EDMG330 Assignment
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Swimwiththesharks.pdf
Ethics Today
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
IN THIS ISSUE From the Chair 1 Section/Member News 3 Member News 3 “Political Linguistics” 5 by Pat Alt PA TIMES Calendar 17 ET International 18 Contact Information 21 Last Words: 22 “Learning to Swim With the Sharks” by Hank Abrams
FROM THE CHAIR By Terry Rhodes
Welcome back to the new academic year. Hope your summer was relaxing and rewarding. This summer edition of the newsletter recaps some of last year and invites you to participate in Section activities.
In March, the Ethics Section was well represented at the annual ASPA conference in Denver. Charles Garofalo led a well attended interactive workshop on Integrity in the Public Service. Section members presented papers and the Katrina Task Force presented initial assessments of public sector responses to Hurricane Katrina. ASPA President and Ethics Section member, Don Menzel, completed his successful term.
The Section newsletter received recognition again as the outstanding section newsletter - congratulations to James Heichelbech, our editor and to all who submitted material for the issues. Jim will be stepping down as editor, so if you are interested in serving in this capacity, please let me know.
In addition, Ray Cox, the Section’s president-elect, was recognized for his service to ASPA with the Donald Stone Award – and special thanks from the Section go to Ray for organizing the staffing of the Ethics Section booth at the conference. All-in-all, it was a very good conference for our Section.
Elsewhere in this issue you will find information about Section requests for submissions for the student paper award and for nominations for our practitioner award. Please send nominations to the chairs of the respective committees who will be reviewing submissions for the annual Section awards. If you would like to volunteer to serve on a Section committee, please let me know. The Section has committees for the two awards mentioned above – Best Student Paper and Ethics in Practice; but also for the Best Article in Public Integrity and a nominating committee for Section officers.
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
ETHICS SECTION
Ethics Today is the newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics. Following is a list of Officers and Executive Committee (ExComm) members for the Section.
OFFICERS
Chair Terrel Rhodes Historian Mylon Winn Membership Chair Terry Cooper Newsletter Editor James Heichelbech Secretary Rick Green Treasurer Steven Bobes Webmaster Dadi Einarsson
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Jennifer Alexander Evan Berman Raymond Cox Dadi Einarsson Jean-Claude Garcia-Zamor Emile Kolthoff Cynthia Lynch Manfred Meine Meredith Newman Jeremy Plant James Slack Russ Williams
Looking forward, the Section will be joining with the Study Group on Ethics and Integrity of Governance of the European Group on Public Administration (EGPA) to sponsor the Transatlantic Workshop on Ethics and Integrity. The Workshop will be held at the University of Maryland Conference Center, immediately preceding the annual ASPA conference in March 2007 in Washington, D.C. See detailed information and the call for proposals in this issue. The Workshop involves a small set of papers and presenters who spend two sustained days engaged in discussion of issues and themes contained in the prepared papers and is open only to those selected to participate. So, if you have a paper and wish to participate, go to the web site and apply early.
Finally, I will be moving from Portland State University to assume a new position as vice president with the Association of American Colleges and Universities in Washington, D.C. beginning in September. My current email address will automatically forward email to me and my new email will be shared through the listserv. Although, it is not the reason for the move, I will be able to work on the upcoming Dialog more easily in D.C.
Best wishes to all for a relaxing end of summer and for a productive new academic year (for those in academe).
FROM THE CHAIR Continued
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
MEMBER/SECTION NEWS Ethics Section Financial Information
Annual Report March 1, 2005 to February 28, 2006
Statement of Revenues, Expenses, and Changes in Fund Balances Beginning Checkbook Account Balance $11,577.46
Revenues Rebate $7,539.00 Meetings Workshops $0.00 Grants $0.00 Ethics Forum DVD $243.00
Total Revenues $7,782.00 Expenses Ethics Forum DVD $323.15 Public Integrity $8,100.17 2005 Conf Sponsorship $1,000.00 2005 Ethics Section Membership Breakfast $449.82 2006 Nat'l Conf Sponsorship - President's Reception $500.00 2006 Nat'l Conf - Exhibit Space $200.00
Total Expenses $10,573.14 Revenues Less Expenses ($2,791.14)
Checking Account Fund Balance $8,786.32
Balance Sheet Assets Cash $8,786.32 Investments $0.00 Accounts Receivable $0.00 Total Assets $8,786.32
Liabilities and Net Worth 2006 Ethics Section Membership Breakfast $450.00 Total Liabilities $450.00 Assets Less Liabilities (Net Worth) $8,336.32
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
MEMBER/SECTION NEWS
A Request from Jim Bowman
I am planning on conducting another survey of the ethical attitudes of practicing managers who are ASPA members (this is actually the third such survey, the earlier ones were in 1977, 1990, and 1997; see PAR N/D '97 for the last one and cites to the previous articles). If any ET reader has ideas to enhance this project, please contact me at [email protected].
SUBMISSIONS NEEDED
Ethics in Practice Each year an individual or group may be nominated in recognition of demonstrated ethics in practice. The award is open to people who work or have worked in the public or nonprofit arena. The baseline criteria for judging are: leadership in advancing ethical standards and behavior within an organization, profession or among the general public; an act or pattern of actions that exemplifies ethical behavior in public or nonprofit service; and the impact of the ethical behavior on the enhancement of people’s lives or organizational culture.
