Former Ethics Board Member: Don't Hold Your Breath for Florida Legislature to End Corruption

Submitted by Nancy Smith on June 6, 2012 - 4:49pm

It may be true that the Sunshine State leads the nation in corruption, and that federal officials made 781 corruption convictions involving Florida between 2000 and 2010, but one former state ethics commissioner is convinced that nothing is going to be done about it.

Latour LT" Laffery, a Tampa attorney and former member of the Florida Commission on Ethics, supports the recomendations in a report just out by Integrity Florida, a start-up nonprofit organization focused on ethics reforms, but he said it will take a groundswell from Floridians to move the Legislature to make the changes proposed by Integrity Florida.

The Commission on Ethics comes up with proposals every year and every year they are summarily rejected, Laffery said.

The chances any of these are going to get enacted in the Legislature are pretty slim.(Legislators) have to find the value in making life more difficult for themselves.

Read Jim Turner's story, "Study: Corruption Rampant in Sunshine State; Bring on Ethics Reforms."

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