After two somewhat downer-posts about ethics in goverment, it’s a pleasure to write something reasonably upbeat for a change. How’s this for a lead (from the BayouBuzz.com):
Today, the Better Government Association (BGA) released its second edition of the BGA-Alper Integrity Index, announcing that Louisiana???s overall ranking improved from 46th in 2002 to fifth in the country, and would be number 1 in the nation, once the state???s entire ethics reforms are included in their ranking process.
I’ve never heard of the Better Government Association, but they sound legit. Here’s a description from their website:
Founded in 1923, the Better Government Association is an independent, non-partisan government watchdog. Our mission is to combat waste, fraud, and corruption in government by conducting investigative research and litigation to expose problems; researching policy solutions promoting transparency and accountability in government; and using internship programs to train the next generation of investigators and public interest lawyers.
Forty-sixth to almost-first in five years? Amazing.