EDITORIAL: State ethics panel needs all members to be most effective |
How effective can a state ethics panel be if it doesn’t even have the full ability to decide whether a government official entrusted by the public has violated the state Code of Ethics?
The answer, it can’t be.
It’s not because the panel isn’t authorized to make such rulings. It is. It’s not because the panel’s members don’t have the ability to assess such accusations and make a judgement about guilt or innocence regarding ethics violations. They do.
In this instance, the reason is that the state’s Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government (COELIG) doesn’t have enough members to support any decision that isn’t near unanimous or that is made when just three of its 11 total........