Gwinnett County commissioners were reminded not to do favors, learned when to recuse themselves from a vote and talked about the appearance of impropriety at an ethics training session this week.
Ethics training is required for commissioners every two years after a 2011 update to the county’s code. That came after one commissioner was indicted and another resigned in lieu of indictment. A third was later jailed on bribery charges.
Attorney Ken Jarrard, who conducted the training, said it was up to commissioners to leave the county in as good a condition as when they started.
“That’s not so hard,” Commissioner John Heard quipped.
Jarrard praised Gwinnett’s new ethics code, which he said is more comprehensive than other areas. At the same time, he went over the importance of keeping confidential information learned in executive sessions confidential, and said commissioners needed to remember that they wield influence. If they plan to recuse themselves from a vote, he said, they should not be part of discussions prior to it — even if outside official meetings.
Ethics is often a personal decision, he said, but lapses denigrate the public perception of all government.
“There is a gray area and there is falling over the line. My advice is to stay way back,” Jarrard said. “Make your decisions and make sure they’re a product of everything but your own self interest.”
Commissioner Jace Brooks said leaders’ continued attempts to rebuild trust can sometimes mean they are abundantly cautious, even when there is room to operate more in the gray area.
“Because of our recent history, we tend to stay 50 feet from the line,” he said.
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