It was great to see so many Floridians at the ICMA 100th anniversary conference in Charlotte! Throughout the conference, I noticed how many workshops and/or discussions centered around the Code of Ethics, which certainly sets ICMA apart from other professional associations. I know that you are now aware of the Florida requirement, approved by your board of directors last year, to complete four (4) hours of ethics training each year as a condition of membership in FCCMA. We did hear back from a few members that this was an excessive requirement, and that to some folks, it seems presumptuous as a judgment of an individual’s ethical beliefs. Please know that this was discussed at length by your board members. The conclusion was the same in each discussion: the state law regarding local government ethics training has been expanded to include elected municipal officials; it might be sooner rather than later that this law is expanded to include appointed officials at the local level too. And, by being proactive and requiring this for all members, we have taken a strong stand against the perceptions of unethical actions at the local government level. Each time a headline reads, “manager arrested,” or “manager investigated” the whole profession takes the hit – whether that person is a member of the profession and association or not.
Most of you have been following the recommended 40 hours per year of continuing education; ethics has always been part of that equation. There are many options to fulfill the requirement and it models the way for local government employees and the elected officials too. I am confident that this will become a very welcome part of each year’s continuing education for our members.
I also hope that you were able to join in a celebration of “Local Works Day” last week; I staffed an FCCMA table while 6th to 8th graders walked around finding out about local government services. I handed out brochures about a career in local government and fielded some interesting questions about that type of work. If your city or county held an event, please let Jenna Titcomb know about it for the Florida Local Government Coalition at jtitcomb@flcities.com.
