City Ethics | Breaking the oxymoron: "City Ethics"

Conflicts of Interest March 25, 2011

Is An Attempt to Improve Appearances Worse Than Serving Oneself?

Some local government ethics codes include a provision prohibiting officials from acting outside of their authority, which is especially directed at council members interfering in a city or county's management. I don't consider this a government ethics issue, since it does not necessarily involve f…

March 24, 2011

Wisconsin Legislature Seeks to Make the Open Meetings Law Enforceable Against Everyone But Them

Update: May 27, 2011 (see below) Last week, I wrote about a temporary restraining order (TRO) placed on the publication of a Wisconsin bill that was allegedly passed in violation of the state's open meetings law. However, the court placing the TRO took four legislative leaders off the complaint on …

March 24, 2011

A Miscellany

Some Problems with Mayoral Executive Orders in Philadelphia On January 25, Philadelphia Mayor Nutter signed three ethics-related executive orders, which I would love to link you to, but cannot. How effective, except as a way to get the council moving on ethics reform, are executive orders that can'…

Ethics Commissions & Administration March 22, 2011

Ethics Commissions Should Stick to Their Area of Jurisdiction and Should Stay Out of Politics

A recent decision of the Wilton, NY ethics board (attached; see below) raises important issues regarding the selection of ethics commission members, their withdrawal from participation when they have a conflict, and the way an ethics commission handles allegations that are not covered by the ethics…

Ethics Commissions & Administration March 21, 2011

EC Members Should Respond Constructively, Not Destructively to Criticism of the EC

This blog post was partially rewritten on March 24, 2011 after communication with the EC's executive director. The actions of one member of Kentucky's state legislative ethics commission has undermined the public's view of the EC and of the state's lawyer disciplinary system. This case shows why it…

Ethics Codes & Reform March 20, 2011

Nonviolence and Government Ethics VII – Seeking Order

Seeking Order in Government All government officials seek order, not just in the sense of law and order, but also in the sense of having everyone know their roles, their authority, and their relationships to other individuals and agencies. Nonviolent actors seek order in societies where some kinds …

Resources & Learning March 19, 2011

Nonviolence and Government Ethics VI – Integrative Power

Violence happens. The world is violent. People are naturally violent. This is what people say. Politicians are all crooks. Government ethics is an oxymoron. Don't be so naïve. This is what people say. As Michael N. Nagler says in his book The Search for a Nonviolent Future, "when we have negative e…

Conflicts of Interest March 19, 2011

The Basis of Human (and Government) Success

It's always nice to know that your discipline is at the heart of what it means to be human. In Tuesday's New York Times Science Section, Nicholas Wade wrote: Biologists have little hesitation in linking humans’ success to their sociality. The ability to cooperate, to make individuals subordinate th…

Resources & Learning March 18, 2011

Nonviolence and Government Ethics V – Modeling Corruption

In his book The Search for a Nonviolent Future, Michael N. Nagler talks about two models for looking at violence that are also relevant to government ethics, the medical model and the educational model. The Medical Model The first is the medical model, which sees violence as disease, and peace as h…

March 18, 2011

Open Meetings Laws and Legislative Immunity in Wisconsin

According to articles on the WKOW TV (Madison, WI) website, this morning a Wisconsin judge placed a restraining order to stop a controversial budget repair bill from becoming law. The principal cause of action was a violation of the state's open meetings law. However, the names of four legislative…

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