In the wake of recent ethics charges against the city attorney, Peachtree City officials are looking at ways to require more financial disclosure from the city's contractors.

An ethics board was convened to hear a charge against Jim Webb earlier this year. The case was dismissed when Griffin attorney Andrew Whalen III advised the ethics board that the city attorney is not covered under the city's current ordinances and charter as far as ethics matters are concerned.

Based partly on that report, city attorney Rick Lindsey informed the City Council at its May 4 meeting that some revisions to the ethics code may be in order.

Lindsey reiterated his earlier comments that he believes the Georgia Constitution has preempted the state legislature and local governments from enacting laws that control the practice of law, choosing instead to place that authority entirely with state Supreme Court. Based on that interpretation, any ordinance passed by the city in that regard would be unconstitutional, he said.

But Lindsey went on to say that he did believe the city could gain some additional control over the city attorney, such as the ability to require financial disclosure and make the city attorney a city official. One of Webb's arguments in his ethics case, and one with which Whalen agreed, was that the city attorney is not a “city official” the way the city's laws currently read.

To obtain this kind of control, the City Council would have to pass an ordinance or make a change to the city's charter, Lindsey said. But doing so would also require careful consideration of the city's interests balanced against those of the city official in question, he added.

“For example, I am willing to fully disclose all of my (limited) financial matters to you and to the public, but there may be some other very qualified potential candidates for the city attorney position who might be reluctant or even opposed to `big brother government' prying into such personal matters,” said Lindsey. “Obviously, that is a decision you will have to make.”

Lindsey concluded his remarks by saying that he was now in a position to simply wait for whatever direction the council wanted him to take. All of these guidelines could conceivably be applied to auditors, he added, although he has not researched what, if any, standards already apply to CPAs.

Councilman Robert Brooks suggested doing some research into how other municipalities have handled matters of this nature, and the rest of the council agreed. Annie McMenamin added that there could be some potential for duplication of safeguards that are already in place, since attorneys are already subject to a separate ethics code.

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