TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

Affiliate
Refers to a compensated or uncompensated subcontractor, sub-recipient, consultant, or other third-party entity performing research services for the university under a written or verbal agreement.

Collective Bargaining Agreement
The Collective Bargaining Agreement (Article 19) defines Conflicts of Interest as:(1) Any conflict between private interests of the employee and the public interests of the university, the Board of Governors, or the State of Florida, including conflicts of interest specified under Florida Statutes; or (2) Any activity which interferes with the full performance of the employee’s professional or institutional responsibilities or obligations.

Visit the University Compliance, Ethics, and Risk for a complete list of policies, regulations, and requirements.

Conflict of Commitment
Conflict of Commitment means an employee’s devotion of time to activities that adversely affect his or her capability to meet their primary university responsibilities. Examples may include but are not limited to outside employment, pro bono or volunteer work, and government service in the public interest.

Conflict of Interest
Conflict of Interest means a divergence between an individual’s private interests and his or her employment obligations to the university such that an independent observer may reasonably question whether the individual’s actions or decisions are influenced or determined by considerations other than the best interest of the university.

Covered Clinical Study
Covered clinical study means any study of a drug or device in humans submitted in a marketing application or reclassification petition subject to this part that the applicant or FDA relies on to establish that the product is effective (including studies that show equivalence to an effective product) or any study in which a single investigator makes a significant contribution to the demonstration of safety. This would, in general, not include phase l tolerance studies or pharmacokinetic studies, most clinical pharmacology studies (unless they are critical to an efficacy determination), large open safety studies conducted at multiple sites, treatment protocols, and parallel track protocols. An applicant may consult with FDA as to which clinical studies constitute “covered clinical studies” for purposes of complying with financial disclosure requirements.

Entity
Business entity: means any corporation, partnership, limited partnership, proprietorship, firm, enterprise, franchise, association, self-employed individual, or trust.

Federal Guidelines
Federal Conflict of Interest Criteria
A potential conflict of interest exists when a faculty member’s Significant Financial Interest (anything of monetary value including salary, equity interests, and/or intellectual property rights) could directly and significantly affect the design, conduct or reporting of the research. (See National Institutes of Health Responsibility of Applicants for Promoting Objectivity in Research 42 CFR, Part 50.602, Part 50.603, and Part 50.604, National Science Foundation Proposal & Award Policies and Procedures Guide, Part II, Chapter IV. A., Grantee Standards, and U.S. Food and Drug Administration Financial Disclosure by Clinical Investigators 21 CFR, Part 54.1-3, and Part 54.4-6).

Under sponsored federal programs the potential conflict is between the investigator’s personal financial interests and their ability to perform objective research.

Florida Statute
Florida State Conflict of Interest Criteria
State of Florida statutes (112.311) requires that no employee shall have any interest, financial or otherwise, direct or indirect; engage in any business transaction or professional activity; or incur any obligation of any nature which is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest.

Florida State Standards of Conduct (FL. Statute 112.313)
The State of Florida outlines standards of conduct for public officers and employees. Three of the standards apply to outside activity that may create a conflict of interest. To assist with your review the three standards have been summarized within the context of university employment.

1. Doing business with the university (FL. Statute 112.313(3))
A university employee cannot purchase goods or services from any entity of which the employee (or employee’s immediate family) has an equity position and/or serves as an officer, director or other managerial position.

A university employee cannot sell goods and services to the university from an entity in which the employee (or employee’s immediate family) has an equity position and/or serves as an officer, director or other managerial position.

2. Unauthorized Compensation (FL. Statute 112.313(4))
A university employee (or employee’s immediate family) cannot accept any compensation, payment or thing of value, when the employee knows or with the exercise of reasonable care, should know, that it (compensation, payment or thing of value) was given to influence the employee’s actions in his or her employment capacity.

3. Conflicting Employment or Contractual Relationship (FL. Statute 112.313(7)
A university employee cannot hold any employment or contractual relationship with a business entity that sells or purchases goods or services from the university.

Under Florida State statute the potential conflict is between the faculty member’s private financial interests and their public responsibilities to the State.

Collective Bargaining Agreement Definitions

The Collective Bargaining Agreement (Article 19) defines Conflicts of Interest as: (1) Any conflict between private interests of the employee and the public interests of the university, the Board of Governors, or the State of Florida, including conflicts of interest specified under Florida Statutes; or (2) Any activity which interferes with the full performance of the employee’s professional or institutional responsibilities or obligations.

