Political neutrality is the cornerstone of the local government management profession and has been a core value in every version of the Code of Ethics since membership first adopted it in 1924.
Any local, state, or federal issue has the potential to be both galvanizing and polarizing in the community and within a member’s own organization. A commitment to political neutrality ensures the member is always seen as objective and fair as well as the source of unbiased information.
ICMA’s Committee on Professional Conduct, the Executive Board subcommittee that determines whether a member’s conduct has violated the Code, has consistently concluded a member cannot effectively serve the organization when the member engages in political activity such as endorsing candidates, writing an article supporting the candidate, making financial contributions to candidates, or running for office themselves. A member has the right and responsibility to vote for candidates for elected office but may not financially support or endorse candidates for any local, state, or federal office.
Tenet 7 and its guidelines have been revised over the years to provide a framework for members on how they may engage while maintaining their commitment to the highest ethical standards expected of individuals working in service to a local government.
Applicable Tenet and Guidelines
Tenet 7. Refrain from all political activities which undermine public confidence in professional administrators. Refrain from participation in the election of the members of the employing legislative body.
GUIDELINES
Elections of the Governing Body. Members should maintain a reputation for serving equally and impartially all members of the governing body of the local government they serve, regardless of party. To this end, they should not participate in an election campaign on behalf of or in opposition to candidates for the governing body.
Elections of Elected Executives. Members shall not participate in the election campaign of any candidate for mayor or elected county executive.
Running for Office. Members shall not run for elected office or become involved in political activities related to running for elected office, or accept appointment to an elected office. They shall not seek political endorsements, financial contributions or engage in other campaign activities.
Elections. Members share with their fellow citizens the right and responsibility to vote. However, in order not to impair their effectiveness on behalf of the local governments they serve, they shall not participate in political activities to support the candidacy of individuals running for any city, county, special district, school, state or federal offices. Specifically, they shall not endorse candidates, make financial contributions, sign or circulate petitions, or participate in fund-raising activities for individuals seeking or holding elected office.
Elections relating to the Form of Government. Members may assist in preparing and presenting materials that explain the form of government to the public prior to a form of government election. If assistance is required by another community, members may respond.
Presentation of Issues. Members may assist their governing body in the presentation of issues involved in referenda such as bond issues, annexations, and other matters that affect the government entity’s operations and/or fiscal capacity.
Personal Advocacy of Issues. Members share with their fellow citizens the right and responsibility to voice their opinion on public issues. Members may advocate for issues of personal interest only when doing so does not conflict with the performance of their official duties.
PM Magazine Articles
- Political Neutrality in an Era of Polarization (August 2024)
- Thriving in the 24/7 World of Politics (April 2023)
- Err on the Side of Caution (September 2022)
- Democrat or Republican Manager? Why It's Crucial to Stay Politically Neutral (August 2022)
- Right, Wrong, or Just Blurry? (May 2022)
- Resolving Everyday Ethics Challenges: Why Seeking Advice Is Beneficial (June 2021)
- Being Politically Neutral in a Partisan World (April 2021)
- Is It Election Season … Again? (July 2020)
- What If I Want to March? (March 2020)
- Surviving the Election Season (July 2019)
- Professional Fouls (June 2017)
- Cookingham’s Legacy (September 2016)
- Map Your Path to Election Day – Part 2 (August 2016)
- Map Your Path to Election Day - Part 1 (July 2016)
Gift giving and receiving becomes a focus of renewed attention in December, but it is an issue that requires diligent attention for members any month of the year. Local government employees, from the manager to the road crew, work very hard to improve the lives of residents. Sometimes residents or vendors want to thank employees for their service by giving them a gift and/or gratuity. Whether it comes in the form of sporting event tickets or homemade baked goods, gifts can easily create the appearance that such a "thank you" will translate into special treatment later.
