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Institute for Local Government
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Ethics Codes

Overview

Local Agency Ethics Codes

Even though California has an extensive set of ethics laws to guide public officials’ behavior, local agencies sometimes find it helpful to adopt their own codes of ethics.  As the materials in this section explain, such codes have a variety of functions.

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Ethics Codes versus Local Conflict of Interest Codes

California’s Political Reform Act requires local agencies to adopt local conflict of interest codes.

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Developing a Local Agency Ethics Code: A Process-Oriented Guide

To respond to local agencies’ interest in understanding more about the hows and whys of adopting ethics codes, the Institute developed a guide to walk them through the process.

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Sample Ethics Codes

A number of local agencies have adopted values-based ethics codes.

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Codes of Ethics Adopted by Associations of Public Agencies and Public Agency Professionals

Those organizations with codes of ethics include:

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Employee Codes of Ethics

The November 2011 issue of Public Management Magazine includes an interesting article on a bottom-up approach to developing an employee code of ethics. Authors Kevin Duggan and Kevin Woodhouse detail the process of developing and, most importantly, implementing a code of ethics.

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Codes of Conduct for Elected Boards

Collaboration among elected bodies and between individual members takes effort. Finding common ground and cultivating respectful relationships early on can make for a more civil and effective governing body.

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Santa Clara’s Comprehensive Approach to Ethics
A groundbreaking values-based ethics code led the city to a number of innovative ethics initiatives.

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Watsonville Adopts Code
After a series of council workshops, Watsonville adopted a values-based ethics code.

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Santa Ana Uses Inclusive Approach to Develop Ethics Code
This article describes the City of Santa Ana's approach to adopting a code of ethics.

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