Atlantic City Council Votes to Abolish the City's Ethics Board
A city full of casinos has no need for an ethics board, right? Well,
according to <a href="http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/180/story/404724.html" target="”_blank”">an
article in yesterday's </a><span><a href="http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/180/story/404724.html" target="”_blank”">Press</a><span><a href="http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/180/story/404724.html" target="”_blank”"> of
Atlantic City</a>,</span></span> that's the decision the Atlantic City
council made last week.<br>
<br>
This decision (a second vote is required for it to be official) comes
after a lot of conflict between board and council about underfunding.
In fact, the board's principal expense over the last two years has been
paying a lawyer for its suit against the city for underfunding. Here's
the background story, according to <a href="http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/180/story/358811.html" target="”_blank”">another
article</a> in the <span>Press of Atlantic
City. </span><br>
<br>
<p>The
resurrection of the city's Ethics Board was a campaign promise made by
former Mayor Bob Levy that hung in the balance for years as the city
refused to commit to funding. After Levy abruptly resigned, City
Council President William Marsh took over as acting mayor and things
took a turn.</p>
<p>Marsh agreed to sign paperwork giving the
board
$10,000, office space and budget consideration next year. In exchange,
the board agreed to drop its suit that said the city illegally
underfunded the investigative body.<br>
</p>
<p>But the Board still owes its counsel money for the suit. And
Atlantic City law requires that the council give every board office
space and the right to independent counsel. The Board says it has no
money for office supplies or for a phone line. Are there any other
boards and commissions that have this problem?<br>
</p>
<p>In its debate about getting rid of the ethics board, council members
referred to it as a duplication of services. Why not send the
complaints to the prosecutor's office or the individual's
supervisor? One council member even asked what its purpose is and
what its attorney has done, asking the board to justify its existence.<br>
</p>
<p>What about the city's citizens? Here are the results of an <a href="http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news/press/atlantic_city_boards/stor…; target="”_blank”">online
poll</a> taken last month by the <span>Press
of Atlantic City</span>. Ethics enlightenment seems hard to find in the shadow of those casinos.</p><br>
Keep it and fund it. You can't place a value on combatting corruption.<br>
<br>
Robert Wechsler<br>
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics<br>
<br>
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