City Ethics | Breaking the oxymoron: "City Ethics"

Conflicts of Interest June 10, 2010

The Cincinnati Situation III - Indefinite Benefits and Proximity

Indefinite benefits, like indirect benefits, are often not dealt with by ethics codes, and this means that they can cause confusion and controversy. This is one reason I tend to speak in terms of "possible conflicts," because possible conflicts based on indefinite benefits can be just as injurious to the public trust as certain conflicts based on certain benefits.

Conflicts of Interest June 9, 2010

The Cincinnati Situation II - Conflicts and Indirect Benefits

A government official's relationships -- to family, employer, business -- are very important to determining whether conflicts exist. Both the type and the directness of each relationship are also important.

June 9, 2010

A Cincinnati Council Member's Situation Touches on a Number of Important Ethics Issues

There is a situation involving a Cincinnati council member that touches on many important government ethics issues, which I will deal with it in multiple blog posts over the next couple of days. In this post, I will set out the basic facts and the issues.

Conflicts of Interest June 8, 2010

Political Preferential Treatment and Quid Pro Quos

A capable individual decides to run for city council against an incumbent who has been on the council since long before the mayor got involved in politics (in other words, the incumbent owes nothing to the mayor and is in no way under the mayor's control). The mayor asks a former mayor to try to convince the candidate to drop out of the race, and allows the former mayor to offer the candidate an unpaid position on a city commission.

June 7, 2010

The Office of Congressional Ethics Leaves Its Barn and the Congressional Black Caucus Tries to Rein It In

While I was away on vacation, the new, quasi-independent Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) was in the news a lot.

Going Outside of Congress

Resources & Learning May 29, 2010

Ethics training research example: Sioux Falls, SD

I am conducting a national research study on government ethics programs with a focus on training. This research is being done in connection with the Ethics Center of the University of North Florida. Cities across the U.S. are being studied as to their ethics program structure, training requirements and training methods. In reviewing programs, one city deserves to be mentioned—Sioux Falls, South Dakota, nicknamed “the best little city in America”. The population is 154,997 and is ranked #150 in U.S. cities by population. In 1979 the State Ethics Commission in South Dakota was eliminated.

Ethics Commissions & Administration May 20, 2010

EC Members Aiding or Supporting Political Candidates

According to an iLind.net blog post this week, the chair of the Honolulu Ethics Commission resigned on April 22. Although his letter of resignation provides no cause for the resignation, the chair apparently said that he had been asked to assist a mayoral candidate's campaign and did not want to violate the ethics code.

May 19, 2010

A Cook County Ethics Reform Proposal

According to an article in yesterday's Chicago Daily Observer, Cook County commissioner Tony Peraica has proposed a series of improvements to the ethics code.

Ethics Commissions & Administration May 18, 2010

Anti-Government Anger Is Misplaced With Respect to Local Government Ethics Programs

There was a fascinating editorial in the Waterbury (CT) Republican-American yesterday. The editorial turns anti-government anger against the idea of a local government ethics program, and yet it has some valuable things to say about government ethics. Here's an edited version of it:

May 17, 2010

The Irresponsible Handling of One Man's Conflicts in Two School Districts

A week ago, I wrote about the weaknesses of an ethics initiative in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. This week, in neighboring Lackawanna County, the responses to a March 25 state ethics commission decision has shown truly irresponsible handling of one man's conflicts in two school districts.

Lakeland School District

Subscribe to