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Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014
The Journal
OPINION
VIRGINIA VIEWPOINTS
Virginia needs tougher ethics laws Several years ago, while working for the FAA, I had purchased a small amount of General Electric stock. There was nothing too remarkable about this, but the FAA, in reviewing my annual statement of financial interests, a requirement for many in the federal g ov e r n m e nt , David S. Kerr said I had to sell it. I didn’t handle anything remotely connected with General Electric, but corporately the agency did, and so I had to sell the stock. That’s how tight many of the conflict of interest rules are at the federal level. Also, I was strictly prohibited from accepting any gifts, and this included trinkets or other giveaways (usually found at trade
shows) worth more than a small amount. And meals, save perhaps for coffee, and that was sometimes a matter of concern, were out of the question. However, in Virginia, if you’re a member of the legislature, or the governor, or any other statewide elected official, there are, for all practical purposes, no rules. But, there should be. If there had been rules on personal gifts and conflict of interest, then perhaps Bob McDonnell wouldn’t have become the first Governor in the history of the Commonwealth to be indicted. McDonnell is accused of accepting gifts from Star Scientific owner Jonnie Williams in return for favors. McDonnell’s defense strikes to the heart of what’s wrong with the current ethics rules in Virginia. He maintains that he did nothing illegal in accepting the gifts, as there are virtually no rules against doing so, and that there were no favors returned. The validity of that argument and
Letters to the Editor Dear Editor: In this age of electronic communications, it is more important than ever that our local, state and federal government officials act with ethics and honor. There are too many instances in our society that our elected officials have been less than ethical, and when this happens, it lets down our communities, our nation, and even our society as a whole. Often there is little that the electorate can do until these heinous acts come to light, and even then, the burden of proof is so extreme, it often allows the most corrupt to continue their selfish grab for power and money. It’s not impossible that what happened to the north of us in New Jersey’s private email scandal can’t happen here. Contrary what many think, King George County is not immune to such disappointing behavior of elected officials. Virtually every government organization that I know of has its own web server with official email accounts for all of its government officials, whether elected or not. Often the only way a citizen can get any inside information about how their government officials conduct their business is through the Freedom of Information Act. Private email accounts are exempt from this act, so there is no way for the people to get a clear picture of how our government works. In many government organizations, it is illegal for any official, elected or employed, to correspond in an official capacity in a private email account. In many of our smaller communities, the law, policies or Standing Operating Procedures is slow to catch up with technology. In King George County, for instance, Supervisors Brooks and Sisson, which have been elected, are conducting official business on private email accounts. I am not saying that all emails, if when acting as a private citizen, should be done in an open forum for all to see, but the official business of the county should be stored in the electronic archives. If there is a historic event to be recorded and broadcast, then it is stored on the county’s servers for future generations to research. On the other hand, in the unlikely event that an elected official is less than honorable, and all the business is done through the county electronic server, then it is there for We, the People to hold our elected representatives accountable. By using a private email, they do not subject themselves to the same concerns with the Freedom of Information Act. With a private email, you simply provide what you wish and delete what you wish.
