EX-99.CODE ETH
CODE OF ETHICS
FOR PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE AND SENIOR FINANCIAL OFFICERS
OF THE OPPENHEIMER FUNDS
AND OF OPPENHEIMERFUNDS, INC.
This Code of Ethics for Principal Executive and Senior Financial
Officers (referred to in this document as the "Code") has been adopted by each
of the investment companies for which OppenheimerFunds, Inc. or one of its
subsidiaries or affiliates (referred to collectively in this document as "OFI")
acts as investment adviser (individually, a "Fund" and collectively, the
"Funds"), and by OFI to effectuate compliance with Section 406 under the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules adopted to implement Section 406.
This Code applies to each Fund's principal executive officer, principal
financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons
performing similar functions ("Covered Officers"). A listing of positions
currently within the ambit of Covered Officers is attached as EXHIBIT A. 1
1. PURPOSE OF THE CODE
This Code sets forth standards and procedures that are reasonably
designed to deter wrongdoing and promote:
o honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of
actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and
professional relationships;
o full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in
reports and documents that a Fund files with, or submits to,
the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and in
other public communications made by the Fund;
o compliance with applicable governmental laws, rules and
regulations;
o the prompt internal reporting of violations of this Code to
the Code Administrator identified below; and o accountability
for adherence to this Code.
In general, the principles that govern honest and ethical conduct,
including the avoidance of conflicts of interest between personal and
professional relationships, reflect, at the minimum, the following: (1) the duty
at all times in performing any responsibilities as a Fund financial officer,
controller, accountant or principal executive officer to place the interests of
the Funds ahead of personal interests; (2) the fundamental standard that Covered
Officers should not take inappropriate advantage of their positions; (3) the
duty to assure that a Fund's financial statements and reports to its
shareholders are prepared honestly and accurately in accordance with applicable
rules, regulations and accounting standards; and (4) the duty to conduct the
Funds' business and affairs in an honest and ethical manner. Each Covered
Officer should be sensitive to situations that may give rise to actual as well
as apparent conflicts of interest.
It is acknowledged that, as a result of the contractual relationship
between each Fund and OFI, of which the Covered Officers are also officers or
employees, and subject to OFI's fiduciary duties to each Fund, the Covered
Officers will, in the normal course of their duties, be involved in establishing
policies and implementing decisions that will have different effects on OFI and
the Funds. It is further acknowledged that the participation of the Covered
Officers in such activities is inherent in the contractual relationship between
each Fund and OFI and is consistent with the expectations of the Board of
Trustees/Directors of the performance by the Covered Officers of their duties as
officers of the Funds.
2. PROHIBITIONS
The specific provisions and reporting requirements of this Code are
concerned primarily with promoting honest and ethical conduct and avoiding
conflicts of interest in personal and professional relationships. No Covered
Officer may use information concerning the business and affairs of a Fund,
including the investment intentions of a Fund, or use his or her ability to
influence such investment intentions, for personal gain to himself or herself,
his or her family or friends or any other person or in a manner detrimental to
the interests of a Fund or its shareholders.
No Covered Officer may use his or her personal influence or personal
relationships to influence the preparation and issuance of financial reports of
a Fund whereby the Covered Officer would benefit personally to the detriment of
the Fund and its shareholders.
No Covered Officer shall intentionally for any reason take any action
or fail to take any action in connection with his or her official acts on behalf
of a Fund that causes the Fund to violate applicable laws, rules and
regulations.
No Covered Officer shall, in connection with carrying out his or her
official duties and responsibilities on behalf of a Fund:
(i) employ any device, scheme or artifice to defraud a Fund or its
shareholders;
(ii) intentionally cause a Fund to make any untrue statement of a
material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in
order to make the statements made, in light of the
circumstances under which they are made, not misleading in its
official documents, regulatory filings, financial statements
or communications to the public;
(iii) engage in any act, practice, or course of business which
operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit upon any Fund
or its shareholders;
(iv) engage in any manipulative practice with respect to any Fund;
(v) use his or her personal influence or personal relationships to
influence any business decision, investment decisions, or
financial reporting by a Fund whereby the Covered Officer
would benefit personally to the detriment of the Fund or its
shareholders;
(vi) intentionally cause a Fund to fail to comply with applicable
laws, rules and regulations, including failure to comply with
the requirement of full, fair, accurate, understandable and
timely disclosure in reports and documents that a Fund files
with, or submits to, the SEC and in other public
communications made by the Fund;
(vii) intentionally mislead or omit to provide material information
to the Fund's independent auditors or to the Board of
Trustees/Directors or the officers of the Fund or its
investment adviser in connection with financial reporting
matters;
(viii) fail to notify the Code Administrator or the Chief Executive
Officer of the Fund or its investment adviser promptly if he
or she becomes aware of any existing or potential violations
of this Code or applicable laws;
(ix) retaliate against others for, or otherwise discourage the
reporting of, actual or apparent violations of this Code; or
(x) fails to acknowledge or certify compliance with this Code if
requested to do so.