Contact: Russ Carlsen, City of Palo Alto
Best Ethics Paper From a Public Administration Student
Each year faculty is requested to nominate or submit an ethics paper prepared by a student in one of their public administration courses. The paper need not be written for a course on ethics, but must have a primary focus on ethical issues, dilemmas, or practices. The paper should have been prepared during the calendar year preceding the award presentation at ASPA’s national conference. The baseline criteria for judging the papers are: use of the literature, readability, and quality of the analysis or argument. The last criterion (quality of the analysis or argument) is the most important in determining the final selection.
Contact: Tom Lynch, LSU
CONGRATULATIONS!
The Best Student Paper Award for 2005 was given to David Craig, a student Of Dr. William Jordan at the University of Illinois at Springfield. The title of the paper is: "Toward a Policy of Workplace Group Awareness: How an Employee- centered Education Policy Can Help Delineate the Intersection between a Hostile Work Environment, Law and the First Amendment."
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
A WORK IN PROGRESS
The Political Linguistics of Maryland’s Stem Cell Research Bill By Patricia M. Alt, Ph.D., Dept. of Health Science, Towson University, Towson, MD
Careful analytic review of the evolution of recent legislative proposals for state support of
stem cell research illustrates the crucial role of clear, non-controversial terminology in debate,
discussion, and potential compromise. Following in other states’ footsteps, Maryland’s 2006
General Assembly session finally passed a bill (after several previous failures) allocating state
funds to this research, but only after key terms were redefined or eliminated. As politics and
bioethics continue to publicly intersect, the legal use of some standard medical terminology has
had to be reconsidered. For instance, what does the term “embryonic” stem cells evoke in
ordinary citizens, and how can policymakers avoid images of little fingers and toes, or abortion
clinics, when discussing them? What words have been used most effectively to support or attack
this potentially valuable research?
We can track the multiple changes in legislative wording along the path to successful
passage and signature by the minority-party Governor of Maryland. It clearly demonstrates the
influence of political pressures, including those from advocacy groups (pro and con), powerful
universities, technology industries, and religious entities.
Policy Environment
What would lead Maryland’s legislature to wrestle with such a thorny issue as stem cell
research funding? Key factors included the 2001 Presidential decision to limit Federally-funded
research to existing stem cell lines; the 2004 California law explicitly supporting embryonic stem
cell research (using state money to fund private research); the actions in 2005 by Connecticut,
Illinois and New Jersey in creating funds to support stem cell research; and by Virginia to support
stem cell research (but not embryonic) in state universities. There were also recent reports on the
ethical complexities of stem cell research by the National Academies and the Hinxston Group.
Political Linguistics Continued on Page 9
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
ACCOUNTABILITY CASES – CALL FOR CASES Robert Schwartz and Dan Williams
We are pleased to announce the launching of Accountability Cases. This innovative series uses real-world cases to illuminate concepts in accountability. Accountability Cases meets a long-felt need for high quality tools to be used in learning about accountability. Cases will raise issues and dilemmas by linking theoretical perspectives with tangible experiences. We invite proposals for cases from academic and practitioners who are able to provide detailed accounts of events that illuminate accountability concepts. Please send 1-2 page proposals to Robert Schwartz (email: [email protected]) or to Dan Williams (email: [email protected]). Accountability concepts lend themselves to cases that surface difficulties and dilemmas. As such, their audience is likely to be students in academic programs and practitioners in formal training settings. Cases will be used to illuminate theories and will be explicitly linked to the literature. All cases will be subject to a double-blind peer review process. The American Society for Public Administration’s Center for Accountability and Performance will act as publisher for individual cases. Cases will be published individually on the web as they are finalized. Eventually, we would like to compile completed cases in book form. We have identified ten concepts (broadly defined) around which cases might be developed. Potential authors are welcome to suggest additional concepts. 1.Thick and thin accountability: Personal responsibility to internal moral guidelines compared with accountability to directions; 2. Politics of accountability: how apparently robust new accountability measures lead to little true accountability due to lacunae in legislation and in implementation; 3. Problem of many hands: issues in holding individuals to account when responsibility is scattered; 4. Rituals of Verification: issues of decoupling and colonization; 5. Ethics and Accountability: issues in the design and operation of ethics accountability institutions (i.e the case of special prosecutors); 6. Audit and Accountability: uses and abuses of audit findings; 7. Evaluation Dilemmas and Accountability: publishing program evaluation findings; 8. Accountability and Third Party Governance: advantages and disadvantages of downward accountability; 9. Elusive Accountability: promises and pitfalls of commissions of inquiry and other investigations in satisfying demands for accountability; 10. Accountability for Accountability: Examining the ways in which ethical matters interact with accountability for performance. Case Characteristics and Format Cases must portray actual events and evolve from careful research. Information for cases might be garnered from media reports, investigations, audits, hearings and secondary sources. Often, there will be a need for authors to conduct interviews with key actors in order to find out what exactly transpired.
1. Concept Introduction: A brief review of the relevant theory or concept, including references to important pieces in the literature (400 – 800 words)
2. Case Introduction and Historical Context: Introduce the story, characters, issues at hand and provide a brief history of programs and institutions that play important roles in the case (500 – 1000 words)
3. The Story: Detailed telling of what happened with dates, quotes and dialogues in order to convey a sense of what actually occurred (4000 – 8000 words)
4. Setting the Stage for Analysis: This should not be a full analysis of the concept through the story, but rather a pointing to possible questions and lines of analysis (200 – 400 words)
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
CALL FOR BOOK REVIEWS
PUBLIC INTEGRITY
Public Integrity is looking for book reviews. Read a good book lately? Something of interest to our readership? For example, a book about health care, politics, education, defense, corruption, environment, leadership, budgeting, or accountability? We are looking for anything that has a connection with values, ethics, or morals. Please submit your reviews! We are especially interested in books having a 2005 copyright date. We publish both single book reviews, as well as essays of three or more books (some of which might have earlier copyright dates). Please share your reviews or proposals to do reviews! You can reach me at [email protected]. Please, share your insights with others by writing a book review for Public Integrity! Submission guidelines are below. We look forward to hearing from you!
