Get real on ethics reform
Several US cities are way ahead of Congress when it comes to good governance.
By Mark Langefrom the June 28, 2007 edition
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San Francisco - The Democrats won the 2006 congressional elections on two issues: Iraq and cleaning up corruption in Washington. Which problem seems tougher to you? For Congress, ending centuries of sectarian violence and launching democracy in a fractious Middle Eastern nation now looks more likely than agreeing on even modest ethics reform.
Fortunately, while Congress deliberates, the national call for clean government is being heard and heeded in city halls across the country – many of which have much to teach the Hill.
Consider Atlanta. Former mayor Bill Campbell and 11 aides and associates were convicted or pleaded guilty on a range of criminal charges ranging from corruption and racketeering to tax evasion. His successor, current mayor Shirley Franklin, used that experience to set real rules on conflicts of interest and disclosure, give an ethics board the power to investigate and enforce, and beef up ethics staffing and budget. She won back city government's self-respect, not to mention a JFK Profile in Courage Award.
Or look to the city of Oakland, Calif., which in 1996 created an independent, uncompensated public ethics commission whose members are allowed no direct interest in any city business – whether getting elected, getting a contract, getting a paycheck; or supporting, opposing, funding, endorsing or working for any candidate or measure in a city election. Cynics may think all local politics is payola. With independent oversight, the kleptocracy crumbles.
The most remarkable example of urban ethics reform can be found in Philadelphia. Former mayor William Green once described city council as "the worst legislative body in the free world." Current mayor John Street called them "nothing but thieves and crooks." That was before the FBI had to bug Mr. Street's office and raid the city's finance, treasury, and pension operations – and the mayor's older brother (a consultant) was indicted for collecting millions in "pay to play" bribes for city contracts.
In a town too long accustomed to municipal manipulation, with 30 federal indictments in city hall in the past four years alone, the likelihood of a breakthrough in good governance seemed scant. Until a councilman, Michael Nutter, launched legislation to create the city's first board of ethics, limit campaign contributions, provide a transparent process for city contracts, and prohibit contributors from getting no-bid business. Campaigning on reforms to clean up corruption and shut down pay-to-play, Mr. Nutter won a five-way Democratic primary for the mayor's office and is poised to lead a city that knows it deserves better.
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