The institutionalization and transformation of ethics regimes: a case study of the Arkansas State Ethics Commission, 1988-2005

Abstract

This paper tracks the genesis and evolution of the Arkansas State Ethics Commission. In December 1987, Governor Bill Clinton introduced to the Arkansas General Assembly a proposal to create the state's first ethics commission.

Stemming from questionable practices within the state's political environment, Clinton's commission was to regulate the behavior of the state's elected and appointed officials, targeting influence-peddling and conflicts-of-interest.

The proposal soon met strong opposition. Although the bill failed in the legislature, it was resurrected and passed a year later as a citizen-sponsored ballot initiative.

From its birth into a hostile environment, the commission would struggle for a sense of purpose, legitimacy, authority, and the resources necessary for effective operation, let alone its survival. Over time, the commission would begin to achieve each of these things, and in doing so, would transform itself into more useful instrument for ensuring public integrity.

Although its evolution is by no means complete, its history thus far is helpful for informing students of regulatory bodies generally, and ethics regimes, specifically.