In a bid to address ongoing accountability issues, the Orange County Board of Supervisors has announced revisions to its ethics guidelines, following the FBI’s arrest of former Supervisor Andrew Do for allegedly accepting over $500,000 in bribes. The investigation revealed that Do funneled more than $10 million in contracts to nonprofits linked to his daughter, who, while not facing criminal charges, has entered into a diversion agreement.
During a meeting on *August 12, the Board discussed the overhaul of the ethics code, which has remained largely untouched since its inception in 1993. Critics argue that the current guidelines focus too much on lobbyist registration and preventing the misuse of county property, lacking the enforcement needed to hold elected officials accountable.
The proposed changes require supervisors to sign and acknowledge adherence to ethical standards upon taking office. However, critics have raised alarms over the lack of substantial penalties for violations, which could lead to little more than an HR investigation or citation without the ability to remove a supervisor from office in cases that don’t result in criminal indictments. This has sparked concerns about the county’s commitment to self-regulation…