PUBLIC INTEGRITY GUIDELINES
Single book reviews should be about 1,300 - 1,700 words. Book reviews should begin with one or two paragraphs summarizing the main points of the book. Then, the main body of the review should focus on matters of the book that deal with ethics, values, or morals. Reference to ethics, values, morals should be made explicit. The review should close with implications for public administration practice and, optionally, implications for scholarship. Please try to write the review with a practitioner audience in mind. Public Integrity also publishes book review essays of 3-4 books with a common theme. Review essays typically are 2,500 - 3,500 words. After a brief introduction to the importance or new developments of the common subject matter, the review essay should be divided into sections with headings that discuss different issues relevant to ethics, values, or morals. For example, a book review essay on the theme of community-building might have these two sections: the meaning of community; and government and the public interest. Thus, book review essays do NOT sequentially discuss the different books. As with single reviews, the essay should close with implications for public administration practice and, optionally, implications for scholarship. The review should be accessible to a practitioner audience. Please contact the book review editor if you have any questions:
Dr. Robert Smith, Director Master of Public Administration Program Department of Political Science Clemson University 230 E. Brackett Hall Clemson, SC 29634 E-Mail: [email protected] Phone: 864/656-3550 Fax: 864/656-0691
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
To become a member of ASPA, go to:
http://www.aspanet.org/scriptcontent/Membership.cfm?section=Membership
Be sure to join the Section on Ethics! It is only $35 a year! In addition to the ASPA national and chapter memberships, which include:
• 12 issues of PA TIMES
• A Subscription to Public Administration Review
• Reduced conference rates,
• Discounts on publications, and
• Access to web site resources Ethics Section members also receive:
• A subscription to Public Integrity
• Access to the Section newsletter, Ethics Today
• Access to the Section listserv, ethtalk
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Political Linguistics Continued from Page 6
At the state level, the key pressures were from
biotechnology companies and research universities.
The University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins feared
losing talent to other schools, and the biotech industry
threatened to move, as well. There was a substantial
cohort of citizens eager for major research
breakthroughs which would provide potential cures
for devastating illnesses. On the other side, there were
strong ethical concerns about the sources of non-adult
stem cells, and whether the potential existed for
people to be pressed to donate their eggs, blastocysts,
or other likely sources of stem cells. The Catholic
Church is quite important in Maryland, and there was
an undercurrent of concern about abortion in the
debate, as well. On top of all those forces, it is an
election year. All state legislators and Congressmen are
up for election in 2006, as is the Governor.
The Legislative Path
Since the Bush pronouncement in 2001,
Maryland has had multiple efforts to tackle the stem
cell issue. The state legislature meets annually for a
ninety-day session, leaving little time for extensive
reworking. Controversial topics often take years to be
resolved, so this issue isn’t unique. There was a bill in
2002 seeking to create the “Task Force to Study Stem
Cell Research”, but it failed. In 2003, there was a bill
entitled “Stem Cell Research – Donation of Certain
Tissue for Research Purposes,” and in 2004 one called
the “Human Cloning Ban and Stem Cell Research
Protection Act,” and both of them failed, as well. In
2005, the “Maryland Cigarette Restitution Fund
Spending and Stem Cell Research Act” passed the
House, but stalled in the Senate.
Definitional Evolution
The 2004 House bill included definitions of:
Human Somatic Cell, Nuclear Transplantation,
Nucleus, Oocyte, Unfertilized Blastocyst, and
Fertilization. It did not define “embryo” or “stem
cell”. The purpose of the bill was listed as: “to prohibit
human cloning; and to protect important areas of
medical research, including stem cell research.” It
focused primarily on explicitly banning elements of
cloning and failed to pass (perhaps due to lack of
public interest/concern over that issue).
The 2005 Stem Cell Bill added a definition of
“embryo” as “the stage between the ovum and fetus in
prenatal development”. It also removed some
technical subdefinitions of “human somatic cell”,
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
“nuclear transplantation”, “nucleus”, and the
“unfertilized blastocyst” under its definition of “oocyte”.
“State-funded stem cell research” was now defined as
“stem cell research conducted using donated unused
human embryos which were created for individuals
being treated for infertility and for which a grant or loan
from the fund is sought or awarded”. This bill would
have: established a fund to support stem cell research
(partially supported by cigarette restitution funds);
created a scientific review commission under the
Department of Health & Mental Hygiene (DHMH) with
representation from stakeholder groups; and required
the Governor to appropriate money from the fund for
projects approved by the commission.
In 2005, the bill was amended by deleting
language “authorizing certain research involving human
embryonic stem cells, human embryonic germ cells, and
human adult stem cells”. Also deleted was “A person
may conduct research involving the derivation and use
of human embryonic stem cells, human embryonic germ
cells, and human adult stem cells from any source,
including somatic cell nuclear transplantation.” As
amended, it passed the House (with the House
leadership behind it for the first time). It died on the
Senate floor two votes short of the number needed to be
able to break a filibuster. The Governor maintained
“neutrality” about this bill, although several of his
Cabinet Secretaries wrote opposing statements.
