Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. today announced the formation of an independent commission which will review the county’s ethics laws and policies concerning the Office of the Inspector General.
The group will be tasked with making recommendations to strengthen the county’s existing laws.
The Blue Ribbon Commission on Ethics and Accountability will be chaired by retired Judge Joseph F. Murphy, Jr., former Chief Judge of the Maryland Court of Special Appeals.
“Over the last three years, we’ve made Baltimore County’s government more open, accessible, and transparent than ever before,” Olszewski said in a statement today.
“We also believe we should continue working to create a government that upholds the highest standards of ethics and accountability,” he said.
In addition to Judge Joseph Murphy, the commission will include:
- Joanne Antoine, Executive Director of Common Cause Maryland
- Judge Kathleen Cox, Former Baltimore County Circuit Court Administrative Judge
- William E. Johnson, Jr., Former Inspector General for the Maryland Department of Human Resources
- Jon Laria, Managing Partner of Ballard Spahr
- Cindy Leppert, Chair of Baltimore County’s Ethics Commission
All commission meetings will be open to the public.
In the coming weeks, the county will submit a request for proposals for an outside vendor to provide technical and administrative support for the commission.
The commission will submit an interim report with recommendations to Olszewski and the county council by July 1, 2022. A final report must be issued by Nov. 1, 2022.