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Being on the county server means they store all emails and search your emails and collect them to fulfill the citizens’ requests. Can we all stand up and say....Big Difference! To an intelligent mind, it shouldn’t be an option. It should be a requirement that all supervisors use the county server. Transparency among some of our elected officials has been touted as an answer to some of the corruption, and I agree that is would be one method to reduce the likelihood of an official to stray from the People’s business to his or her own. Official government business on a private email account does not serve the electorate in any way and must be eliminated. Please spare me the speech of “well, it’s always been done this way before”--“it’s customary”--“it’s traditionally”-- “it’s non-verbally understood”, etc. Those lame excuses are just that! I’m very surprised that the County’s Attorney or County Administrator has perhaps not have mentioned the strong opinions of the Commonwealth’s courts concerning this to Brooks and Sisson. But, when one has to tell their employer things that they don’t want to hear, it might serve them better to be the “Yes Man”! When your peers bring to your attention items that need to be corrected to make it “The Right Thing To Do”, some on this Board have a lot of internal reflection and housekeeping to do. Who “rules” the Rulers, also known as the Board of Supervisors?.....We, the People! A statement some of you have forgotten. As I was told at a recent meeting, the supervisors are not required to comment or give any feedback, and, for now, that is your tradition. But I will be creating a new tradition of my own, that at every meeting, I’ll be there to observe who is doing what and why, and come re-election, perhaps there will be new faces on the board regardless of the tenure some current supervisors have. Mary Trout King George Dear Editor: Yesterday afternoon I went to an Eagle Honor Court at Peace Lutheran Church, King George, for John Fines. This was my second Eagle Honor Court for projects that took place on the DRHT (Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail) in 2013. We hosted three Eagle Scout projects in 2013. This is what community groups
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whether the former governor and his wife actively tried to cover up this arrangement is going to be decided in the courts. But, Virginia, and specifically the General Assembly, can do something right now. Gifts, which include everything from trips, use of private aircraft and meals, are commonplace in Richmond. The executive branch, as we’ve seen, as well as delegates and senators are used to this sort of thing. But, it’s not good government. It allows for a level of influence by private interests that’s outside the public view. Most legislatures in the country have some of kind of code of ethics that limits gift giving and at the very least, requires regular reporting. In addition, many state legislative bodies have ethics commissions with the power to investigate and rule on ethics violations. However, Virginia’s ethics rules are lax, reporting requirements are few, and as the result, there isn’t
much transparency. According to the State Integrity Investigation (a public interest group) report that evaluated ethics laws across the nation, Virginia ranks a disturbing 47th place when it comes to its ethics rules. There are a number of proposals being considered for improving ethics rules and their enforcement. Most aren’t particularly strong. One, for example, requires more stringent reporting and establishes an ethics advisory panel. That’s not robust enough. If ethics reform in Virginia is going to mean anything, there will have to be a limit on in-kind gifts, not just from lobbyists, but in general, and an ethics commission with enforcement authority. If this happens, and ethics rules have some power, then maybe we’ll be on the way to removing some of the tarnish from Virginia’s reputation for clean government. —Reach David Kerr at kerr@journalpress.com
should do. John’s project was monumental, to say the least. John’s Eagle project was (to restore) and painting the exterior of the caboose. (note: caboose is on site at trailhead on Bloomsbury Road). This is what a trail is for folks: we provide free public recreation and leadership opportunities for our neighbors. No other group in King George does what we do for as many people, and I have you to thank for that. Our fifth annual half marathon is to be held on February 15; our sixth annual 50K race will be the first weekend in August. Who else hosts ultra races in KG but US? We are the only group doing it, and we are the only group to EVER do it. That is, the Friends of the DRHT. We hosted projects for three Eagle Scouts last year. I think that is pretty special for a community group. I hope we can do four Eagle projects or more this year. Let’s keep it up. Dave Jones King George (note: for more information go to friendsdrht.org)
