Political Process Duke Energy's Code of Business Ethics
Duke Energy strongly supports individual participation in the political process in our communities, including involvement with political parties, candidates or issues, and participation by eligible employees in Duke Energy's political action committee, DUKEPAC. Such activities demonstrate that we care about the communities in which we live and work.
As a company, Duke Energy actively supports positions important to our business. From time to time, the company provides information on its political activities and shares its viewpoint with employees, customers and the general public. We respect anyone's right to disagree with the official company positions regarding political preferences.
Our Responsibilities
Duke Energy employees are expected to follow these guidelines to avoid violating laws and regulations concerning political activities and contributions. These guidelines are applied consistently across the company for those involved in the political arena. Moreover, these guidelines are intended to protect both the company and the candidate from exposure to potential violations of campaign finance, lobbying and ethics laws.
Duke Energy employees must:
- Clearly identify individual, personal political views as such and not those of Duke Energy.
- Get approval from Government Affairs before performing political activities on company time or using company resources, including copy machines, computers, telephones and other forms of company property.
- Contact Government Affairs before using corporate funds or resources for a contribution to a third-party entity that is related in any way to a federal, state or local official.
- Notify supervision when making plans to campaign for or serve in public office.
- Avoid conflicts of interest when serving in public office by excusing ourselves from any political matters involving Duke Energy.
Duke Energy employees must not:
- Provide any gifts, meals, travel, entertainment or event tickets to public officials or their staff, or sponsor an event where a public official is the speaker or honoree, unless approved by the Government Affairs Representative in the employee’s state as rules and regulations vary from state to state.
- Contact government personnel for the purpose of influencing legislation, regulation or decisions without involving Government Affairs.