3. REPORTS OF CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS
If a Covered Officer becomes aware of a conflict of interest under this
Code or, to the Covered Officer's reasonable belief, the appearance of one, he
or she must immediately report the matter to the Code's Administrator. If the
Code Administrator is involved or believed to be involved in the conflict of
interest or appearance of conflict of interest, the Covered Officer shall report
the matter directly to the OFI's Chief Executive Officer.
Upon receipt of a report of a conflict, the Code Administrator will
take prompt steps to determine whether a conflict of interest exists. If the
Code Administrator determines that an actual conflict of interest exists, the
Code Administrator will take steps to resolve the conflict. If the Code
Administrator determines that the appearance of a conflict exists, the Code
Administrator will take appropriate steps to remedy such appearance. If the Code
Administrator determines that no conflict or appearance of a conflict exists,
the Code Administrator shall meet with the Covered Officer to advise him or her
of such finding and of his or her reason for taking no action. In lieu of
determining whether a conflict or appearance of conflict exists, the Code
Administrator may in his or her discretion refer the matter to the Fund's Board
of Trustees/Directors.
4. WAIVERS
Any Covered Officer requesting a waiver of any of the provisions of
this Code must submit a written request for such waiver to the Code
Administrator, setting forth the basis of such request and all necessary facts
upon which such request can be evaluated. The Code Administrator shall review
such request and make a written determination thereon, which shall be binding.
The Code Administrator may in reviewing such request, consult at his discretion
with legal counsel to OFI or to the Fund.
In determining whether to waive any of the provisions of this Code, the
Code Administrator shall consider whether the proposed waiver: :
(i) is prohibited by this Code;
(ii) is consistent with honest and ethical conduct; and
(iii) will result in a conflict of interest between the Covered
Officer's personal and professional obligations to a Fund.
In lieu of determining whether to grant a waiver, the Code
Administrator in his or her discretion may refer the matter to the appropriate
Fund's Board of Trustees/Directors.
5. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
(a) Each Covered Officer shall, upon becoming subject to this Code, be
provided with a copy of this Code and shall affirm in writing that he or she has
received, read, understands and shall adhere to this Code.
(b) At least annually, all Covered Officers shall be provided with a
copy of this Code and shall certify that they have read and understand this Code
and recognize that they are subject thereto.
(c) At least annually, all Covered Officers shall certify that they
have complied with the requirements of this Code and that they have disclosed or
reported any violations of this Code to the Code Administrator or the Chief
Executive Officer of the Fund or its investment adviser.
(d) The Code Administrator shall submit a quarterly report to the Board
of Trustees/Directors of each Fund containing (i) a description of any report of
a conflict of interest or apparent conflict and the disposition thereof; (ii) a
description of any request for a waiver from this Code and the disposition
thereof; (iii) any violation of the Code that has been reported or found and the
sanction imposed; (iv) interpretations issued under the Code by the Code
Administrator; and (v) any other significant information arising under the Code
including any proposed amendments.
(e) Each Covered Officer shall notify the Code Administrator promptly
if he or she knows of or has a reasonable belief that any violation of this Code
has occurred or is likely to occur. Failure to do so is itself a violation of
this Code.
(f) Any changes to or waivers of this Code, including "implicit"
waivers as defined in applicable SEC rules, will, to the extent required, be
disclosed by the Code Administrator or his or her designee as provided by
applicable SEC rules. 2
6. ANNUAL RENEWAL
At least annually, the Board of Trustees/Directors of each Fund shall
review the Code and determine whether any amendments (including any amendments
that may be recommended by OFI or the Fund's legal counsel) are necessary or
desirable, and shall consider whether to renew and/or amend the Code.
7. SANCTIONS
Any violation of this Code of Ethics shall be subject to the imposition
of such sanctions by OFI as may be deemed appropriate under the circumstances to
achieve the purposes of this Code and may include, without limitation, a letter
of censure, suspension from employment or termination of employment, in the sole
discretion of OFI.
8. ADMINISTRATION AND CONSTRUCTION
(a) The administration of this Code of Ethics shall be the
responsibility of OFI's General Counsel or his designee as the
"Code Administrator" of this Code, acting under the terms of
this Code and the oversight of the Trustees/Directors of the
Funds.
