It’s generally unwise for someone who works in government to have a personal investment in companies that could be affected by policies that he or she oversees, and that turns out to be the case for Betsy DeVos, President-Elect Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Education. Her investment in a company that refinances student loans is relatively small and indirect, but it exists, and is a potential conflict of interest. [More]
conflicts of interest
Should Economists Have A Code Of Ethics? They're About To Vote On It
By 1.6.11
Most professions, like lawyers, doctors, scientists, and sociologists adopted a code of ethics long ago but that could change soon for one of the lone holdouts, the curmudgeonly economists. Their big conference kicks off today in Denver. On the agenda is whether they should adopt such a code. A little movie called Inside Job might have something to do with it. [More]
The Inmates Get Thinner And The Sheriff's Bank Account Gets Fatter
By 1.9.09
Here’s a grim economics lesson: In Alabama, there’s a law that allows the Sheriff to keep any money that’s left over after feeding the prisoners in the county jail. Can you guess what the result of this conflict of interest might be?
By 12.14.07
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FTC head said she won’t recuse herself from the review of Google’s acquisition of the DoubleClick online advertising firm, despite petitions by some consumer groups alleging conflict of interest. [AP]
