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Gifts of Professional Services
Sunday, August 8th, 2010
Robert Wechsler
The usual image we get when we hear about a government official getting
something free
from a contractor is of a new kitchen or driveway. But free services
can
also be invisible, like legal advice and other professional service.
That's the issue in Tulsa this week, according to an article in the Tulsa World. Here's the situation. An attorney representing the city in certain matters (a hybrid private-local government attorney) is also representing the mayor, for free, in a matter that involves the council possibly filing charges against the mayor for allegedly lying about a federal police grant.
The first thing that happened was that a citizen filed a complaint with the Oklahoma bar association against the attorney. Then, according to an article on the News on 6 website, the council voted to file a formal ethics complaint against the mayor.
According to another article on the News on 6 website, the mayor said that, before he hired the attorney, he asked if there might be a conflict of interest for either one of them and the attorney said no. But the city has an ethics advisory committee and an auditor who mans an ethics hotline. Why didn't the mayor ask them if there might be an ethics violation?
The mayor's not making it any easier on himself by insisting that nothing could be wrong, and even making the whole thing dependent on the attorney's integrity, when it's questionable whether the attorney (especially since he's been acting as a local government attorney, at least part-time) should have provided ethics advice about his own free representation. According the second News on 6 article, the mayor said that the attorney "is a person of the highest integrity and honesty and I believe his recommendation and I believe his advice." And according to another Tulsa World article, the mayor said that he doesn't believe in "any manner, shape or form that any ethical violation is occurring by [the attorney] representing me."
There are two issues here: the attorney's conflict in representing both the city and the mayor against the city (a legal ethics issue), and the gift of free services to the mayor (a government ethics issue). According to another News on 6 article, the mayor later announced that his attorney will not represent the city while he is working privately for the mayor. That may deal with the conflict issue, but certainly not with the gift issue.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
---
That's the issue in Tulsa this week, according to an article in the Tulsa World. Here's the situation. An attorney representing the city in certain matters (a hybrid private-local government attorney) is also representing the mayor, for free, in a matter that involves the council possibly filing charges against the mayor for allegedly lying about a federal police grant.
The first thing that happened was that a citizen filed a complaint with the Oklahoma bar association against the attorney. Then, according to an article on the News on 6 website, the council voted to file a formal ethics complaint against the mayor.
According to another article on the News on 6 website, the mayor said that, before he hired the attorney, he asked if there might be a conflict of interest for either one of them and the attorney said no. But the city has an ethics advisory committee and an auditor who mans an ethics hotline. Why didn't the mayor ask them if there might be an ethics violation?
The mayor's not making it any easier on himself by insisting that nothing could be wrong, and even making the whole thing dependent on the attorney's integrity, when it's questionable whether the attorney (especially since he's been acting as a local government attorney, at least part-time) should have provided ethics advice about his own free representation. According the second News on 6 article, the mayor said that the attorney "is a person of the highest integrity and honesty and I believe his recommendation and I believe his advice." And according to another Tulsa World article, the mayor said that he doesn't believe in "any manner, shape or form that any ethical violation is occurring by [the attorney] representing me."
There are two issues here: the attorney's conflict in representing both the city and the mayor against the city (a legal ethics issue), and the gift of free services to the mayor (a government ethics issue). According to another News on 6 article, the mayor later announced that his attorney will not represent the city while he is working privately for the mayor. That may deal with the conflict issue, but certainly not with the gift issue.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
---
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