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A Call for Academics to Provide Assistance to Government Ethics Programs

I read something very exciting today in the April 1 newsletter of
the Ethics Section of the American Society for Public
Administration. In a short essay entitled "Living in Glass Houses:
Ethics Commissions in the United States," Stuart C. Gilman, who has
had an illustrious career both in academia and on the front lines of
ethics and anti-corruption efforts, wrote the following:<blockquote>

I believe it is time for the ethics section to become more activist
by encouraging targeted research or an ASPA commission to look into
what makes ... ethics commissions effective. ... By being a bit
more activist, we might be able to aid [American] commissions with
tools to assist them in encouraging individuals to act with
integrity and discouraging those who enter public service for
selfish or narrowly partisan reasons.</blockquote>

This is a refreshing, even radical statement. In fact, I have
written a paper, which is to be published in the next issue of the
journal <i>Public Integrity</i>, that criticizes academia for doing
so little to research, analyze, and make recommendations for the
improvement of American government ethics programs.<br>
<br>
It is heartening to read that one of the most prominent people in
the field is calling for academic involvement in state and local
government ethics reform. In my paper, I provide several reasons why
such involvement has been so rare and express the belief that it is
law professors who are more likely to engage in this effort. I would
be happy to be proven wrong, to see people in the field of public
administration acknowledging the value of government conflicts of
interest programs and helping to make them more independent and
effective.<br>
<br>
Robert Wechsler<br>
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics<br>
<br>
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