City Ethics | Breaking the oxymoron: "City Ethics"

Conflicts of Interest August 2, 2006

When Municipal Governments Depend on Businesses

There are municipal ethics issues that will never find their way into any ethics code, but which should certainly be covered in ethics training courses. Many of these issues involve the relationship between government and businesses. If there were no money to be made in and through municipal govern…

Ethics Codes & Reform July 31, 2006

The Importance of Being Readable

One of the most serious problems with municipal ethics codes is their unreadability. Few of those who write them seem to consider the capabilities of the code's audience: municipal officials and employees without a legal education. In 1998, the Securities and Exchange Commission insisted that docum…

July 10, 2006

A City Where "We Don't Want Nobody Nobody Sent"

Patronage is the most basic of all municipal conflicts of interest. It involves not only self-interest (my job), but also a variety of organizational interests (my agency, party, ethnic or racial group, friends). In every little patronage decision, all of these interests take precedence over the pu…

Local Government Practice July 6, 2006

Apologies: Central to a City's Ethical Environment

As canaries were to mines, apologies are to a municipality's ethical environment. If you don't see a good number of sincere apologies, then ethics and accountability are probably dead in your town. In addition, insincere apologies are a sure sign that the town's political leaders are manipulative a…

July 4, 2006

Jacksonville Daily Record Interview - Carla Miller

From: http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=45455 July 4, 2006Miller's ethics advice travels well by Bradley Parsons, Staff Writer As an ethical adviser to politicians, Carla Miller never has to worry about staying busy. Miller, a partner at Miller, Skinner & Jolly, also serves as th…

June 27, 2006

Setback for Municipal Campaign Finance Reform

Yesterday's Supreme Court decision in Randall v. Sorrell is a setback for municipal efforts at campaign finance reform (CFR). CFR is a municipal ethics issue, because the justification for campaign spending and contribution limits is that such limits help to prevent corruption. The main decision of…

Resources & Learning June 26, 2006

Boot camp for city officials teaches 'a culture of ethics'

from the June 26, 2006 edition - http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0626/p02s01-usgn.html At a seminar in California, municipal leaders learn how to stay on the straight and narrow in times of temptation. By Daniel B. Wood | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor SANTA CLARA, CALIF. Wearing lanya…

June 24, 2006

DENVER, CO

Brief History of Denver in Politics Denver entered the political arena fairly quickly to its founding in 1858, and incorporation in 1861. The city was named the state capital of Colorado upon its entering the Union in 1876, as state leaders saw Denver, which was the territorial capital of the 15 ye…

June 24, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO, CA

As the official name implies, the City and County San Francisco is a consolidated city-county, being simultaneously a charter city and charter county with a consolidated government, a status it has had since 1856. It is the only such consolidation in California and the only California county with a…

June 24, 2006

HONOLULU, HI

Honolulu Government Originally governed by a Board of Supervisors, the City & County of Honolulu is administered under a mayor-council system of governance overseeing all municipal services: civil defense, emergency medical, fire, parks and recreation, police, sanitation, streets, water, among othe…

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