I think most Californians would be glad to learn that their public officials are required to take a refresher course on ethics every two years. AB 1234 created the requirement and was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger in 2005 - so most jurisdictions are now going through their second cycle of training.
The course covers key ethics laws, ethical dilemmas faced by public servants, open meetings, public records and transparency in government decision-making. And it's not just the elected officials that are required to complete this "public service 101" - all key staffers and appointed officials must have a current certificate too.
The course I took today was presented by JoAnne Spears who is the Executive Director of the Institute for Local Government. The ILG website page re AB 1234 is here. The course uses video news reports to illustrate examples of less than stellar decision-making on the part of local government officials and encourages discussion about the ethical and legal issues involved.
Those public officials too busy to sit through the course can take an online course like the one found at the Fair Political Practices Commission website - here. If you're curious give it a try and see how you do.
The bottom line? Additional ethics training for public officials is a good thing. The bad apples almost always get caught and make big headlines and the evening news. The rest you rarely hear about because they're doing the right thing.