Managers are reminded to consider how their approach to gifts sets the tone for the organization and that creating an internal policy, with assistance from Tenet 12 of the ICMA Code of Ethics, can be helpful to guide all employees on what they can accept and what they need to respectfully decline. In addition, many state laws address gifts in the workplace and members should ensure their conduct complies with any applicable laws or regulations.
Applicable Tenet and Guideline
Tenet 12. Public office is a public trust. A member shall not leverage his or her position for personal gain or benefit.
Guideline on Gifts. Members shall not directly or indirectly solicit, accept or receive any gift if it could reasonably be perceived or inferred that the gift was intended to influence them in the performance of their official duties; or if the gift was intended to serve as a reward for any official action on their part.
The term “Gift” includes but is not limited to services, travel, meals, gift cards, tickets, or other entertainment or hospitality. Gifts of money or loans from persons other than the local government jurisdiction pursuant to normal employment practices are not acceptable.
Members should not accept any gift that could undermine public confidence. De minimus gifts may be accepted in circumstances that support the execution of the member’s official duties or serve a legitimate public purpose. In those cases, the member should determine a modest maximum dollar value based on guidance from the governing body or any applicable state or local law.
The guideline is not intended to apply to normal social practices, not associated with the member’s official duties, where gifts are exchanged among friends, associates and relatives.
PM Magazine Article
It can be helpful to review dilemmas your peers in the local government management profession have faced and how they have navigated those issues. Keep in mind, ICMA ethics staff are available to confidentially discuss the issue and offer advice for consideration.
Examples of real scenarios members have faced and tips on ethical decision-making are highlighted in the articles below.
PM Magazine Articles
- Core Values of Tenets 1 and 2 (April 2024)
- Err on the Side of Caution (September 2022)
- Right, Wrong, or Just Blurry? (May 2022)
- Resolving Everyday Ethics Challenges (June 2021)
- Integrity: Upholding High Personal and Professional Standards (January 2021)
- Is This an Ethics Violation? You Ask. We Answer. (October 2020)
- Lessons from the Field (September 2020)
- A Cautionary Ethics Tale (January 2019)
- Making Ethical Choices (November 2016)
- Why You Can’t Rely on Your Attorney (August 2016)
- Dealing with Everyday Ethical Issues (April 2016)
- Ethics in the Real World (March 2016)
- Managing Mistakes (October 2015)
- Everyday Ethics (August 2015)
- Responding to an Ethical Crisis (November 2014)
ICMA was founded with a commitment to representative local government with a dedication to promoting efficient and effective public services. To fulfill this commitment, ICMA works to maintain and enhance public trust and confidence in local government, achieve equity and social justice, affirm human dignity, and improve quality of life.
Members of ICMA dedicate themselves to the faithful stewardship of the public’s trust in striving for management excellence as outlined in ICMA’s Declaration of Ideals (below):
- Provide an environment that ensures the continued existence and effectiveness of representative local government and promotes the understanding that democracy confers privileges and responsibilities on each citizen.
- Recognize the right of citizens to influence decisions that affect their well-being; advocate a forum for meaningful citizen participation and expression of the political process; and facilitate the clarification of community values and goals.
- Respect the special character and individuality of each community while recognizing the interdependence of communities and promoting coordination and cooperation.
- Seek balance in the policy formation process through the integration of the social, cultural, and physical characteristics of the community.
- Promote a balance between the needs to use and to preserve human, economic, and natural resources.
- Advocate equitable regulation and service delivery, recognizing that needs and expectations for public services may vary throughout the community.
- Develop a responsive, dynamic local government organization that continuously assesses its purpose and seeks the most effective techniques and technologies for serving the community.
- Affirm the intrinsic value of public service and create an environment that inspires excellence in management and fosters the professional and personal development of all employees.
- Seek a balanced life through ongoing professional, intellectual, and emotional growth.
- Demonstrate commitment to professional ethics and ideals and support colleagues in the maintenance of these standards.
- Take actions to create diverse opportunities in housing, employment, and cultural activity in every community for all people.
