Government watchdogs warn Florida legislation would have chilling effect in ethics cases

Source: Miami Herald

Government watchdogs warn Florida legislation would have chilling effect in ethics cases

Ana Ceballos, Joey Flechas
Fri, February 2, 2024 at 5:31 PM EST·4 min read

As local ethics investigators dig into government scandals in Miami, state lawmakers in Tallahassee are proposing changes that could reign them in by removing their ability to launch their own investigations into alleged public corruption and ethical violations.

The Florida Senate on Thursday passed a broad ethics package that would bar local ethics panels across the state from investigating misconduct by public officials unless someone with personal knowledge of wrongdoing is willing to identify themselves by name and file a complaint under oath. The change would block local government watchdogs from filing their own complaints.

The sponsor of the bill says the intent is to create uniform procedures for government watchdog agencies around Florida and prevent “politically motivated” or “frivolous” complaints. But in Miami-Dade County, where a self-initiated ethics investigation recently led to the indictment of ex-Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, officials say the proposal would undermine their ability to investigate some of the most egregious instances of ethical – and sometimes criminal – violations.

“No more anonymous whistleblowers. No more employees referring information to us. We would be sitting on our hands unless someone comes forward and files a complaint under oath,” said Jose Arrojo, the executive director of the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust.

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Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/government-watchdogs-warn-florida-legislation-223112737.html