One of the biggest problems with local government lobbyists is that
they invariably have close contacts with those who run the city or
county. So whenever they are involved in a matter, especially the
bidding of large contracts, there is a strong appearance of impropriety,
and people don't trust the bidding process.<br>
<br>
This is why some local governments place a ban on the lobbying of
government officials with respect to large contracts and developments.

"Investigators, like prosecutors, must understand that the desire to go
after big game to garner big headlines may be as unethical as the
offenses they are pursuing."<br>
<br>
This is the central point of a<a href="http://www.nyintegrity.org/pubs/other/Chairman%20Michael%20G%20%20Cherk…; target="”_blank”">

Here are three different recusal case studies:<br>
<br>
<span>Public Recusal Is Not Enough</span><br>
One of the most important things to emphasize about recusal is that
recusal at a meeting is not enough. Recusal is supposed
to mean withdrawal from involvement in any aspect of a matter where an
official has a conflict of interest. Recusal at a meeting is only
withdrawal from the public part of a matter. If the official continues
to be involved with the matter behind the scenes, it is, in some ways,

Money rarely speaks as loudly and personally as it did for Tom
Golisano, a billionaire who appears to have been the principal force in pushing the Democrats out
of power in Albany, after he was snubbed by the party to which he has
been a principal patron. And rarely has a good government advocate
shown so clearly that he doesn't even know what government ethics is.<br>
<br>

It should come as little surprise to people involved in local
government that <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/09/health/09klas.html&quot; target="”_blank”">a New York
<span>Times</span> article</a> about
bullying among ten- and eleven-year-olds has a great deal of relevance.
I said for years about my town's government that its major participants
were like ten-year-old boys on a playground, taunting, playing games of

In the midst of <a href="http://www.elpasotimes.com/publiccorruption&quot; target="”_blank”">a big corruption probe</a>, a pair of back-and-forth ethics
complaints filed with a nearly toothless ethics commission in El Paso
doesn't seem like much. But it does sheds some light on how much El
Paso government is about the players rather than the citizens. And it
touches on some issues that are important everywhere, including the use

Nothing is more important to an ethics program than ensuring that an
ethics commission is seen as independent, and not a pawn of
politicians. People will not trust the advisory opinions and enforcement decisions of an
ethics commission consisting of people with even presumed ties to politicians. Since trust is the principal goal of an ethics program,
this is unacceptable.<br>
<br>

Maricopa County (home of Phoenix) is doing an excellent job of showing
America's local governments what not to do. In April, I wrote about the conflict
that existed when the county attorney, after representing the county
board of supervisors as it put together plans and contracts for a new
county courthouse, decided to investigate the board's handling of these
plans and contracts. The outcry over this conflict led the county
attorney to turn the investigation over to another county.<br>
<br>

<b>Updates below</b><br>
Anyone who doubts the need for truly independent ethics commissions
need look no further than what has been happening in Philadelphia this
week. Or should I say "this year"?<br>
<br>

I am always fascinated at the ways in which even the most reform-minded
politicians can kill ethics reform proposals that might cause them some
embarrassment. Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana has done a great deal for
ethics reform, but at least one reform bill, which on its face seems
pretty minor, has apparently gotten in his craw.<br>
<br>