The 2006 Legislative Session
In 2006, the first pre-filed bill was HB 1, The
Maryland Stem Cell Research Act of 2006. It was initially
sponsored by the Speaker of the House and three others
(by the end of the session, it had 69 out of 141 Delegates
as sponsors). It was also introduced as SB 144, with 21
sponsors (out of 47 Senators). As introduced, it was
basically the same as the final amended version of HB
1183 in 2005. However, the Speaker of the House was
lead sponsor this time.
Key amendments in the House changed the
oversight of the fund to the quasi-public Maryland
Technology Development Corporation (from DHMH),
and moved the proposed law under Business and
Economic Development, rather than Health. Hence, the
focus was overtly shifted to the importance of
biotechnology for the state. In addition, amendments in
the House added this wording: “A person who conducts
state-funded stem cell research using embryonic stem
cells may only use donated unused human embryos
which were created for individuals being treated for
infertility”.
Political Linguistics Continued
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Under this bill, as passed in the House, health
care practitioners treating individuals for infertility shall:
“(1) provide individuals with information sufficient to
enable them to make an informed and voluntary choice
regarding the disposition of human embryos; and (2)
present to the individuals the options of: storing or
discarding unused human embryos; donating unused
human embryos for clinical purposes in the treatment of
infertility; donating unused human embryos for research
purposes; and donating unused human embryos for
embryo adoption purposes.” (“Embryo adoption”
became a nationally-known term a few months later
when President Bush vetoed the Federal stem cell
legislation surrounded by families who had children by
means of donated IVF embryos).
Under HB 1, a new Stem Cell Research
Commission was proposed to consist of:
the state Attorney General or designee; three patient
advocates; three individuals with experience in
biotechnology; two scientists from Johns Hopkins and
two from the University System of Maryland; and two
bioethicists, one from Hopkins and one from the
University System of Maryland.
Meanwhile, despite amendments in committee,
SB 144 seemed headed for a prolonged filibuster. Two
attempts to shut down debate on it had failed, and
Governor Ehrlich kept insisting that no legislation was
needed, as he’d already put appropriations for stem
cell research in the budget, and the MD. Technology
Development Corporation would decide which
projects to fund. Several key amendments aided its
passage. On first reading, the bill was amended to state
that the Governor “may” (rather than “shall”)
appropriate funds for stem cell research, and during
the filibuster, Sen. Dyson amended the description of
the Commission to add “two individuals with expertise
in the field of biomedical ethics as it relates to religion,
appointed by the Governor.” However the key
changes were these: the definition of “embryo” was
deleted and a definition of “adult stem cell” as
“derived from human tissue and obtained after birth”
was added. Throughout the bill, the words “human
embryo” were replaced by “certain material” or
“unused material”…and linked to the description of
health practitioners informing IVF patients of their
options. The bill also explicitly states that “any unused
material donated for state-funded stem cell research
may not be an oocyte”
The changed wording allowed SB 144 to pass
with sufficient votes to avoid filibuster, but meant that
the House had to accept the new wording as well.
Political Linguistics Continued
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Political Linguistics Continued
Attempts by opponents of the bill to change “unused
material” back to “human embryos” failed in the House.
The bill was passed and signed by the Governor (who is
now claiming credit for it in campaign ads).
Politically charged words used in this debate
included: cloning, embryos, human eggs, “pre-born
children”, abortion, unused human embryos, and
embryo adoption. Proponents of stem cell research
funding had to learn to use less politically sensitive
terms, substituting “unused material” for “human
embryos” when discussing donations from infertility
treatments. Changing wording matters… “embryo
donations” sound very different than “embryo
adoptions” for the same IVF procedure.
The moral of this story might be: avoidance
works. Key strategies which finally allowed the passage
of state funding for stem cell research were: being less
specific about what type of stem cells were to be studied;
moving the oversight to a Commission under a quasi-
public business development corporation (focusing on
technology rather than health concerns); and leaving
final funding decisions to the newly appointed
Commission. At least one member of the Commission
has already declared his opposition to “destroying
embryos for the sake of research,” so the discussion will
definitely continue.
About the Author
Pat Alt's research and teaching centers around legal and
ethical issues in health and gerontology policy, research,
and administration, particularly at the state and local
level. A former Policy Analyst for the Maryland
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH),
she currently Chairs the DHMH IRB. She serves on the
ASPA Ethics Section Executive Committee, and as Chair
of the Best Paper in "Public Integrity" award committee.
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Call for Manuscripts:
Special Issue of Public Administration Review
Death by A Thousand Cuts: Administrative Failure in the Wake of the Katrina Disaster
(To be published December 2007)
By all accounts the single most devastating natural disaster in the history of the U.S, the impact of Hurricane Katrina continues to be felt acutely in Southern Louisiana and Mississippi, and in profound ways its reverberations persist across the U.S. and the globe. It will be many years if not decades before the site of the storm’s impact achieves any sense of normalcy. The ultimate question is why, how could an event for which the area had adequate warning (unlike the recent devastating earthquakes or tsunamis), lead to such complete destruction of cities, property, and lives. This special issue attempts to answer that question by examining the roots of administrative failure, probing the actions of various key responders to the crisis, and gleaning from the devastation lessons learned as we attempt to move forward.
