By Patrick Sullivan
I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels overwhelmed when I go home at the end of the day and scan the cable news offerings. It makes me want to go back to the office. Lately I’ve been thinking about how much better all levels of government might work if elected officials held themselves to just a few of the tenets that we subscribe to in the ICMA Code of Ethics and Guidelines.
Tenet 2. Affirm the dignity and worth of the services rendered by government and maintain a constructive, creative, and practical attitude toward local government affairs and a deep sense of social responsibility as a trusted public servant.
Imagine if our elected leaders maintained a constructive, creative and practical attitude toward our immigration policies at the federal level, or infrastructure funding at the state level. Imagine if they had that deep sense of social responsibility not just to their constituency groups, but to the state or nation as a whole. Imagine if we viewed them all as trusted public servants.
Influence. Members should conduct their professional and personal affairs in a manner that demonstrates that they cannot be improperly influenced in the performance of their official duties.
I realize that someone has to pay for all those political ads that will start airing as we approach the congressional mid-terms, but we’re imagining here, so stay with me. Imagine if our elected officials couldn’t accept donations or favors from anyone. Or, minimally, if you accept donations from someone who has an interest in legislation, you can’t vote on that legislation. It seems implausible, but we manage to do our jobs without accepting funds and favors from those affected by our official duties. I’ve been fortunate to work in small towns where councilmembers campaign with their own money, or no money at all. They’re not beholden to anyone – Imagine that!
Professional Respect. Members seeking a position should show professional respect for persons formerly holding the position, successors holding the position, or for others who might be applying for the same position. Professional respect does not preclude honest differences of opinion; it does preclude attacking a person’s motives or integrity.
Imagine if our government leaders had honest disagreements but didn’t attack each other’s motives or integrity. I’ve had lively discussions with other managers who have a totally different political take than I do, but I’ve never assumed that they have some nefarious plot to destroy society. Why? Because they’re managers! They do their best to help people every day. If they disagree on political issues, it’s because they think their political philosophy helps people better than mine does. I respect that. Compromise would be so much easier if we approached our political differences as honest differences of opinion. We know that tearing down the reputations of other managers ultimately tears down our profession. Congress could take a lesson from us.
Tenet 5. Submit policy proposals to elected officials; provide them with facts and advice on matters of policy as a basis for making decisions and setting community goals; and uphold and implement local government policies adopted by elected officials.
Imagine political debates based more on fact and less on opinions. How many times do we lay out a well-organized set of facts for our local governing bodies, conclude our report, and listen to their now well-informed opinions. An informed dialogue ensues with our citizenry and a motion is voted on. When that process works right, we help them make an informed decision, we respect the tough choices they have to make as elected officials, and we do our best to fully carry out the policies they adopt. We all respect each other. It’s one of the best examples of democratic governance that I can think of, and it could work this way at every level if we all shared some common values that help us build trust with each other and our citizenry. Imagine….
Patrick Sullivan
President, Michigan Municipal Executives; Manager, City of Northville
Patrick Sullivan has been the Northville city manager since March 2006. His previous governmental experience included 10 years as superintendent of the City of St. Clair; four years as assistant village manager and village clerk of Beverly Hills; manager of the Village of New Haven; and township clerk of Lenox Township.You may reach him at phone or email