After more than two years of work, the Jacksonville City Council will vote on a bill next Tuesday that would place an independent ethics commission back in the city's charter.

Some council members said it is about trying to restore faith in government.

"Right now, the trust in the government is low from our constituents. I think putting a code of ethics back in the charters will bring up the trust factor," said Councilwoman Glorious Johnson, who filed the bill.

The measure received unanimous support Monday from the council's Rules Committee, which was its last stop before a full council vote.

Carla Miller, the city's ethics officer, has been spearheading the effort to get ethics back in the city's charter. She called the bill "a tremendous foundation for our city and for ethics in the charter."

Ethics rules had been in the city's original charter but were removed in the 1970s to avoid overlap with new state ethics laws. The bill would re-enter the idea of an independent ethics commission into the charter, but details of how the program would work once reinstated would have to be worked out through city ordinances.

matt.dixon@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4174

link: http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-10-05/story/ethics-reforms-...