We invite manuscripts for a special issue of Public Administration Review: Death by A Thousand Cuts: Administrative Failure in the Wake of the Katrina Disaster Specifically, we seek manuscripts focused on Louisiana and Southern Mississippi in the following areas:
The Federal Responders: The Responsiveness of Key External Actors White House FEMA/Homeland Security Army Corps of Engineers U.S. Military/Coast Guard State, Local, and Nonprofit Responders: The Responsiveness of Key Grassroots Actors Governor’s Office New Orleans Mayor’s Office Police and Law Enforcement The Role of Nonprofit Organizations
Please email an abstract of your proposed manuscript to Carole L. Jurkiewicz at [email protected] by November 1, 2006.
From the abstracts, authors will be invited to submit full length articles of 25-30 pages including references, due by March 15, 2007. All articles will be blind peer reviewed by three referees. The peer review process will determine the final selection of articles for the special issue.
This special issue of PAR is sponsored by The Public Administration Institute in the E.J. Ourso College of Business at Louisiana State University. Please direct any questions to Carole L. Jurkiewicz, Women’s Hospital Distinguished Professor of Healthcare Management at Louisiana State University: [email protected].
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Special Issue of Public Administration Review Death by A Thousand Cuts:
Administrative Failure in the Wake of the Katrina Disaster
The Federal Responders: The Responsiveness of Key External Actors
White House Analysis of the executive branches’ response to the disaster, who did what, what was successful and what wasn’t, what should have been done and by whom, and why weren’t actions taken that would have ameliorated the extent and impact of the disaster. What is the scope of the executive branches’ responsibility in such situations, both defined and expected? Compare and contrast this administration’s response to the Katrina crisis as compared to 9/11. What is recommended to better prepare the executive branch to deal with such crises in the future? FEMA/Homeland Security What elements in the structure, policy, leadership, and oversight of these affiliated agencies contributed to their successes and failures in responding to the disaster? What caused the failures that occurred? How could they have been prevented? What steps can be taken now to ensure they are better prepared to respond to a similarly devastating event? How and why did the coordination between this agency and other responders fail, and what steps can be taken to improve the system? Army Corps of Engineers What elements in the structure, policy, politics, and oversight of this agency contributed to its successes and failures in responding to the disaster? What caused the failures that occurred? Should they have foreseen the problems that emerged and could they have been prevented? What steps can this agency take now to ensure it is better prepared to respond to a similarly devastating event? How can the coordination between this agency and other responders be improved to avoid the pitfalls experienced in this situation? U.S. Military/Coast Guard What elements in the structure, policy, and oversight of these units contributed to its successes and failures in responding to the disaster? What is the key to their effectiveness in responding when they did? What setbacks occurred and could they have been prevented? What steps can they now take to ensure greater preparedness in responding to similarly devastating events? How and why did the coordination between these units and other responders contribute to their success or failure, and what steps can be taken to improve the system?
State, Local, and Nonprofit Responders: The Responsiveness of Key Grassroots Actors
Governor’s Office An analysis of Louisiana’s and Mississippi’s top administrative officer and his/her direct reports in responding to the threat of Katrina, its impact, and its consequences. Who did what, what was successful and what wasn’t, what should have been done and by whom, and why weren’t actions taken that would have ameliorated the extent and impact of the disaster? What is the scope of the governors’ responsibility in such situations, both defined and expected, in comparison to the mayors of the cities affected, and the federal government? What can and should be done now by these governors to restore homeostatis in the region? How does the level of professionalism in Louisiana public administration demonstrated in the wake of Katrina compare to that of New York in responding to the 9/11 disaster? If differences exist, to what extent should the federal government accommodate for those differences in providing assistance and support? New Orleans Mayor’s Office What actions were taken following the initial threat of hurricane Katrina through its impact, aftermath, and continuing today. What did Mayor Ray Nagin do to successfully address the situation at all points and what did he fail to do? What factors contributed to these outcomes? Address the efficacy of coordination and communication with other local departments and agencies, state administrators, the media, and federal government. What specifically should have been done differently and what shifts in organizational structure or policy are necessary to prevent such dire consequences in the future, both for New Orleans and more broadly across the entire U.S. What lessons can be learned from this experience regarding municipal preparedness, leadership, communication, coordination, and how well our discipline’s theories of disaster management apply to what transpired in New Orleans. Police and Law Enforcement An analysis of their disaster preparedness planning and how they responded to the impact and aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. What did they do well, and what contributed to the negative outcomes of the event. Include a discussion of the ethical and legal transgressions alleged against members of these units, how and why these occurred, and what oversight was in place that should have prevented such actions. What lessons can be learned for the future, not only for New Orleans but nationwide, in terms of emergency preparedness and responsiveness, accountability, and oversight. The Role of Nonprofit Organizations An examination of how nonprofit organizations at the federal, state, and local levels responded to the crisis, what they did and when, both in preparing for the disaster and responding to it. Compare the efficiency and effectiveness of well-established and well-funded nonprofits nationally with religion-based charities and with the nonprofit organizations that spontaneous emerged across Louisiana in response to specific disaster-related needs. How did the nonprofit sector’s response to Katrina contribute to a new conceptualization of the role of nonprofits in service delivery, professionalism, funding, and as a sector in coordination with public and private entities. What does this shift forecast for the future of nonprofits in the U.S.
