Transparency & Disclosure

This is the place to discuss how best to deal with the problem of an official using confidential information for his or her own gain, or disclosing confidential information for others' gain. A principal issue is how to define "confidential information."

100(8).

This is the place to discuss disclosure of possible conflicts of interest at the point where they arise, that is, where an official or employee's continuing participation in a matter becomes a matter of concern because of a conflict between his or her government role and his or her other roles, business, professional, or personal. Withdrawal (recusal) is the central act in a conflict of interest situation.

Often referred to as "Financial Disclosure," a term that makes it seem more invasive than it actually is, annual disclosure is an important, but controversial way to get officials and employees to consider their potential conflicts of interest on an annual basis, and to let the public know about such potential conflicts. This is the place to share your opinions and experiences with annual disclosure.

Applicant disclosure is the form of disclosure that least often appears in municipal ethics codes, not because it is controversial, but because it is not even discussed (although forms of it might appear in other laws and regulations). Please share your experiences with applicant disclosure that appears in or outside of ethics codes, and your thoughts about its importance, and form, in ethics codes.

104. Disclosure by Applicants.

1.