A D.C. Council committee approved a sweeping ethics reform bill Monday. The committee voted 4-1 to approve the ethics bill, which would create a board with the power to punish councilmembers for violations. Councilwoman Muriel Bowser, who chairs the Committee on Government Operations, said the bill establishes an “ethics sheriff” that the District government has lacked. The full Council will consider the bill on Tuesday. The bill would require councilmembers to report their outside income for the first time. It also includes a provision calling for the mayor and councilmembers to be disqualified from holding public office if convicted of a felony. Voters would have to approve that provision before it could be adopted. — AP