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Second Edition of The Ethics Challenge in Public Service The second edition of The Ethics Challenge in Public Service by ethics section members Carol W. Lewis and Stuart C. Gilman (2005) has been published by John Wiley & Sons. For more information see:
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com:8100/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0787978809.html Since it was first published in 1991, The Ethics Challenge in Public Service has become a classic text used by public managers and in public management programs across the country. This second edition is filled with practical tools and techniques for making ethical choices in the ambiguous, pressured world of public service. It explores the day-to-day ethical dilemmas managers face in their work, including what to do when rules recommend one action and compassion another, and whether it is ethical to dissent from agency policy. This essential text explores managers’ accountability to different stakeholders and how to balance the often competing responsibilities. Introduction: Ethics in Public Service PART ONE: ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES OF PUBLIC MANAGERS 1. What Is Important inPublic Service? 2. Obeying and Implementing the Law 3. Serving the Public Interest 4. Taking Individual Responsibility PART TWO: TOOLS FOR PERSONAL DECISION MAKING 5. Finding Solid Ground: Ethical Standards and Reasoning 6. Resolving Ethical Dilemmas: Strategies and Tactics for Managers 7. Understanding Who and What Matters: Stakeholder Analysis PART THREE: ETHICS AND THE ORGANIZATION 8. Designing and Implementing Codes 9. Broadening the Horizon 10. Building an Ethical Agency Afterword: The Job Ahead Resource A: Chronology of Theoretical and Applied Ethics in Public Service Resource B: Selected Internet Resources Resource C: Tools for Making Ethical Decisions
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
THE PA TIMES EDITORIAL CALENDAR
The PA TIMES provides an excellent opportunity for Ethics Section members to publish ethics- related articles. Consider a topic and let us know that you would like to provide an article for PA TIMES. It is another way to illustrate the active membership of the Ethics Section, its dedication to ethics in public service and the expression of our Section and individual commitments. If you have an article that would like to submit, please let us know ([email protected]).
October Public Administration Skills Across Professions
Educational Supplement: MPA: Not Just for Public Employees Anymore Deadline: September 22, 2006
November Impacts of Privatization and Government Restructuring
Deadline: October 22, 2006
December Technology and Public Administration: Emerging Issues
Educational Supplement: MPA: Not Just for Public Employees Anymore Deadline: November 22, 2006
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
International Transatlantic Workshop on Ethics and Integrity
Washington DC March 21-23, 2007
http://www.uakron.edu/colleges/artsci/depts/paus/tad.php
Conference Theme: New Concepts, Theories and Methods in the Study of Ethics and Integrity of Governance
Host facility: The University of Maryland System Conference Center; Silver Spring, Maryland In June 2005 under the auspices of the Section on Ethics of American Society for Public Administration and the Study Group on Ethics and Integrity of Governance of the European Group of Public Administration (EGPA) a highly successful conference on ethics was held in Leuven, Belgium. That conference, designated the First Transatlantic Dialog, was the first in a series of conferences on issues of importance to public administration across the globe. Now, another ethics conference, designated a Transatlantic Workshop, will be held in Silver Spring, Maryland/Washington DC on March 21-23, 2007. The dates for the ethics conference were selected to coincide with the Annual Conference of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) that is to begin March 24th, 2007, the day following the Dialog. The respective conference sites are less than 15 miles apart. Conference participants who are accepted to participate in the Transatlantic Dialog will be able to easily transition from the Dialog to the ASPA conference. The conference aims to strengthen co-operation among European and US scholars on the Dialog topic. All relevant aspects of administrative ethics will be discussed and particular attention will be given to the similarities and differences, both in theory and practice, between Europe, the US and other parts of the world.
Conference Methodology
The conference will use the same format as the first dialog in Leuven. At the core of the conference will be four study groups/ workshops (see the details below). These will be jointly convened by an American and European co-chair and will consist of an internationally mixed audience of participants. The goal is to have American and international scholars in equal numbers in each study group. Each study group will consist of 18-20 participants. Participation in the conference is based upon two criteria; first submission and acceptance of a paper to be presented at a study group and participation in the intellectual deliberations, discussions and activities of the study group. Because interaction within the study groups is so critical to the success of each study group, only those persons who have had a paper accepted for the conference (plus the conference organizers, plenary speakers, paper co-authors and doctoral students) will be permitted to register for the conference. Most of the time at the conference will be spent in the study group, though plenary sessions and social events are also planned. Since participants will be expected to subscribe to one study group and be expected to participate actively in the sessions of that study group, submissions of paper proposals to multiple study groups are not encouraged. Finally, participants are expected to have a completed paper available for distribution to participants in the study group at least three weeks before the conference.
Call for Papers Paper proposals should be sent BEFORE October 15th, 2006 to:
Raymond Cox - [email protected]. The paper proposal should be no more than 250 words. The proposal should specify the study group to which the proposal is directed. It should also explain how the proposal fits the broad conference theme as well as the study group theme. Notification of acceptance of the paper proposal will be made no later than December 1st, 2006. Final papers are due February 28th, 2007.
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
International We’re Still Looking For Input!
Decision Forcing International
Vignettes International cases on Ethics Globally are requested. These are NOT ethics cases which are 12-20 pages long, but are short, one or two paragraphs about cases in which managers are forced to make ethical decisions on a real issues, events or work experiences swiftly. The ASPA Ethics Workbook as well as Combating Corruption/Encouraging Ethics, Edition 1, has examples of short, powerful cases which force an immediate decision. There are many United States decision-forcing cases, but we seek international decision- forcing cases which touch on difficult ethics decisions. Please forward to Fran Burke at [email protected].