(b) The duties of such Code Administrator will include:
(i) Continuous maintenance of a current list of the names
of all Covered Officers;
(ii) Furnishing all Covered Officers a copy of this Code
and initially and periodically informing them of
their duties and obligations thereunder;
(iii) Maintaining or supervising the maintenance of all
records required by this Code, including records of
waivers granted hereunder;
(iv) Issuing interpretations of this Code which appear to
the Code Administrator to be consistent with the
objectives of this Code and any applicable laws or
regulations;
(v) Conducting such inspections or investigations as
shall reasonably be required to detect and report any
violations of this Code, with his or her
recommendations, to the Chief Executive Officer of
OFI and to the Trustees/Directors of the affected
Fund(s) or any committee appointed by them to deal
with such information; and
(vi) Periodically conducting educational training programs
as needed to explain and reinforce the terms of this
Code.
(c) In carrying out the duties and responsibilities described
under this Code, the Code Administrator may consult with legal
counsel, who may include legal counsel to the applicable
Funds, and such other persons as the Administrator shall deem
necessary or desirable. The Code Administrator shall be
protected from any liability hereunder or under any applicable
law, rule or regulation, for decisions made in good faith
based upon his or her reasonable judgment.
9. REQUIRED RECORDS
The Administrator shall maintain and cause to be maintained in an
easily accessible place, the following records for the period required by
applicable SEC rules (currently six years following the end of the fiscal year
of OFI in which the applicable event or report occurred):
(a) A copy of any Code which has been in effect during the period;
(b) A record of any violation of any such Code and of any action
taken as a result of such violation, during the period;
(c) A copy of each annual report pursuant to the Code made by a
Covered Officer during the period;
(d) A copy of each report made by the Code Administrator pursuant
to this Code during the period;
(e) A list of all Covered Officers who are or have been required
to make reports pursuant to this Code during the period, plus
those person(s) who are or were responsible for reviewing
these reports;
(f) A record of any request to waive any requirement of this Code,
the decision thereon and the reasons supporting the decision;
and
(g) A record of any report of any conflict of interest or
appearance of a conflict of interest received by the Code
Administrator or discovered by the Code Administrator during
the period, the decision thereon and the reasons supporting
the decision.
10. AMENDMENTS AND MODIFICATIONS
This Code may not be amended or modified except by an amendment in
writing which is approved or ratified by OFI and by a majority vote of the
Independent Trustees/Directors of each of the applicable Funds.
11. CONFIDENTIALITY.
This Code is identified for the internal use of the Funds and OFI.
Reports and records prepared or maintained under this Code are considered
confidential and shall be maintained and protected accordingly to the extent
permitted by applicable laws, rules and regulations. Except as otherwise
required by law or this Code, such matters shall not be disclosed to anyone
other than the Trustees/Directors of the affected Fund(s) and their counsel, the
independent auditors of the affected Funds and/or OFI, and to OFI, except as
such disclosure may be required pursuant to applicable judicial or regulatory
process.
Dated as of: June 25, 2003
Adopted by Board I of the Oppenheimer Funds
June 13, 2003
/S/ ROBERT G. ZACK
Robert G. Zack, Secretary
Adopted by Board II of the Oppenheimer/Centennial Funds
June 24, 2003
/S/ ROBERT G. ZACK
Robert G. Zack, Secretary
Adopted by Board III of the Oppenheimer Funds
June 9, 2003
/S/ ROBERT G. ZACK
Robert G. Zack, Secretary
Adopted by Board IV of the Oppenheimer Funds
May 21, 2003
/S/ ROBERT G. ZACK
Robert G. Zack, Secretary
Adopted by the Boards of Directors of
OppenheimerFunds, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates
that act as investment adviser to the Oppenheimer or Centennial funds
June 1, 2003
/S/ ROBERT G. ZACK
Robert G. Zack, Senior Vice President and General Counsel
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1 The obligations imposed by this Code on Covered Officers are separate from and
in addition to any obligations that may be imposed on such persons as Covered
Persons under the Code of Ethics adopted by the Oppenheimer Funds dated May 15,
2002, under Rule 17j-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended and any
other code of conduct applicable to Covered Officers in whatever capacity they
serve. This Code does not incorporate by reference any provisions of the Rule
17j-1 Code of Ethics and accordingly, any violations or waivers granted under
the Rule 17j-1 Code of Ethics will not be considered a violation or waiver under
this Code.
2 An "implicit waiver" is the failure to take action within a reasonable period
of time regarding a material departure from a provision of this Code that has
been made known to the General Counsel, the Code Administrator, an executive
officer of the Fund or OFI.
EXHIBIT A
POSITIONS COVERED BY THIS CODE OF ETHICS FOR SENIOR OFFICERS
EACH OPPENHEIMER OR CENTENNIAL FUND
Principal Executive Officer
Principal Financial Officer
Treasurer
Assistant Treasurer
PERSONNEL OF OFI WHO BY VIRTUE OF THEIR JOBS PERFORM CRITICAL FINANCIAL AND
ACCOUNTING FUNCTIONS FOR OFI ON
BEHALF OF A FUND, INCLUDING:
Treasurer
Senior Vice President/Fund Accounting
Vice President/Fund Accounting