An ever increasing concern over bacterial infections caused by consumer products as well as medical devices is obvious from the recent surge in literature documenting the need for novel self-decontaminating coatings. Within, we report a hybrid ionic organic/inorganic siloxane epoxy system containing quaternary ammonium moieties. This novel low surface energy antimicrobial coating is capable of self-decontaminating in a variety of environments. The system is designed to be used as an over-coating, for devices that are prone to come into contact with pathogenic bacteria. These coatings have been synthesized, characterized, and analyzed for both physical and antimicrobial properties. Preliminary antimicrobial evaluation indicates a direct correlation between antimicrobial activity and hydrophobicity of the biocidal functional group within the resin matrix. These coatings have demonstrated the ability to eliminate up to 99.9% of pathogenic bacteria on the surface. (C) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 110: 3080-3086,2008