The Committee of Seventy
Eight Penn Center
1628 JFK Boulevard
Suite 1002
Philadelphia, PA 19103
p. 215-557-3600
f. 215-557-3608
info@seventy.org

Overview of Ethics Reform

It may sound like this is just an effort to make life more difficult for sticky-fingered politicians, but this term actually covers multiple initiatives intended to remedy a wide range of governmental failings.

In a philosophical sense, ethics reform is about right and wrong and about ensuring that those in government meet their responsibilities to the public. In a practical sense, ethics reform is about raising citizen expectations regarding the quality of municipal services, ensuring equal opportunity when it comes to public employment and contracting opportunities, and eliminating discriminatory treatment, which favors the "connected" over everyone else.

Ultimately, ethics reform is about dollar and cents - tax dollars wasted or stolen, potential residents turned off by stories of municipal corruption, and corporate investment directed to jurisdictions lacking our now infamous "pay-to-play culture."

Why is Ethics Reform Needed ?

Although it's hard to nail down an accurate individual or total cost, government waste occurs at every level of government, in every state, county and municipality in America, regardless of which political party is running the show. Sometimes it's a case of outright corruption, but much more frequently it's simply the political winners and their allies taking advantage of the "spoils of victory."

Ethical misconduct takes place in every type of institution from borough councils to the federal government, from the richest countries to the poorest, and in the public, private and non-profit sectors. Unfortunately, Philadelphia has a more notorious image than most cities for our corrupt and unfair political system, which inhibits the city's growth on many levels. For the Philadelphia region to return to national and international economic prominence, we need to trim the political fat and use this significant savings to both reduce city taxes and improve services. We also need to lose, once and for all, our reputation for being "corrupt and contented" as described by Lincoln Steffen in 1903. The reality is that with our industries and amenities we are very well positioned for the 21st Century, but we are held back by the national perception we at least tolerate and arguably celebrate 19th Century machine politics

Current Alliance of Area Organizations, Businesses and Individuals Urging Citizens to Vote Yes to the November 8, Ethics Ballot Question Current Alliance of Area Organizations, Businesses and Individuals Urging Citizens to Vote Yes to the November 8, Ethics Ballot Question Thank you to everyone who helped out with this effort, especially the voters who made this campaign a real success. 2005 Ethics Ballot Question Results are Unprecedented Peggy Amsterdam, Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance John F. Smith III, Partner, Reed Smith, LLP, and Board Member, Pennsylvania Economy League Mark S. Schweiker, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce (GPCC) Pennsylvania Economy League Asian American Bar Association of the Delaware Valley Pepper Hamilton, LLP Brett Mandel, Philadelphia Forward Tim Cost, Executive Vice President, ARAMARK Corporation Trammel Crow Company Brandywine Realty Trust Alfred W. Putnam Jr., Drinker Biddle & Reach LLP Neighborhood Networks American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) The Committee of Seventy Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania (HBA) National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Phil. The Philadelphia Bar Association Klehr, Harrison, Harvey, Branzburg &Ellers, LLP Dan Fitzgerald, Bank of America Andrew Wigglesworth, Delaware Valley Healthcare Council CEO Council for Growth Andy Toy, Chairman, Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation The League of Women Voters of Philadelphia Center City Residents Association @dvocacy, Inc. Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts Greater Bustleton Civic League Happy Craven Fernandez, Moore College of Art and Design Philadelphia Parks Alliance Drexel University's LeBow College of Business Buzz Communications Stephen Madva Montgomery, McCracken, Walker & Rhodes, LLP Philip A. Peterson, Aon Consulting, Inc. Philadelphia Federation of Young Republicans Wolf, Block, Schorr & Solis-Cohen, LLP Paul R. Levy, Central Philadelphia Development Corporation Green Party of Philadelphia Chris Binder, Citizen's Bank GPCC’s Young Professionals Network Society Created to Reduce Urban Blight (SCRUB) Saul Ewing, LLP Young Involved Philadelphia John K. Ball, Shoemaker Construction Co. University City District Tom Muldoon, Philadelphia Convention Visitors Bureau The Design Advocacy Group Howard D. Scher, Buchanan Ingersoll Professional Corporation Philadelphians United to Restore Ethics (PURE) Liz Dow, LEADERSHIP Philadelphia Judith E. Tschirgi, Chief Information Officer, SEI Investments SPEAR (Students for Progressive Ethics Amendments and Reforms) Dan Bosin, the American Institute of Architects, Philadelphia Chapter Charles Thomson, Thomson Communications Kimberly Hall and Rob Powelson, Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry Andrew Chirls, Chancellor, Philadelphia Bar Association Mark J. Foley, esq. Beverly A. Harper, President Portfolio Associates, Inc. Right Now! Philadelphia East of Broad Improvement Association Nancy Lanham Global Indian Chamber John McDonald Terry Gillen, Coalition for Fair Taxes Hallwatch One Philadelphia Philadelphia NOW 08/14/07 Source: Committee of Seventy  Sections. / Misc. Government Reform Articl