City Ethics | Breaking the oxymoron: "City Ethics"

February 9, 2009

Michigan's Baby Step Toward Local Government Ethics

The Michigan House passed a bill in November requiring all local governments in Michigan to set up ethics boards. The bill, which amends the state ethics law, requires that ethics boards either use the state law, which is minimal, or that local governments pass their own ethics laws, with no restrictions.

Resources & Learning February 8, 2009

Folio Article: Miller's Crossing

When Mayor John Peyton decided to hire Carla Miller as Jacksonville’s Ethics Officer in 2007, the city was in crisis. A grand jury was investigating violations of state open-meeting laws by nearly every member of the former City Council. The FBI had begun sniffing around JaxPort, probing dubious contracts and allegations of influence peddling. The city had spent $36.5 million to develop the old Shipyards site, with nothing to show for it. It had spent another $26.8 million on the courthouse with similar results.

BY SUSAN COOPER EASTMAN

February 3, 2009

Conflicts of Interest February 7, 2009

Personal, Non-Financial Interests

One of my pet peeves is that many if not most local government ethics codes limit the definition of "conflict of interest" to situations where an official's interest involves money. But there are many personal interests that create a conflict, even though no money is involved.

Ethics Codes & Reform February 7, 2009

Leadership and Obstacles to Ethics Reform

I recommend an essay by Donald Menzel from the October issue of PM, the magazine of the International City-County Management Association (ICMA), entitled "Strengthening Ethical Governance in Local Governments." Menzel is a former president of the American Society for Public Administration, author of Ethics Management for Public Administrators: Building Organizations of Integrity, and co-editor of Teaching Ethics and Values: Innovations, Strategies, and Issues in Public Administration Prog

Conflicts of Interest February 5, 2009

Resignation Due to a Conflict of Interest

When is a conflict sufficient to require an official to resign (or not take a position in the first place)? This question involves a lot of gray area, and little black and white. What sorts of interest are enough to undermine public trust, and what sorts of interest provide opportunities for officials to benefit unfairly from their positions? Here are three recent situations where an official's external job was seen or not seen as creating a conflict serious enough to require resignation.

Ethics Commissions & Administration February 4, 2009

The Art of Making People Skittish

Move over, presidents, movie stars, and models. Welcome a local government ethics officer to your ranks.

Resources & Learning February 3, 2009

Ethics Training - Leadership and Responsibility

Ethics training is a problem at the local level. It's expensive, and there aren't many experienced local government ethics trainers around. Online ethics training has recently become the answer, but even this is difficult to get people to do. As I wrote a couple of years ago in a blog entry and a comment to the City Ethics Model Code, many officials are cynical about it and feel it's a waste of time.

Local Government Practice February 2, 2009

The Personal Side of Ethics

So much of government ethics involves the contrast, and sometimes the collision, between ethics and law. Too often the personal aspect of government ethics is overlooked. All three get twisted together in a very simple matter that occurred last week in the Escondido (CA) city council, according to an article in the North County Times.

Ethics Codes & Reform January 31, 2009

Who Is Covered by an Ethics Code's Provisions

Sometimes, those who write or amend local government ethics codes forget to make it clear exactly who is covered by an ethics code. Sometimes there is discussion about who should have to file annual disclosure statements, and sometimes there is discussion about whether volunteers should be covered. But too often individuals and bodies not central to local government are ignored.

Ethics Commissions & Administration January 30, 2009

Rationalization and Initiative in the Ethics Sphere

When it really comes down to it (and it usually does), what is the greatest enemy of trust in government, or anywhere else for that matter? Greed, power, ego, loyalty? I'd put my money on (or against) rationalization, the ability of people to justify what they do and fail to do.

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