Committee debates ethics board, internal audit and manager qualifications during charter review

Consultants from the Carl Vinson Institute of Government and committee members discussed several charter elements related to ethics, transparency, internal audit and qualifications for a future city/county manager.

Dr. Facer, speaking for the consultants, outlined options for the charter and accompanying ordinances. He said the charter could mandate a code of ethics and the creation of an ethics board while leaving detailed enforcement mechanisms to ordinances so the rules could be updated without returning to a referendum. "This provision shows that the Charter is serious about the need for dealing with ethics, but at the same time leaves it to the council or commission to adopt the formulation most appropriate for the specific situation," Dr. Facer said. He noted the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) program "Certified City of Ethics" and said Augusta currently meets that certification.

The consultant team reported that among cities over 50,000 and counties over 100,000 in Georgia, about 86% have a formal…