California Attorney General Rob Bonta Tuesday reminded California business owners that it remains illegal to pay bribes or prohibited gratuities to federal officials to obtain or retain business, “regardless of the priorities and behavior of the Trump Administration.”
The payment of an illegal gratuity — a gift for doing what the official is paid to do anyway — can be prosecuted beyond the current administration, and violations of anti-corruption laws remain actionable under California’s Unfair Competition Law, the State’s attorney general said.
“Despite the tone from the top of the Trump Administration, corruption remains illegal,” Bonta said in a statement. “Today, I’m reminding businesses in California that bribing federal officials is illegal under California law. Corruption is corrosive to democracy. Our great nation and the Golden State do not thrive on corrupt attempts to profit from government power, and we do not intend to start now — corruption is still illegal and will not be tolerated.”
Federal anti-corruption laws prohibit bribery of a public official or any other person or entity to influence an official act and prohibit the giving of money or any other thing of value to an elected official for or because of any official act performed or to be performed.
The payment of bribes or other inducements to public officials can also violate general anti-fraud and honest services laws, as well as other state and federal laws that can serve as Unfair Competition Law predicates.
In a news alert, Bonta reminded businesses and individuals to continue complying with all applicable laws, including federal bribery laws, “regardless of the federal administration’s conduct or priorities.”
California’s attorney general said businesses should continue to maintain rigorous internal controls and ensure that they and their agents do not offer or pay anything of value in exchange of official acts by federal government officials.