Could lifting regulations on California’s local governments hold the key to preventing public corruption? Joe Mathews, California & innovation editor for Zocalo Public Square, seems to think so, and chimes in on the key takeaways from the corruption scandals in the City of Bell.
Mathews asserts that the “central lesson” of the Bell story – and its many predecessors – is that the typical responses by the state to regulate city leaders have not only failed to diminish the number of incidents of public corruption, but in fact perpetuated the incident rate.
“In California, local governments have two options,” he says. “The first is to beg the state for money. The second option is to cheat… To truly reform local governance, California must first recognize a paradox: Preventing local officials from behaving like those in Bell requires giving more discretion and freedom to local officials.”
To read Mathews’ full article, click here.