Visit the University Compliance, Ethics, and Risk for a complete list of policies, regulations, and requirements.

FS 112.313(12)(a) – (j) exemptions
Visit the Florida Statute 112.313 web page to review the exemptions.

Immediate Family
For purposes of outside activity and potential conflict of interest and commitment reporting, immediate family shall refer to the investigator’s spouse and dependent children.

Institutional Responsibilities
Refers to an investigator’s professional responsibilities on behalf of the university. The activities outlined in an employee’s annual assignment or position description may include: administration, teaching, research and creative activities, course preparation, curriculum development, lectures, evaluation of student efforts, academic advising, committee meetings and memberships, service on panels such as university review boards or data and safety monitoring boards, public service to include service on advisory committees or review panels, and any other activity assigned by the employee’s supervisor in accordance with university policies.

Investigator
Investigator means the project director (PD) or principal investigator (PI) and any other person, regardless of title or position who is responsible for the design, conduct, or reporting of sponsored and non-sponsored research. The term includes key personnel, collaborators, or consultants who are responsible for the design, conduct, or reporting of sponsored and non-sponsored research.

Outside Activity
Outside Activity or Employment means any compensated or uncompensated secondary employment or activity, private practice, private consulting, teaching, research, or other activity that is not part of the employee’s assigned duties at the university.

Political Office
Florida Statutes, Title IX Electors and Elections

Potential Conflicts of Interest and Commitment
UCF BOT-UFF Collective Bargaining Agreement
Article 19 – Conflict of Interest or Commitment/Outside Activity 19.3 Conflicts of Interest/Commitment Prohibited. Conflicts of interest and commitment, including those arising from University or outside activities, are prohibited. Employees are responsible for resolving such conflicts of interest or commitment, working in conjunction with their supervisors and other University officials. http://www.collectivebargaining.ucf.edu/CBA/2004-07CBA.pdf (pg. 53)

Eight hour Statement
Although not a part of the official conflict of commitment definition, please note that there is no eight-hour rule stating how much time a person can spend on activity outside of their current obligation to the university. If the amount of time spent on paid or unpaid activities outside the university interferes with one’s teaching, research, or service work for UCF, it is a conflict of commitment.

Relative
A relative is anyone related to an employee in the following ways, and includes those within these categories who are referred to as adopted, step-, foster, grand-, half-, in-law, or great-:
  • Parent
  • Child
  • Sibling
  • Uncle or aunt
  • First cousin
  • Nephew or niece
  • Spouse, domestic partner, significant other
Persons who intend to marry or with whom the employee intends to form a domestic partnership or other intimate relationship are included in this definition of relative.

Remuneration
Means reward; recompense; salary; compensation.

Research and Development
RResearch means a systematic experiment, study, demonstration, or survey designed to develop or contribute general knowledge (basic research) or specific knowledge (applied research) in all fields by establishing, discovering, developing, elucidating, or confirming engineering, science, medicine, education, mathematics, humanities, and research involving human subjects or animals. The term includes product development to include a diagnostic test or drug.

Significant Financial Interest
A financial interest consisting of one or more of the following interests of the investigator (and those of the investigator’s spouse and dependent children) that reasonably appears to be related to the investigator’s university (institutional) responsibilities.

1.   with regard to any publicly traded entity, a significant financial interest exists if the value of any remuneration
      received from the entity in the 12 months preceding the disclosure and the value of any equity interest or fixed
      asset value of the entity as of the date of disclosure, when aggregated, equals or exceeds $5,000;

2.   with regard to any non-publically traded entity, a significant financial interest exists if the value of any
      remuneration received from the entity in the 12 months preceding the disclosure, when aggregated, equals or
      exceeds $5,000 or when the investigator (or the investigator’s spouse and dependent children) holds any equity
      interest (e.g., stock, stock options, or other ownership interest); or

3.   intellectual property rights and interests (e.g., patents, copyrights, trademarks), upon receipt of income related to
      such rights and interests.

Significant Management Position
A position with a legal entity that ascribes to the incumbent the authority to make decisions that will determine whether or not the entity will or will not do business with the University of Central Florida.

Supervisory Relationship
Exists when one relative is responsible for supervising, directing, evaluating, or influencing the work activities, or job performance of another relative.