States and Municipal Ethics

February 4, 2015

A new Sunshine Law suit in Florida...

From the Miami Herald blog: Newspapers, advocates sue the governor and Cabinet for sunshine violation The Florida Society of Newspaper Editors, the Associated Press, a Tampa lawyer and a coalition of sunshine advocates filed a lawsuit late Tuesday alleging that Gov. Rick Scott and the Cabinet violated the state's open meeting laws when the governor unilaterally decided to "force the resignation" of former Florida Department of Law Enforcement Chief Gerald Bailey and they consented.

Transparency & Disclosure June 4, 2012

A Government Ethics Approach to Open Records

Luis Toro, the director of Colorado Ethics Watch, raised an important local government ethics issue in a recent Huffington Post post. It is a problem that is not peculiar to Colorado. It is also a problem that could benefit from a government ethics approach.

Local Government Practice June 28, 2010

The Powerlessness of the Powerful

It's amazing how powerless powerful politicians can be. Take New Jersey state senate president Stephen M. Sweeney. According to an article in the Courier-Post, Sweeney is not only senate president, but also director of his county's council (called the board of freeholders), as well as regional director of a union.

Ethics Codes & Reform April 15, 2009

Georgia Attempts to Require Local Ethics Enforcement

Last month, the Georgia Senate unanimously passed a bill requiring every local governing body (including school boards) to create an ethics panel to hear complaints regarding at least members of the local governing body and, in counties, elected constitutional officers.

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