Therefore, in this blog, I’d like to provide you with an
overview so that those of you who are local government employees, or school
board members or park district workers, or, just interested taxpayers, can
become more familiar with this complex structure and its real world
application.
Definition
The word “ethics” is defined as “the philosophical study of
moral values and rules.” But this kind of definition is vague and hard to
comprehend, especially when used in such a general way. So, to better understand
ethics, it’s essential to realize that these laws are based on ensuring what is
best for the individual and for society. When narrowed down even further,
ethics actually defines a moral structure within which people, companies and
governments are supposed to act and communicate with each other. For purposes of this blog, I will focus on the
ethics laws applicable to government and its elected officials and employees.
The Illinois General
Assembly
The Illinois General Assembly recently revised the ethics
structure of Illinois government. These changes were made in order to make sure
all public officers and employees are accountable to the highest ethical
standards. In addition, the modifications were designed to create transparency
at all levels within this governmental framework. Consequently, the practices
have been tightened to prevent any abuses that could compromise the
government’s performance of its legal obligations to the public.
But the new ethical
mandates are not fully known or even understood by those required to apply them
on a regular basis. Fortunately, the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act and the
State Officials and Employees Ethics Act contain a majority of the information
you need to be aware of concerning these new ethical policies.
For the most part, the statutes are quite detailed and
concentrate on the state’s legislative and executive branches. Yet it should be
noted that each mandate also applies to local governments, school boards, park
districts and commissions. This means that each of those entities is
responsible for developing local ordinances or resolutions that include and
enforce the ethical requirements featured in the statutes. Next Week
Due to the intricate nature of the revised Illinois
Governmental Ethics Act and the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, it
will be necessary for me to discuss them each in greater detail in my upcoming
blogs. Specifically, in my next several blogs, I will take a closer look at
these new ethics laws and will explain why they are so meaningful to Illinois
residents, particularly those in government positions. I will also identify the
principle areas of each act that have the greatest impact on political
candidates, local/state government workers, school board members and Illinois
taxpayers.
