Did DC Councilman Break Ethics Rules by Awarding a Contract to his Girlfriend?

The District of Columbia City Council has authorized an independent investigation into whether DC Councilman and former mayor Marion Barry violated ethics requirements by awarding a $15,000 personal services contract to his girlfriend, Donna Watts-Brighthaup. She was paid to develop "poverty reduction strategies."

Visit the Washington Post to read more about the investigation.

Regardless of whether Barry is found to have technically violated any ethics requirements, there is, at a minimum, an appearance of an ethical breach. When it comes to public officials awarding contracts, it is important that they avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest. Nevertheless, it's surprising how many cases like this come up.

In Seattle, in 2008, Councilmember Richard McIver was slapped with an ethics fine for awarding a contract to a friend who also regularly made her Virgin Islands condo available for McIver's use. Click here to read my previous blog entry on this Seattle case.

To help educate public agencies about ethical issues in contracting, I've developed and taught a training session on "The Ethics of Public Contracting: Integrity, Transparency, and Appearances." Here are the ten key questions addressed in this interactive training class:

1. How should you make ethical decisions?
2. Why do we having public bidding?
3. What ethics laws and standards apply?
4. What's so important about appearances?
5. What are the 4 risks of ethical lapses?
6. What gifts can I accept?
7. What situations pose a conflict of interest?
8. What are the ethics of contract administration?
9. How do I manage the ethics of internal politics?
10. What trends in public contracting affect ethics?

Please contact me if you are interested in discussing this important training for your agency.