the Smoot Library as stated on their website (“The mission of the L. E. Smoot Memorial Library is to enhance the quality of life for the entire King George County community by providing services, programs, and a balanced collection, all of which fulfill educational, informational, cultural and recreational needs and interests in an atmosphere that is welcoming, safe and respectful.”) should include SUNDAY hours. A quick calculation of hourly wage for two employees to open the Smoot Library for 5 hours on Sundays ($10/ hour x 2 = $100 a Sunday) seems like a reasonable cost to satisfy the Smoot Library’s Mission to our community. If a salaried staff member (management) is required to be on duty, then have that staff member take time off during slower hours in the week. So - To the LE Smoot Memorial Library Board - Can you find this in your budget and make it happen for our Second Semester students? Dee Strauss King George, VA
Dear Editor I would like to echo the letter previously submitted by Lori Deem about the LE Smoot Memorial Library NOT having Sunday hours. I teach at KGHS and always promote the Smoot Library as a great spot for my students to utilize valuable resources that are otherwise not available to them outside of the school day. Even as the King George Wireless Authority (AKA Board of Supervisors) is bombarded by county residents with requests for high-speed Internet service to our “maintain the rural character” community, many of our households could not afford that service if it was provided. And many of these households are the homes of our students. Weekend and evening access to not only books but also technology including computer use for preparation of papers and projects via word processing, spreadsheets, and presentation programs; research, blogging, and email via the Internet; and communicating with class groups and partners for class assignment has become a necessity to our students. Many KGHS teachers provide information to students online for assignments, feedback, and calendar changes. Teachers are also being encouraged to FLIP the Classroom - students do research on topics prior to discussion in the classroom. Access to the Smoot Library that provides these services to our citizens which is the Mission of
Journal
Op Ed
CROSSWORD PUZZLE
CLUES ACROSS 1. Film Music Guild 4. A rubberized raincoat 7. An upper limb 10. Wander 12. Biblical name for Syria 14. Former OSS 15. Norwegian capital 16. No. Am. Gamebird Assoc. 17. Taxis 18. Ancient Chinese weight unit 20. Third tonsil 22. Ancient Hebrew measure = 1.5 gal. 23. Piece of clothing 25. Overrefined, effeminate 28. Housing for electronics 31. Cut grass 32. Ghana’s capital 33. Prof. Inst. of Real Estate 34. Shares a predicament 39. Old World buffalo 40. Loads with cargo 41. What part of (abbr.) 42. Partakers 45. Expressed harsh criticism 49. Doctors’ group 50. OM (var.) 52. A dead body 55. Jewish spiritual leader 57. An almost horizontal entrance to a mine 59. Anglo-Saxon monk (672-736) 60. Database management system 61. A swindle in which you cheat 62. Arabian Gulf 63. Six (Spanish) 64. Price label 65. Black tropical American cuckoo 66. Teletypewriter (abbr.)
CLUES DOWN 1. Foam 2. Tessera 3. Major ore source of lead 4. Directors 5. 9/11 Memorial architect 6. The goal space in ice hockey 7. The academic world 8. Standing roast 9. More (Spanish) 11. Gram molecule 13. Head of long hair 17. Cost, insurance and freight (abbr.) 19. Line of poetry 21. Originated from 24. One time only 26. A civil wrong 27. Female sheep 29. Bay Area Toll Authority 30. Afrikaans 33. Hold a particular posture 34. South American Indian 35. Paying attention to 36. Wife of a maharaja 37. Mild yellow Dutch cheese 38. Central Br. province in India 39. 4th month (abbr.) 43. Grooved carpentry joint 44. Present formally 46. Skeletal muscle 47. -__, denotes past 48. Aba ____ Honeymoon 51. Young lady 53. Any of the Hindu sacred writing 54. Where Adam and Eve were placed 56. Promotional materials 57. Play a role 58. Arrived extinct
Lori Deem Pictures sent in by a resident of King George County show the dramatic difference in road clearing/ treatment after last week’s snowstorm and subsequent low temperatures (see page 6.) One picture was taken at the Sealston light, intersection of Route 3, Kings Hwy and Route 603, Fletchers Chapel Road. The other is after the vehicle turned right (westbound) onto Kings Hwy and traveled about maybe 200 feet or so. What a difference a county line makes! Stafford snow trucks actually come up the hill into KG to make a u-turn and head back into Stafford to do the other side of the four-lane highway What happened to the lack of clearing of Route 3? Not even considering the side roads, there was no excuse for Route 3 to be almost undriveable for as long as it was. Fortunately, most folks stayed off the roads, but those out did experience great relief to find the lanes to F’brg and points west almost dry and definitely free of ice as you left the county. Residents of KG, fire & rescue vehicles and anyone driving on the main road (Route 3) deserved safer road conditions after this storm. Will they be more prepared or trained for the next one?
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