Safra Working Papers
Dealing with Wheeling
Robert Wechsler
"Wheeling" is a term I just discovered. The context is that NJ governor Chris Christie made a campaign
promise to deal with "wheeling," and
then failed to, according to a
South Jersey Times editorial yesterday. Here's how the
editorial describes the practice (many NJ local governments prohibit or limit contributions from their contractors):
It goes like this: Smith County has a fat consulting contract with Joe Blow Associates.
Dealings with Banks
Robert Wechsler
According to a
Washington Post article
this weekend, U.S. Senators Conrad and Dodd were cleared by
the Senate Select Committee on Ethics with respect to the senators'
membership in Countrywide Financial's VIP mortgage program. The
committee concluded that the senators were given special treatment, but
that others were given similarly special treatment and that the
senators did not benefit financially.
Deception About Ethics Commission Approval and Another Problem with Ethics Self-Regulation
Robert Wechsler
This week saw the opening of the trial of former New York state senate
majority leader Joseph Bruno for honest services fraud. According to
the assistant U.S. attorney presenting the
case, as quoted
in the Albany Times-Union, although a
criminal trial, "this case is about conflicts of
interest. It's about failure to
disclose conflicts of interest, and it's about concealment of
information that might have exposed conflicts of interest."
Decisions Regarding Lobbyists Sitting on Advisory Boards
Robert Wechsler
I believe that the best solution to the problem of having lobbyists and others seeking special
benefits from the government sitting on government
advisory boards is to get rid of these advisory boards.
Conflicts involving these boards are important because, although they are "merely
advisory," their recommendations are often accepted, and their
members are often selected (or seen to be selected) in order to reach a particular
conclusion.
Declaration of Policy, Purpose, and Obligations
Robert Wechsler
This is the place to comment on, discuss, and share alternative content and language relating to the declarations of policy that can usually be found at the beginnning of municipal ethics codes. Most declarations are very short and often ignored, since they cannot be enforced. But they are important in showing the community why ethical conduct is more important than just being good and fair.
Decriminalizing Ethics Codes
Robert Wechsler
I'd like to follow up on what I said at the end of yesterday's blog entry, about jurisdictions that make ethics violations criminal and require a
showing of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and a showing of
intentionality or recklessness or negligence. Here is the penalty
provision in the Arizona Conduct of Office chapter, which applies equally to local governments (to see the entire chapter, click here
and scroll down to Chapter 3):
Defending Officials: Misuse of Office and Who the Client Is
Robert Wechsler
Misuse of government resources, nepotism, transparency, and the
obligations of government attorneys are all issues in litigation over a
village's secret use of a contaminated well for 20% of the village's
water supply, according to an
article
in Sunday's Chicago Tribune.
Here a few questions that arise from this matter:
Here a few questions that arise from this matter:
Defenses Against Charges of Bribery
Robert Wechsler
U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez is to be indicted this week for bribery and failure to report gifts. Where there is an effective government ethics program, he would be easily found to have committed administrative government ethics violations. In a criminal case, the official has the edge (and he has already formed a legal defense fund, to obtain legal but inappropriate contributions from those seeking favors from him).
Definitions
Robert Wechsler
Following Mark Davies, I have placed definitions not at the front of the Code, where they usually appear, but at the end of the Ethics Provisions section. The reasoning behind this choice is that definitions should not be as important as they often are. Often, definitions include significant content, so that officials and employees must read the definitions before they can know what they are required to do. It is better to have officials focus on the plain meaning of ethics provisions, knowing that no extra duties will be imposed in the definitions, that there are no traps hidden there.
DeKalb County (GA) Grand Jury Report on Procurement-Related Misconduct
Robert Wechsler
It all started with the indictment, on charges of bribery and theft,
of a Fats, Oil & Grease inspector back in November 2010. It led
to an 83-page grand jury report in August 2013, which set out the misconduct involving the DeKalb County (GA) Department of
Watershed Management (DWM) procurement process, and made
recommendations not only for indictments, but also for an improved
ethics program.
DENVER, CO
Robert Wechsler
Designated Ethics Aides
Robert Wechsler
The idea of a designated driver was a great idea (thank you,
Scandinavia). The idea of the designated hitter was a lousy idea
(yes, I'm a National Leaguer).
Determining Whether Something Paid For Has Been Discounted and Is Therefore a Gift
Robert Wechsler
My
last blog post raised an interesting question. When an annual
financial disclosure form (or, in some jurisdictions a special
declaration of gifts received) requires the disclosure of all gifts
from
restricted sources, what are the expectations of an official
who pays rent to a restricted source? How is
the official expected to determine whether he has received a gift or
not?
Detroit and the Loyalties of Local Government Attorneys
Robert Wechsler
Loyalty is a virtue that is out
of place in government, because loyalty is a personal virtue, a virtue
that involves one's own personal interest and that of the person one is
loyal to.
Loyalty is a particularly difficult issue for local government attorneys, because loyalty is essentially the principal virtue for attorneys. Attorneys' conflicts of interest involve interests that get in the way of complete loyalty to a client.
Loyalty is a particularly difficult issue for local government attorneys, because loyalty is essentially the principal virtue for attorneys. Attorneys' conflicts of interest involve interests that get in the way of complete loyalty to a client.
Detroit's Mayor Kilpatrick Piles His Unethical Behavior Skyscraper High
Robert Wechsler
Detroit’s mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick is the new poster boy for misuse of office, lack of transparency, and covering up unethical behavior.
According to an article in the Detroit Free Press, it all began with an extramarital affair with his chief of staff, which he denied time and again (including on the witness stand), but finally admits to after the evidence is out.
Developers and Ethics Reform
Robert Wechsler
On November 15, 2006, David Damron of the Orlando Sentinel reported on Lawson Lamar, the local state attorney's call for "sweeping new ethics laws he said would limit the influence of developers and other special interests on city and county governments. In a Nov.
Differing Views on Corruption and Campaign Finance
Robert Wechsler
I keep thinking about the recent line of U.S. Supreme Court campaign
finance cases that limit corruption to "quid pro quo" situations. A
few months ago, I wrote a
blog post explaining that the Court's picture of campaign
finance as about political beliefs is not how things work at the
local level, where politics is more about power and spoils than
about beliefs. But the "quid pro quo" view of corruption is
problematic in other ways.
Disappointing Report from Ethics Task Force in Phoenix
Robert Wechsler
Phoenix has followed Chicago in taking a task force approach to
ethics reform. As in Chicago, the mayor selected the task force. The
Ethics Task Force, which according to an
article in the Arizona Republic, consists of "prominent
attorneys and judges," filed a report with the council on March 6. I have
been unable to locate a copy of the report, but I did find a 5-page
executive summary of the supposedly 20-page report (attached; see
below).
Disclosing Lobbyists' Language
Robert Wechsler
The principal value of lobbying, according to both lobbyists and
government officials, is the expert information lobbyists provide. The
view is often stated that, with the resources they have, government
officials could not effectively do their job without the expertise
they obtain from lobbyists.
Disclosure by Lawyer-Legislators
Robert Wechsler
Two days ago, I wrote about a Louisiana lawyer-legislator who is arguing
that disclosure rules should not apply to lawyers, because the practice
of law is regulated by the state supreme court. The story behind an
indictment in New Jersey this week makes a strong argument for applying
disclosure rules to lawyers, as they are in California and North
Carolina, only better.