Conflicts of Interest

Some towns have proximity rules, that is, rules that require officials to recuse themselves from any matter dealing with property within a certain distance of property they own or rent. But it is hard to have a set number of feet or yards. A distance appropriate to an urban environment is very different from one appropriate to a rural environment. There are considerations to balance here. On one side, there is the good of making ethical guidance as clear as possible. On the other side are several bads.

It is very common for public servants to say (or others to say for them) that they did not feel they had a true conflict or did not understand the law. And often this is true. But why so often do those same people often try to hide the fact that they did not disclose their conflict (or the extent of it) or do something about it until they had no other choice? This is what happened recently in the New York City schools.

The Supreme Court of California has handed down a decision that could have a significant impact on conflicts of interest cases. In The People v. Chacon, S125236 (February 8, 2007), the court found that Chacon, a former council member charged with a conflict of interest, could not use the defense that she had acted upon the advice of the city attorney. The advice concerned her entering into an employment contract as city manager.

Fred Anderson's review of Gordon S. Wood's book Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different in a recent issue of the New York Review of Books contains a passage on government ethics that gives an interesting context to our thoughts about it. 'Eighteenth-century British America ...

What's the difference between wearing multiple hats and having conflicts of interest? Former Vancouver City Manager Ken Dobell is the project manager (contractor, not employee) for a cultural precinct in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is also chair of the finance committee of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

"Passion" is not the first word that comes to mind when one thinks about municipal ethics (but it would be interesting to know what word does first come to mind). And yet passion is what you can find in an article and on-line discussion about a current conflict controversy in Billings, Montana. At first glance, it seems to be a minor conflict problem (which is what many discussants passionately consider it to be).

Local government attorneys have special conflict of interest problems. Should there be ethics rules particularly aimed toward them? Here's a recent example of a situation that could have been prevented by such rules. In Reading, Pennsylvania, a city councilman asked the city's Board of Ethics for an advisory opinion concerning the fact that the Reading Area Water Authority had contracts with a company owned by the authority's executive director.

This is the place to discuss additional conflict of interest provisions. Below are some comments added at the end of 100, but there are several more such provisions that can be found in ethics codes. What are your thoughts about and experiences with other conflict provisions?

Consultants are an in-between group. They're not officials or employees, nor are they people who do business with the city. They advise or sometimes act for the city, and have access to confidential information as well as special relations with city staff. Please share your thoughts about and experiences with the inclusion of consultants in an ethics program.

100(17).

Endorsing products and services is a minor conflict, but this is the sort of conflict that, if not specified, would not be considered a conflict under general language. Please share your thoughts about its inclusion and experiences with this problem.

100(16). Endorsements

No official or employee* in his or her official capacity may publicly endorse products or services.