In Legal Terms: Ethics for Public Servants

We can think of ethics as the principles that guide our behavior toward making the best choices that contribute to the common good of all. Who decides what’s ethical or not? Let’s find out from our guest Tom Hood, Executive Director, Mississippi Ethics Commission.What do they do?    The Mississippi Ethics Commission has four main areas of authority under four separate laws:The Ethics in Government Law – prohibits public officials and employees from having economic conflicts of interest.The Open Meetings Act – requires governmental boards and commissions to meet in public, unless they enter executive session by following a specific procedure for limited reasons.The Public Records Act – ensures the public can inspect and copy most government documents.The Campaign Finance Law – authorizes the Ethics Commission to issue advisory opinions to candidates about the use of campaign funds.What do they Don't DoUnethical Personal Conduct Criminal Activity ElectionsJudgesGeneral Questions of Government LawLawyer EthicsU.S. House Ethics Committee Chairperson is our own Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., The Ethics Committees are unique among all House and Senate committees in that they are bipartisan committees. On February 3, 1993, the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, issued by the Office of Government Ethics for codification at 5 C.F.R. Part 2635, replaced the many individual agency standard of conduct regulations with a uniform set of standards applicable to all employees of the executive branch.Because they are intended to answer questions about the ethical conduct of more than a million individuals employed by more than 100 different Federal agencies, the Standards of Ethical Conduct are detailed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.