Whistle-Blowing Experiences
Whistle-Blowing / Gentle Alternatives
Have you ever observed a colleague or student committing a breach of research ethics? Perhaps it was as serious as a professor claiming a student’s work or a grant reviewer ‘lifting’ ideas from a proposal? Or perhaps it was as simple as a naïve student using the wrong statistic or trolling for significance, or making a hypothesis to fit the data? Get the idea? Did you do something about it? Mindful of the delicacy of the situation and the usual fate of whistle-blowers, what did you do? Something subtle or collegial? Your ETI editor, Fran Burke, and Joan Sieber are seeking whistle- blowing experiences, particularly international cases. The purpose of Joan Sieber’s research is to produce an online manual describing effective and ineffective strategies, totally anonymous. If you are willing to be interviewed, please email Joan or call 510 538- 5424. The story is yours to tell; nothing will be tape recorded. We seek useful details for the analysis of factors leading to success or failure and that will help to construct fictitious cases. Fran Burke, [email protected] Joan Sieber [email protected]
ETHICS TODAY INTERNATIONAL
READER FEEDBACK Q1 – Of Ethics International, I read: 1___All 2___Most 3___Some 4___None Q2 – Of the Conferences Section of Ethics Today International, I read: 1___All 2___Most 3___Scan Some 4___None Q3 – I have attended conferences announced in Ethics Today International 1___Yes 2___No Q4 – Which one (s)? ____________________ ____________________ Q5 – Currently I teach an International Ethics Course 1___Yes 2___No Please send responses and syllabus, if possible, to: Fran Burke [email protected]
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Research Group Integrity of Governance Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
The research group ‘Integrity of Governance’ conducts multidisciplinary research on the integrity and ethics of governance. The group has become one of the leading research groups in this field in the Netherlands and we are grateful to be able to introduce our work in 'Ethics Today', also because we are interested in doing (more) comparative international work. 'Integrity of Governance' is an important part of the research program of the department of Public Administration and Organization Science at the Vrije Universiteit of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The mission, as stated in the code of conduct of the research group, is to contribute to the national and international scientific knowledge and understanding of integrity. Which should, among other things, benefit governance and society. The central research question is: what is the content of integrity and ethics of governance, what are the causes of integrity problems (including corruption) and what policies and institutions help to protect the integrity of governance? More specifically, our main research themes concern the conceptual and theoretical clarification of integrity in the context of governance, the content of public and business integrity and integrity problems (including the causes of integrity violations), the relationship between leadership and integrity, differences between the ethics and values of different types of organizations (government, business, non-profit) and the strategies and institutions that help to safeguard the integrity of governance (including the police). The research group participates in various international networks, such as the Ethics section of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA). Researchers co-initiated the establishment of a study group within the European Group of Public Administration. This EGPA Study Group on the Integrity and Ethics of Governance has proven to be a successful endeavour with workshops in Portugal, Slovenia, Switzerland and Italy and a transatlantic conference with the Ethics Section in Belgium in 2005 (see www.egpa-ethics.eu and for the Leuven conference: http://soc.kuleuven.be/io/ethics/). Prof. Leo Huberts is strategic chair Integrity of Governance and director of the research group. De Graaf, van den Heuvel, Lasthuizen, van Montfort, Six and Wagenaar are senior researchers. Research fellows are Kolthoff, Lamboo and Maesschalck and PhD students and junior researchers are Heres, Peeters, van Tankeren, van der Veer, van der Vossen and van der Wal. More information about their research projects is available on www.fsw.vu.nl/integriteit. A number of recent international publications include ‘Tractable Morality’ by de Graaf in the Journal of Business Ethics (2005), Maesschalck's Approaches to ethics management in the public sector' in Public Integrity (best article 2005), the book chapter 'Measuring Corruption: Exploring the Iceberg' by Huberts, Lasthuizen and Peeters in Sampford, Shacklock, Connors and Galtung's ‘Measuring Corruption’ (2006) and books by Six, The trouble with trust (2005) and Rule-breaking government by Huberts, Van Montfort and Doig (2006). Articles and book chapters, accepted for publication, concern for example the values of government and business, the content of a public official's integrity, the nature of corruption in western societies and police integrity.
We invite you to read more about the research group, research projects and publications (some of them are downloadable) at our website: www.fsw.vu.nl/integriteit > English).
International
Ethics Today
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
COMING IN NOVEMBER 2006 FROM M.E. SHARPE
Ethics Management for Public Administrators: Building Organizations of Integrity
By Don Menzel
This practical, how to book is dedicated to building organizations of integrity. It has been written for college students contemplating careers in public service, elected and appointed officials, administrators, and career public servants in America and abroad. 1. Ethics Management 2. Constitutional and Administrative Environments 3. Tools for Ethics Managers 4. Ethics Management in American Cities and Counties 5. Federal and State Ethics Management 6. Ethics Management Internationally 7. Ethical Governance in the 21st Century Details are available at http://www.mesharpe.com/mall/resultsanew.asp?Title=Ethics+Management+for+ Public+Administrators%3A+Building+Organizations+of+Integrity
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Jeremy Plant [email protected] Terrel Rhodes [email protected] Ann Marie Rizzo [email protected] William Solomon [email protected] Robert Smith [email protected] Richard Stillman [email protected] Vera Vogelsang-Coombs [email protected] Jonathan West [email protected] Richard White [email protected] Russ Williams [email protected] Mylon Winn [email protected] Dennis Wittmer [email protected] John Worthley [email protected]
Herb Fain [email protected] Ali Farazmand [email protected] Jean-Claude Garcia-Zamor [email protected] Stuart Gilman StuartGilman@[email protected] Eleanor Glor [email protected] Rick Green [email protected] James Heichelbech [email protected] Carole L. Jurkiewicz [email protected] Cynthia Lynch [email protected] Don Menzel [email protected] Manfred Meine [email protected] Meredith Newman [email protected] Kenneth Nichols [email protected] Rosalind Osgood [email protected]
Jennifer Alexander [email protected] Danny L. Balfour [email protected] Erik Bergrud [email protected] Evan Berman [email protected] Steven Bobes [email protected] Jim Bowman [email protected] Fran Burke [email protected] Russ Carlsen [email protected] Raymond Cox [email protected] Larry Cobb [email protected] Terry Cooper [email protected] Mel Dubnick [email protected] Rod Erakovich [email protected]
CONTACT INFORMATION As the Ethics Section has grown, the number of members who become actively involved has also grown. To make it easier to contact people, we will now provide a consolidated list of email addresses for ExComm members, ET Board members and everyone else who would like to be contacted. If you would like to have your email address added, removed or corrected, please contact James Heichelbech ([email protected]).
