City Ethics | Breaking the oxymoron: "City Ethics"

September 20, 2010

Ethics Reform: League of Women Voters Versus Town of Greenwich

I'm always fascinated by the myriad ways in which local governments approach ethics reform. An article in the Greenwich Time last week sheds some light on the state of ethics reform in Greenwich, CT.

Transparency & Disclosure September 16, 2010

Ethical Officials and Disclosure Rules

The Supreme Court has been nibbling away at campaign finance laws for years now, but the one thing all but one of the justices agree on is that requiring the disclosure of contributions does not infringe on first amendment speech rights.

Then why, as stated in the Washington Post yesterday, have organizations sponsoring issue ads failed to list the sources of their funding 85% of the time this year, when in 2004 they only failed to do this 29% of the time?

September 15, 2010

A Miscellany

Targeting Ethics Reform
In May, I wrote a blog post about ethics reforms proposed by a Cook County (IL) commissioner. I felt they didn't have much chance of passing.

Ethics Commissions & Administration September 15, 2010

Who Makes the Best Ethics Commission Member?

Who is the best sort of individual to select as an ethics commission member? Some people believe it's a member of the clergy, because who else is more ethical? And there are many clergy members on ethics commissions across the country. But this shows either a misunderstanding of government ethics (that it's about being good rather than dealing responsibly with conflicts of interest) or a preference for appearances, even if it gives the public the wrong impression about what government ethics is all about.

Enforcement & Complaints September 14, 2010

Opposition to Independent Ethics Enforcement in Washington Will Echo Locally

Forget the fascinating range of ethics programs at the local level. It is congressional ethics programs that get the national attention. And with all this attention, what Congress does, and fails to do, has a great effect not only on what happens at the local level, but also on the rhetoric employed there.

When Congress self-administered its own ethics, every council or county commission member could say that if self-regulation is good enough for Congress, it's good enough for them. Only legislative bodies, the rhetoric went, can oversee legislators.

Conflicts of Interest September 13, 2010

The Ethics of Municipal Pension Plans Revisited

Four years after I wrote a blog post entitled The Ethics of Today's Municipal Pension Plan Problems, according to an op-ed piece in the New York Times, New Jersey agreed with the S.E.C. never again to fraudulently hide

September 11, 2010

Problems with Santa Fe County's Aspirational, Yet Enforceable Draft Code of Conduct

What is most remarkable about the proposed code of conduct for Santa Fe County (NM) is the fact that it was drafted by the county attorney. It reads as if it were put together by a citizens group in a community that has lost faith in its government officials.

September 9, 2010

An Ethics Pledge That's Too Much and Too Little

In May, I wrote a critical assessment of the Luzerne County (PA) Ethics Pledge.

September 8, 2010

Jacksonville's Charter Review Commission

The Jacksonville City Council's Sub-Committee on the Charter Review Commission's (which only meets every 10 years) findings met yesterday 07-09-2010 to hear public testimony on any aspects of the CRC's findings. There were about 20 people who spoke, and all but one were there to encourage the committee to implement the Jacksonville Ethics Commissions recommendations regarding inclusion of the Ethics Commission in the city's charter.

Conflicts of Interest September 8, 2010

Using Local Government Employees for Private Purposes

Using government employees for private purposes is one of the most common ethics code violations.

This violation is especially bad because it involves coercion of individuals, in this case subordinates who are not in a position to say no. Coercion and intimidation rarely occur outside of a poor ethical environment.

This violation also shows a serious failure to recognize the boundary between public and private, which is the heart of government ethics.

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