ICMA completed its three-year review of the Code dedicated to focus on better integrating the profession’s long-standing ethical commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion into the 12 tenets in June 2023.
As background, the Board adopted a statement in June 2020 that included several steps ICMA would take with one action specific to ethics:
“The local government management profession and ICMA were founded on a Code of Ethics and a Declaration of Ideals, which demand that we serve the best interests of all, achieve equity and social justice, and act with integrity so that we may earn the trust of all those we serve. Addressing systemic racism is our ethical obligation. We will revisit our Code of Ethics to better integrate our ethical commitment to racial justice and equity into the very fiber of the 12 tenets.”
The project scope of work included the following steps with the assistance of a consultant team:
- Conducted an environmental scan to learn how other professional associations are addressing equity and racial justice in their codes.
- Convened focus groups to help shape a survey to membership.
- Facilitated discussions: in-person meetings and virtual sessions.
- Developed a survey to send to all members to gauge ways to strengthen the Code’s commitment to equity and social justice and the ethical responsibility of members to serve the best interests of everyone living in their communities.
- Prepared a report for the Committee on Professional Conduct (CPC) and Board summarizing recommended changes to the Code.
- Developed a member communications strategy for proposed Code changes.
Engaging members in discussion was a crucial component of the effort to review the language in the Code. ICMA facilitated 17 sessions and heard from over 600 members who shared their perspectives. The discussions focused on four tenets and some of the corresponding guidelines that participating members identified as most relevant to the profession’s continued commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion that shaped the survey that was sent to membership in July 2022.
The consultant team briefed the CPC on its initial survey analysis then presented to the Board its preliminary survey results where the board offered feedback. The CPC refined its recommendations during its meetings in October and November.
Revisions to tenets of the ICMA Code of Ethics require the approval of a majority of corporate members voting while the board has the authority to revise the guidelines. In December 2022, the board approved the CPC’s recommendation to place four changes to the tenets of the Code before the members for consideration. The CPC also provided recommended changes to the guidelines for the board’s consideration after the results of the member vote on the tenets were available.
An election to revise language in Tenets 1, 4, 9, and 11 was open March 1-31, 2023, to voting members. In early April 2023, ICMA canvassed 2,544 ballots cast. Via this special election ballot, 84% of corporate members approved the proposed changes. Notably, this special election holds the distinction of having the highest participation rate (31%) in ICMA’s online voting history. The board voted to approve the changes to the associated guidelines at its June 2023 meeting.
Applicable Tenets and Guidelines
Tenet 1. We believe professional management is essential to effective, efficient, equitable, and democratic local government.
Tenet 4. Serve the best interests of all community members.
Guideline on Effects of Decisions. Members should inform the appropriate elected or appointed official(s) of a decision's anticipated effects on community members.
Guideline on Promote Equity. Members should ensure fairness and impartiality in accessing programs and services and in the enforcement of laws and regulations. Members should assess and propose solutions to strive to eliminate disparities.
Tenet 9. Keep the community informed on local government affairs. Encourage and facilitate active engagement and constructive communication between community members and all local government officials.
Guideline on Engagement. Members should ensure community members can actively engage with their local government as well as eliminate barriers and support involvement of the community in the governance process.
Tenet 11. Manage all personnel matters with fairness and impartiality.
Guideline on Diversity and Inclusion. It is the member’s responsibility to recruit, hire, promote, retain, train, and support a diverse workforce at all levels of the organization.
Resources
- Race, Equity, and Social Justice Tools, Research, and Learning Opportunities
- Code of Ethics Review Focusing on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
PM Magazine Articles
- The Profession’s Commitment to Equity and Justice (February 2022)
- Equity and Social Justice (August 2020)
- Ethical Leadership in the Time of COVID-19 (May 2020)
- Pay Attention to Ethics in the Hiring Process (May 2018)
- The Fundamental Connection (August 2017)
Because ICMA members hold positions of public trust, their conduct influences public confidence in the organization as well as in the local government management profession. Keep in mind that demonstrating the highest standard of personal and professional conduct requires a commitment that goes beyond what may be legally required.