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
LAST WORDS
Learning to Swim With the Sharks By Hank Abrams
As Waldo and others have suggested, many ethical dilemmas in the public sector involve discerning and reconciling at least three sets of obligation: self-interest, organizational interest, and public interest. Insofar as there are frictions among these obligation sets, the ASPA code of ethics clearly states: Serve the public, beyond serving oneself (Section I) Subordinate institutional loyalties to the public good (Section IV—Part 2) Assuming that one discerns the frictions in a specific situation, one still faces the challenge of reconciling these obligation sets. Most notably, there are many situations where pursuit of the public interest may endanger one’s self-interests (at times through perceived frictions with organizational interests). However, often the use of political strategies can lessen the risk to one’s self-interests if one decides to take the challenge of doing the right thing. To be ethical often requires one to be political. Ethics training in public administration programs should recognize this reality. It should include discussion of the use of strategies to do the right thing and survive. Put another way, ethics training should include learning how to swim with the sharks.
The Responsible Administrator: An Approach to Ethics for the
Administrative Role By Terry L. Cooper
5th edition Now Available!
Cooper's 5th edition is the definitive text for students and practitioners who want to have a successful administrative career. Moral reasoning, as Cooper so adeptly points out, is essential in today's rapidly changing and complex global environment. Donald C. Menzel The Responsible Administrator is at once the most sophisticated and the most practical book available on public sector ethics. It is conceptually clear and jargon-free, which is extraordinary among books on administrative ethics. H. George Frederickson Remarkably effective in linking the science of what should be done with a prescriptive for how to actually do it, the 5th edition of Cooper's book keeps pace with the dynamic changes in the field, both for those who study it and those who practice it. The information presented in these pages can be found nowhere else, and it is information we cannot ethically afford to ignore. Carole L. Jurkiewicz
After a quarter century in print and five editions, it is time to name Terry Cooper’s “The Responsible Administrator” a classic, not only in the field of public service ethics, but in the broader domain of public policy and administration as well. As useful and enlightening as it was when first published in the Reagan era, this new edition works well for a post-9/11 public service with its strong emphasis on the design approach to ethics. Guy B. Adams
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Newsletter of the ASPA Section on Ethics Volume 8, Number 4 Summer 2006
Learning to Swim With the Sharks Continued For example, from the Ethics Moment section of PA TIMES (Feb. 1999), we have the realistic case of a fire station captain who is ordered by his chief to falsely tell visiting state and federal officials that his station was damaged by a recent tropical storm. While the damage existed prior to the storm, the chief wants to tap into federal disaster assistance to rebuild the station. Based on public interest goals such as not using appropriations for unauthorized purposes, not misleading elected officials, etc., most of us would probably state that the fire station captain ought to avoid lying in this case. The problem is, however, that the fire station captain faces the possibility of losing his job, or raises necessary to support his family, etc. if he does not lie. It is one thing to abstractly say in the classroom what is the right thing to do; it is another to equip someone who will confront this type of situation and grapple with the consequences for one’s personal interests. I suspect that the fire station captain in the above example (and perhaps MPA students in their future jobs) will be more likely to do the right thing if they are taught about the use of strategic methods to reduce the level of risk to their self-interest when pursuing the public interest. For example, a common strategy of potential use in the above case is what Lindblom called “partisan analysis”. This involves showing other parties (some of whom may be sharks like the fire chief above) how ones policy preference squares with the other parties values and/or material interests. It may include showing the other parties that what they initially prefer to be done does not actually serve their interests as well as the alternative approach (e.g., the captain might mention to the chief that it may be unlikely that state and Federal officials will believe the false claim about the fire station damage). There are other potential strategies that might be considered. For example, as one actual fire official suggested in a later edition of PA TIMES, the captain might tell the chief the he will not lie and that he will provide a written memo that reflects their conversation on this matter). Again, my larger point here is that ethics training in public administration must include consideration of the use of strategic political behavior to do the right thing; that is, to swim with the sharks and survive.
Have an ethical issue you would like to raise to the general membership? Want to let the ASPA ethics community know about an event? Need ethics-related contributions for a journal or conference? Send your comments and requests to:
Ethics Today James Heichelbech, Editor
ETHICS TODAY Board of Editors
James R. Heichelbech, Editor Fran Burke, International Editor Danny Balfour Erik Bergrud Herbert Fain Eleanor Glor Cynthia Lynch Rosalind Osgood William Solomon Russ Williams John Worthley
