For the first time in months, the Office of State Ethics will have a permanent executive director, effective Dec. 17.
The Citizens Ethics Advisory Board has appointed Carol Carson, a member of senior management with the Massachusetts Ethics Commission, to lead Connecticut’s Office of State Ethics. Carson is a past president of the Council on Government Ethics Laws, the international government ethics organization. Following a brief time as a reporter, Carson has served the Massachusetts Ethics Commission since 1992. In the past five years, Carson has been prominently involved as a spokesman for the commission and a liaison to the state legislature and professional organizations.
Carson will replace the previous permanent executive director, Benjamin Bycel, who resigned in July. Bycel’s tenure was tumultuous, with complaints from staff members, criticism for violating state motor vehicle laws and questions about a failure to update data on the office’s Web site.
In a statement, Citizens Ethics Advisory Board President Robert Worgaftik said the board was “delighted” to have an executive director who has been known for “her excellent communication skills and history of achievements in regulating governmental ethics.” Since early October, Beverly Hodgson had been acting as the office’s temporary executive director. Â
