See Update below Is there a conflict when a county prosecutor who is a presidential candidate's campaign chairman in the area subpoenas the voting records, including personal information, of certain voters who registered and voted at the same time during a short window when this is allowed in Ohio?…

Expertise is one of the most difficult issues in local government ethics. In most cases, more expertise also means more potential conflicts of interest, and yet it can also mean more effective government. According to an article in yesterday's Park Record (Park City, UT), a Summit County Council ca…

According to an editorial in the New Jersey Star-Ledger, Gov. Corzine has set forth a number of ethics reforms, which focus on cities and counties, where the corruption has been the worst in recent years (see my blog entries here, here, here, and here). The principal area of reform involves pay-to-…

Update: Later in the day, according to a report in On the Hill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on the Treasury Secretary to strengthen the conflict of interest requirements discussed below. The bailout, pursuant to the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, is being contracted out to fina…

Updated Oct. 10, 2008; see final three paragraphs New York City is in a crisis. But its mayor and 2/3 of its City Council will have to leave office due to term limits imposed by referendum in the 1990s. Mayor Bloomberg wants to get rid of term limits, and Ronald Lauder, the billionaire who backed t…