A New State Integrity Index Report

Two weeks ago, <a href="http://www.bettergov.org/action_policy/bgaalper_services_integrity_inde…; target="”_blank”">the
Better Government Association-Alper Services Integrity Index</a> was published, the first
since 2008. It grades each state's conflicts of interest, freedom of
information, open meetings, and whistleblower-protection laws.<br>
<br>
As far as it goes, this is an excellent report. It sets forth best
practices and shows how each state has fallen short. With 100% as
following all best practices, the average state got a mark of 55%,
the top state (Rhode Island) got a 70% and the bottom state
(Montana) got a 28%.<br>
<br>
My problem with this approach, just as with <a href="http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7BFB3C17E2-CDD1-4DF6-92BE-BD44298936…; target="”_blank”">the
report I did for Common Cause Connecticut</a> back in 2004, when I
graded the conflicts of interest laws of every Connecticut
municipality, is that it is limited to laws. Laws are only part of
the story. You can have the best laws on the book, and have no
government ethics program whatsoever.<br>
<br>

Effective
enforcement, which is one of the criteria included in the Integrity
Index, is one element that is required in addition to good laws. The other three most important elements of an ethics program are not
included in the Index:  training, advice, and an independent
ethics commission. In fact, the only enforcement that is considered
is enforcement of annual disclosure. This is important, but it says
little about the quality of an ethics program or how it is perceived
by the public.<br>
<br>
On the basis of this report, I could not honestly say anything about
the quality of a state's conflicts of interest program. I would feel
better if it graded "Annual Disclosure" rather than "Conflicts of
Interest." The title raises expectations far beyond what is
provided.<br>
<br>
Of course, the other issue for City Ethics is the fact that this
index says nothing about state laws that apply to local officials. A
state with a relatively good state ethics program may require
nothing of local officials. Among the top 10 states with respect to
conflicts of interest, some have better or worse
conflicts of interest programs for local officials, and some have no
program and little in the way of requirements for local governments
to set up their own programs.<br>
<br>
But the biggest problem is that the index supports the general
misconception that government ethics is primarily about laws. Laws
are important, but they're not what matters most, and they do not
provide a valuable picture of an ethics program's quality, or even show whether
there is a program at all.<br>
<br>
What I would like to see in the next Integrity Index is more information about training, the
availability and use of swift, independent advice, how independent
and active ethics commissions are, and what resources they have.
This requires much more work, but I think it's worth it.<br>
<br>
Robert Wechsler<br>
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics<br>
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