City council to participate in ethics training

The Rhinelander Common Council will participate in an ethics training session at the recommendation of the city’s independent ethics committee.

Ethics committee chairman Dr. Michael Miller explained the concept during the council’s Feb. 10 meeting. 

With assistance from Amber Rehberg of the University of Wisconsin Extension, the committee has formulated a one-hour training session focused on “serving with integrity, honesty, accountability and fairness.”

Miller was quick to note that the committee is in no way suggesting that the council is not operating according to those principles. Rather, he described the training session as a way for the council to take a “deeper look” at “the culture and the community we have here in Rhinelander” and determine “if there’s ways we can more effectively and more fairly serve everyone in our community...”

The session is expected to begin with a discussion of “core values” and move on to various scenarios that members of the council could face as elected officials.

The committee, which was created in 2020 and has been meeting regularly since the fall of 2023, has spent several months refining the format for the training session.

After hearing from Miller, several alderpersons indicated they would prefer to schedule the training session separate from a regular council meeting.

Alderman David Holt, the most senior member of the group, suggested a special workshop would be the best option. District 1 alderman Tom Barnett agreed, noting that it would be easier to focus on the training if the alders did not have to be concerned about a full agenda afterward. 

The discussion ended with direction to city clerk Austyn Zarda to schedule the training. 

Last year, the council passed a resolution outlining the ethical principles it believes should guide all those who serve the city’s residents. 

The resolution outlines the following ethical principles:

• Serve others, not ourselves.

• Use resources with efficiency and economy.

• Treat all people fairly.

• Use the power of our position for the well-being of all Rhinelander citizens, businesses and visitors. 

• Create an environment of honesty, openness and integrity.

The resolution also includes a list of acts or behaviors “the governing authority” shall not do:

• Act officially in a matter in which they or a member of their immediate family are privately interested.

• Use their public position for private benefit.

• Accept transportation, lodging, food, beverage or anything else that could reasonably be expected to influence their vote, official actions or judgment.

• Solicit or accept rewards or items of services likely to influence their official duties or could reasonably be considered a reward for any official action or inaction. This shall not apply in situations where the reward, items or services are generally available to the public.

• Use confidential information to their personal or economic advantage.

• Use their public position to obtain unlawful benefits for themselves or any other person.

• Enter into public contracts including employee without required notice or transparency.

• Charge a fee to provide services to a person before a department of the city that is not already a fee applicable under an approved fee schedule.

• Offer to provide influence in exchange for campaign contributions or in-kind services.

• Accept items or services of substantial value for private benefit, or for the benefit of their immediate family or associated organizations, if offered because of their public position unless generally offered to all present.

To view the entire discussion regarding the ethics training, visit www.hodagtv.com.