraria in connection with this event. But the employee can accept meals, lodging and transportation expenses for that event from conference organizers.

Example 2

A university professor is asked by an outside organization to speak at a conference in the professor’s area of expertise. The conference sponsor is asking the professor to speak because of his experience and knowledge and not because of his position as department head of the College of Natural Sciences. Presumably university employees are often asked to perform services because of their academic expertise and not because they hold a position at a particular institution. In such cases, the honorarium provision would not prohibit the professor from accepting payment for speaking at the conference.

Explanation of example 2

The permissibility of an honorarium depends on the motivation of the person seeking the services of a public servant. A public servant may not accept an honorarium for services the public servant would not have been asked to provide but for his or her official position or duties. A useful way for a public servant to analyze if acceptance of an honorarium is permissible is to ask: “Would my services be as useful or desirable if I did not hold a position with the government?”

See also: Legislators

Definitions:

Honorarium
A payment of money or anything of value for an appearance, speech or article. (5 CFR 2634.105(i))
Public servant
A person elected, selected, appointed, employed or otherwise designated as one of the following, even if he/she has not yet qualified for office or assumed his/her duties:
  • An officer, employee or agent of government
  • A juror or grand juror
  • An arbitrator, referee or other person authorized by law or private written agreement to hear or determine a cause or controversy
  • An attorney at law or notary public when participating in the performance of a governmental function
  • A candidate for nomination or election to public office
  • A person who is performing a governmental function under a claim of right, although not legally qualified to do so. (Tx Penal Code 1.07(41))

Sources [+]

Texas Constitution Article III, Section 51; Article VIII, Section 3; Article XVI, Section 6(a), Tx Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion Nos. 125, 305; Tx Penal Code 36.07, 36.08, 36.10, Tx Health & Safety Code 102.151(d).