RSS Feed
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
City of Washington designated Certified City of Ethics by GMA The City of Washington has now joined some 200 Georgia cities that are designated "Certified Cities of Ethics." City Councilmen Pamela Eaton, Nathaniel Cullars, Edward Pope Jr., Maceo Mahoney, and Ames Barnett were present to receive the designation at the Georgia Municipal Association's Annual Convention June 24. "Washington was one of the few cities in the state that was not certified a City of Ethics," Councilman Eaton said, "so we really needed to become one a long time ago. But we also need this to uphold our standards and procedures in an ethical manner, and to carry out our city council meetings in a professionally ethical manner." City councilmen have worked for some months to attain this designation. In their April meeting, the council voted 4-2 to participate in the Georgia Municipal Association's Certified City of Ethics program, with Councilmen Mahoney and Cullars voting against participating. In the March 2008 meeting, the council had passed a draft ethics ordinance after several councilmen had urged not only adoption of the ethics standards, but had argued for more stringent penalties for unprofessional behavior. In addition to Washington, the cities of Auburn, Dallas, and Ze- bulon are the latest additions to the program, which is now in its ninth year. The voluntary ethics program, developed by a panel of business and government leaders, encourages cities to adopt and adhere to a set of key ethical principles and a comprehensive model ethics ordinance. The ordinance guides city officials' conduct in areas such as financial disclosures, conflicts of interests, and outside employment. The ordinance also contains strong penalty provisions, including public reprimands, fines and removal from office, for city officials who violate the ordinance. "The 'City of Ethics' program recognizes cities that make a tangible commitment to ethical conduct," said GMA Executive Director Jim Higdon. "We now have 200 cities that have proven their commitment to honest, ethical government by adopting strong ethics ordinances. I am extremely pleased that cities have taken the lead on earning and maintaining the public's trust in government."
A panel of attorneys reviewed the ordinances to determine if they comply with the criteria set by GMA. The cities received a plaque and are now authorized by GMA to use a "Certified City of Ethics" logo on city stationery, road signs, city vehicles and for other uses.
|
for larger version       |
|||||||||||||||||||||
