January 2, 2007 Ethics Laws and Local Officials

Ethics laws that were passed in Tennessee at the beginning of 2006 will soon have their first major impact on local government officials.

The immediate impact on local officials is the requirement that officials file financial information on sources of income by January 31, 2007.

The form that must be completed to report financial interests of the official or of a spouse or child who lives in the same household is here.

When voting on a matter, an elected official must publicly disclose any personal financial interest that they have in the matter to be voted upon if that personal interest actually affects the person’s vote or if the personal interest would lead a reasonable person to believe it affects the person’s vote.

To read more about the CTAS Model Ethics Policy for local governments, click on my previous post.

A local ethics policy must be adopted by June 30, 2007. Adoption of such a policy will be one of the most important actions taken by the new county commission.

Hamblen County Commissioners have a golden opportunity to stand up and adopt a policy that has clear standards and high ethical requirements that address conflicts of interest and strive to remove even the appearance of impropriety in public votes.

Recently, County Commissioner Paul Lebel abstained from public discussion and did not vote on a zoning appeal where he had a professional and financial interest.

That same action should be taken by any commissioner when a measure is before the commission that confers or has the appearance of conferring a personal or family benefit to that commissioner.