East Lansing City Council member Ruth Beier will introduce an amendment next week to the East Lansing Ethics Code that would require council members to disclose if any solicitor has contributed to their campaign. According to the amendment, the announcement should be made before a vote is called.
In a press release sent on Wednesday, Beier explained the amendment is an attempt to "improve transparency and reduce the potential for corruption."
"Integrity is the most important quality that people look for in public officials," Beier said in the press release.
Beier explained that the idea of amending the Code came after reading the State Integrity Report — an analysis that gave the state of Michigan a grade of "F" on its Corruption Risk Report Card.
"We can't change the entire state, but East Lansing can lead by an example by adopting and following the strongest possible ethics policies," Beier said.
The amendment makes the clarification that "... a city official has an indirect economic interest in the matter if they have received campaign contributions from any person or business entity, or any officer, agent or employee of a business entity, that has a direct economic in the matter.
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