Building a City of Ethics                                                        October 2005

The Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) initiated an innovative, voluntary program in 1999 to encourage Georgia’s 485 cities and towns to seek certification as a “City of Ethics.” There are 138 cities (as of January 2005) that have received this designation.
What does a city have to do to qualify as a “Certified City of Ethics?” They must (1) adopt a resolution subscribing to specific ethics principles, and (2) adopt an ethics ordinance. The resolution must embrace the following ethics principles:

–Serve others, not ourselves
–Use resources with efficiency and economy
–Treat all people fairly
–Use the power of our position for the well being of our constituents
–Create an environment of honesty, openness and integrity

The GMA Board requires that the ethics ordinance “contain definitions, an enumeration of permissible and impermissible activities by elected officials, due process procedures for elected officials charged with a violation of the ordinance and punishment provisions for those elected officials found in violation of the ordinance” (www.gmanet.com/data/html/cities_of_ethics.html). Some Georgia cities have given their ethics boards the power to fine offenders but there is uncertainty about whether or not such sanctions are beyond the legal authority of the board.

Once a municipality passes an ethics resolution and ordinance, it submits these documents to the GMA for review and approval by the Executive Committee of the GMA City Attorneys Section. When certified as a City of Ethics, a municipality receives “a plaque and a logo which can be incorporated into city stationery, road signs and other materials at the city’s discretion” (www.gmanet.com/data/html/cities_of_ethics.html).

The Georgia Municipal Association’s Certified City of Ethics program is a creative and proactive effort to advance ethics and integrity in local governance. Wouldn't you agree?