For members working as managers, there is the added responsibility of understanding that their personal and professional conduct sets the ethical tone for the entire organization. Each of the articles below offers guidance and advice on strengthening this commitment to ethical leadership.
Applicable Tenets and Guidelines
Tenet 1. We believe professional management is essential to effective, efficient, equitable, and democratic local government.
Tenet 2. Affirm the dignity and worth of local government services and maintain a deep sense of social responsibility as a trusted public servant.
Tenet 3. Demonstrate by word and action the highest standards of ethical conduct and integrity in all public, professional, and personal relationships in order that the member may merit the trust and respect of the elected and appointed officials, employees, and the public.
Guideline on Public Confidence. Members should conduct themselves so as to maintain public confidence in their position and profession, the integrity of their local government, and in their responsibility to uphold the public trust.
Tenet 8. Make it a duty continually to improve the member’s professional ability and to develop the competence of associates in the use of management techniques.
Guideline on Self-Assessment. Each member should assess his or her professional skills and abilities on a periodic basis.
Guideline on Professional Development. Each member should commit at least 40 hours per year to professional development activities that are based on the practices identified by the members of ICMA
PM Magazine Articles
- More Than Words: Your Communications Are a Reflection of Your Leadership (September 2023)
- Observations from the Balcony (June 2023)
- What’s on Your Wall? (May 2021)
- Do You Take the Code of Ethics for Granted? (December 2020)
- Ethical Leadership in the Time of COVID-19 (May 2020)
- Building an Ethical Culture (January 2020)
- Make Ethics Your Career Sidekick (April 2019)
- Ethical Blind Spots (March 2018)
- The Duty of Candor (October 2017)
- The Fundamental Connection (August 2017)
- Don't Let Your Goals Get in the Way of Your Ethics (March 2017)
- Cookingham’s Legacy (September 2016)
- Honor and Integrity (March 2016)
- Celebrate Ethical Conduct (February 2015)
- Creating Ethical Dilemmas for the Staff (March 2014)
- A Leader’s Three Levels of Ethical Responsibility (February 2014)
How a member represents his or her qualifications and experience on a resume and when applying for ICMA’s Voluntary Credentialed Manager program reflects on a member’s integrity. A member should always be sure his or her approach is consistent with the Tenet 3 guideline on credentials.
Members have been sanctioned for the following unethical conduct concerning the presentation of their professional and/or educational credentials:
- A member served 13 communities in 17 years and omitted some of those jobs and dates of employment from his resume that he submitted for a job opening.
- A manager falsified his educational credentials on the ICMA membership application, a resume for employment, and under oath during a deposition; applied for the ICMA Credentialed Manager designation when he knew his educational credentials were falsified and did not meet the requirements for the credential; failed to correct a falsification of his personnel file; and provided false documents in response to a media request for information about his credentials.
- A member misrepresented credentials in obtaining a position appointment by claiming he had earned a bachelor's degree from a college that does not confer those degrees.
- A member indicated on a job application that he had earned an MPA, but not all coursework had been completed to receive the diploma at the time of application. Inaccurate credentials led to excluding candidates with appropriate credentials from the employment process.
- A member applied for a manager position and omitted employment where he was fired, and claimed to have a degree and other educational experience that he did not possess.
Applicable Tenet and Guidelines
Tenet 3. Demonstrate by word and action the highest standards of ethical conduct and integrity in all public, professional, and personal relationships in order that the member may merit the trust and respect of the elected and appointed officials, employees, and the public.
Guideline on Public Confidence. Members should conduct themselves so as to maintain public confidence in their position and profession, the integrity of their local government, and in their responsibility to uphold the public trust.
Guideline on Credentials. A member’s resume for employment or application for ICMA’s Voluntary Credentialing Program shall completely and accurately reflect the member’s education, work experience, and personal history. Omissions and inaccuracies must be avoided.
