Integrity Florida, a non-profit research group, says it’s time for Florida to take a second look at its ethics laws. The group puts Florida at the top of the list for government corruption in the nation.
Integrity Florida Executive Director Dan Krassner said the state led the U.S. in federal public corruption convictions from 2000 to 2010. And he said it’s time for the state to take steps to change that.
“Corruption is a jobs killer. Corruption threatens our economy, threatens our ability to attract jobs and capital to this state,” Krassner said.
Some of the most frequent ethics violations relate to things like bribery or officials using their position to further their financial gain. Krassner is suggesting several solutions like creating a “report corruption” hotline, or expanding the ethics code to include private vendors that partner with the state. Integrity Florida’s report comes about a week before the state Florida Commission on Ethics meets to make its own list of suggested ethics reforms.
