A city secretary who supervises the deputy clerks is not familiar with legal requirements; this causes a clash. Is this an ethical problem? What should the clerks do?

• A. No; this is not an ethical problem and can be remedied with training materials from the Texas Municipal Courts Education Center.
• B. Yes; it is an ethical problem and should be reported to the ethics commission.
• C. Yes; the clerks should confront the secretary directly and demand change.
• D. Yes; the clerks should resign.

Answer: (B)

The idea being tested is recognizing when a situation involves an ethical risk in public service and using the proper channel to address it. When a city secretary who oversees deputy clerks isn’t familiar with legal requirements, there’s a real risk that duties won’t be performed lawfully, which can undermine public trust and the integrity of records and processes.

Reporting the issue to the ethics commission is the best course because it initiates a formal, impartial review of the potential ethical problem and legal noncompliance. This protects the public, provides due process, and helps ensure the office corrects the gap without putting coworkers in an adversarial or hasty situation. It also keeps the response within established professional procedures, rather than placing the burden on individuals to confront leadership or to resign in isolation.

Training materials can help reduce future gaps, but they don’t address the immediate ethical risk or ensure accountability. Confronting the secretary directly risks personal conflict and may not lead to a systemic fix, and resigning shifts the problem rather than resolving it for the office as a whole.