"The deep problem with the system was a kind of moral inertia. So
long as it served the narrow self-interests of everyone inside it,
no one on the inside would ever seek to change it, no matter how
corrupt or sinister it became — though even to use words like
'corrupt' or 'sinister' made serious people uncomfortable, so
Katsuyama avoided them. Maybe his biggest concern, when he spoke to
city residents, was that he be seen as just another nut with a
conspiracy theory."<br>
<br>

The subject of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/06/public-editor/when-coziness-with-sour…; target="”_blank”">Margaret

The big news in the government ethics world this week is C.J.
Roberts' <a href="http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/13pdf/12-536_e1pf.pdf&quot; target="”_blank”">opinion

"<a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1418585&quot; target="”_blank”">'Public
Service Must Begin at Home': The Lawyer as Civics Teacher in
Everyday Practice</a>" by Bruce A. Green and Russell G. Pearce
(<i>William & Mary Law Review</i>, Vol. 50, p. 1207, 2009) provides an
excellent basis for something that I consider extremely important to

Rarely is a non-politician celebrity the subject of a local
government ethics matter. So with David Beckham the subject of a
Miami-Dade County ethics commission investigative report last week,
and with important issues to boot [pun intended], this is an
impossible matter to pass by.<br>
<br>
<b>Initiating Contact</b><br>
The most interesting issues in this matter are whether lobbying is a one-way

In <a href="http://www.cityethics.org/content/misguided-attempt-provide-more-due-pr…; target="”_blank”">a
blog post ten days ago</a>, I predicted that Florida state
senator Joe Abruzzo, the sponsor of SB 1474, would realize that the
newly amended bill would not do what he really wanted and make the
appropriate changes, so
that the amended SB 1474 would be consistent with HB 1315.<br>
<br>

<b>Update:</b> April 3, 2014 (see below)<br>
<br>
Every so often, someone comes along and says, What's so bad about
government officials' ethical misconduct? Isn't it worth having
ethical misconduct if it means an effective government?<br>
<br>
This time it's Hilary Krieger, a Washington <i>Post</i> editor, who

In most cities and counties throughout the United States, the city
or county attorney is in charge of the government ethics program. I
have written a great deal about why this is not a best practice, but
city and county attorneys still keep providing further reasons.
Here's one from Tioga County, NY.<br>
<br>

Another mayor has resigned after getting caught by an FBI sting.
According to <a href="http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/03/26/4795861/charlotte-mayor-pat…; target="”_blank”">an

Here's another story involving the lack of transparency. This time, the
lack of transparency involves a company getting government
grants.<br>
<br>
According to <a href="http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20140319/BUSINESS/303190026/County-…; target="”_blank”">an
article from a week ago on floridaytoday.com</a>, Brevard County,