City Ethics | Breaking the oxymoron: "City Ethics"

Conflicts of Interest August 20, 2013

Nepotism: Definition, Exceptions, Waiver

There are two ways to write a nepotism provision. One is to have a short, straightforward prohibition, and allow requests for a waiver under special circumstances. The most frequent circumstance would be a small town or school system where there are not a lot of prospective employees to choose from.

The other way is the one chosen by Louisiana: three pages of exceptions from the general rule (attached; see below).

Conflicts of Interest August 19, 2013

Do Gifts Establish Subordination?

Five years ago, I wrote a blog post about gifts and reciprocity, based on a classic anthropological work, Lewis Hyde's The Gift.

Local Government Practice August 9, 2013

Local Government Ethics Programs 2.0 [2nd Edition]

The second edition of this comprehensive book about local government ethics programs. And it's free! See more details here: Local Government Ethics Programs 2.0,

Ethics Commissions & Administration August 9, 2013

Designated Ethics Aides

The idea of a designated driver was a great idea (thank you, Scandinavia). The idea of the designated hitter was a lousy idea (yes, I'm a National Leaguer).

Ethics Commissions & Administration August 8, 2013

How to Handle Misrepresentations of Ethics Advice

It is very damaging when a government official misrepresents ethics advice he has been given. What should an ethics officer or commission do when this happens? In many cases, such advice, especially when it is provided informally, is confidential. When an official makes a public statement about such advice, the EC spokesperson can say nothing but "No comment." This allows the official to say whatever he likes.

Ethics Codes & Reform August 7, 2013

It's Gray Between the Cracks

Gifts to a local official can fall between jurisdictional cracks, as shown in an article today in the New York Times. They can also fall between definitional cracks. And between these cracks it's gray.

The article reports that, a couple of years ago, Newark NJ's mayor, Cory Booker, who is running for U.S. Senate, was given money by several high-tech executives to found a high-tech company.

Enforcement & Complaints August 7, 2013

Jursdiction, Nepotism, Retaliation, and Independence

Yesterday, Oregon's Statesman Journal reported an interesting case that involves a number of important government ethics issues.

The state's Department of Corrections (DOC) deputy director allegedly used his position to influence an Oregon Corrections Enterprises (OCE) administrator into hiring his son and later giving him a higher salary and increased moving expenses.

Ethics Commissions & Administration August 6, 2013

EC vs. IG: A Battle It's Better Not to Have

Once again, the failure to work out in advance the relationship between an ethics commission and an inspector general's office has led to the locking of horns in the midst of an ethics proceeding. This time the location of the turf war is the District of Columbia.

August 5, 2013

A City Land Sale That Requires a Broader Investigation

Here's an interesting case study from Hartford, CT. The facts come from an NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters post from Friday and a report of the city's Chief Auditor dated June 27, 2013.

Local Government Practice August 4, 2013

Loyalty, Fairness, and Whistleblowing

An op-ed piece in the New York Times Sunday Review today looks at whistleblowing from the perspective of whether people lean toward fairness or loyalty (those who lean to fairness are more likely to blow the whistle on misconduct). This is, of course, a simplistic approach, but valuable nevertheless. What is especially valuable is the authors' recommendation of reframing whistleblowing. They want to reframe it "as an act of 'larger loyalty' to the greater good.

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