You do not have to be a full-time, paid municipal employee to be considered a municipal employee for conflict of interest purposes. Anyone performing services for a city or town or holding a municipal position, whether paid or unpaid, including full- and part-time municipal employees, elected officials, volunteers, and consultants, is a municipal employee under the conflict of interest law. An employee of a private firm can also be a municipal employee, if the private firm has a contract with the city or town and the employee is a key employee under the contract, meaning the town has specifically contracted for her services.
The law also covers private parties who engage in impermissible dealings with municipal employees, such as offering bribes or illegal gifts.
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