Tag Archives: City of Austin Ethics Review Commission
City ethics commission wrestles with access during pandemic
In its previous, pre-pandemic incarnation, the city’s Ethics Review Commission met in a back room of City Hall that was often jammed full of commissioners, accusers, defenders, and occasionally, reporters. But the meetings were open to the public, and once…
City Hall • By Elizabeth Pagano • Nov 2, 2020
Ethics commission discusses transparency in unbroadcast meeting
As Covid-19 has pushed city meetings online, questions about public participation have taken center stage, with community members and commissioners alike struggling with cumbersome web platforms and long waiting times on phone lines. The topic came before the Ethics Review Commission…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • Aug 24, 2020
Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison receives reprimand for campaign finance violations
Six months after midyear campaign finance reports revealed that Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison violated fundraising laws, the Ethics Review Commission voted to send the Council member a letter of admonition. Harper-Madison collected $3,695 in campaign funds between January and March…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • Dec 13, 2019
Unconventional Austin campaign finance violation moves to final hearing but could still be withdrawn
November elections have come and gone, but the Ethics Review Commission is still dealing with the ripple effects caused by a purported violation of campaign finance laws. Political consultant Mark Littlefield filed a complaint in late October alleging that Unconventional…
Elections • By Jessi Devenyns • Nov 15, 2019
Ethics commission may seek 'more teeth' in code to curb violations
The city’s Ethics Review Commission may ask City Council to increase the penalties it can levy for violations of city code and to add more teeth to the city’s laws concerning campaign finance. The commission voted 8-0 at last week’s…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Sep 17, 2019
Reporter's Notebook: Ethics, at a cost
Frank Rodriguez case costs city… After the Ethics Review Commission failed to agree upon a settlement in the case against Frank Rodriguez last May, the case came back before the commission for a final hearing last week. Rodriguez had received…
Reporters' Notebook • By Austin Monitor • Jun 24, 2019
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Ethics Review Commission finds Frank Rodriguez in violation of city ethics rules
Justice has been a long time coming in the case concerning Frank Rodriguez’s continued ties to Latino Healthcare Forum, a nonprofit he founded while serving as a senior policy adviser to Mayor Steve Adler. After the Ethics Review Commission chose…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • Jun 13, 2019
Ethics commission finds Prop J PAC violated campaign finance laws
After hours of politically caustic testimony, the Ethics Review Commission found at its May 8 meeting that the No on Prop J political action committee had violated city ethics codes by failing to disclose a $10,000 donation in a timely…
Bonds & Propositions • By Jessi Devenyns • May 14, 2019
Rodriguez case fails to find agreeable settlement
In a novel solution, the Office of the City Auditor and Frank Rodriguez presented a settlement agreement to the Ethics Review Commission at what should have been the final hearing on the case May 8. However, ethics commissioners felt the…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • May 10, 2019
Ethics commission loses some duties
Austin’s Ethics Review Commission will no longer be looking at allegations of ethics violations related to most city employees. On Thursday, City Council approved changes to the ordinance governing the commission’s authority after ensuring that reports about such allegations would…
City Hall • By Jo Clifton • Mar 29, 2019
Ethics violation raises questions about city laptop policies
DeShawn Scott, a temporary administrative specialist in the Public Works Department, left his position in December after the Office of the City Auditor opened an investigation into Scott’s use of his city computer for purposes related to his two outside…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 20, 2019
Ethics Commission looks into omission of PAC donation
How does one forget to report $10,000? That was the question of the evening for the Ethics Review Commission at its March 13 convocation. In a complaint filed by Fred Lewis last November, he accused the No on J political…
