At the April 6 Village Board meeting, Mayor Ben Reed proposed a resolution to repeal in its entirety Chapter 4, titled “Code of Ethics,” of the Brockport Municipal Code. Doing so would also eliminate the village’s Ethics Board (although the board would continue addressing all pending ethical issues). Should the resolution pass, the village would no longer have its own Ethical Code of Conduct. Moreover, if a resident wished to file an ethical complaint, they would have to submit it to the Monroe County Board of Ethics. Mayor Reed offered no explanation for his motion to repeal the Code of Ethics.
Repealing the Code of Ethics and the Ethics Board sends a troubling message to the community. As the current code states, “…there is a continuing need for standards of ethical conduct as a guide for public officers and public employees. These standards must rely primarily on personal integrity and on community vigilance; law cannot in itself create moral fiber, nor can law quicken the civic conscience.” Eliminating this language suggests the village board no longer values personal integrity and community vigilance.
If dismantling the Ethics Code and Board is a financial decision, the expenses are negligible. At the most recent Village Board Meeting, the Ethics Board requested $3,500 for independent legal counsel, a service ensured by the municipal code. This year’s request is an anomaly due to a recent spike in ethical complaints, and is the first time such a request has been made in over ten years. In that time, the board has required no financial resources from the village. All voting members of the Board of Ethics are Brockport residents who volunteer their time and efforts.
If the repeal is successful, the Board of Trustees is threatening an invaluable safeguard in the ethical operations of municipal government. The Code of Ethical Conduct establishes expectations that employees and officers will not take advantage of their privileged positions, and they will adhere to robust standards of moral behavior. The Ethics Board exists to ensure those standards are met. If we remove these mechanisms, we’re removing essential guardrails protecting the village from potentially harmful behavior. Good government, an outcome we all want, can only exist with ethical behavior. Compromising ethical expectations will only lead to less effective municipal operations.
A public hearing on the proposed resolution was scheduled for the April 20 Village Board meeting, but has since been postponed. We encourage you to read Chapter 4 of the Brockport Municipal Code, attend the public hearing when rescheduled, listen, and share your thoughts on this important topic.
Christina Daniels
Elizabeth Holden
John Keiser
Mark Ketchum
Note: All signatories are voting members of the Village of Brockport’s Ethics Board.
