To my knowledge, the town of Paris has never had a code of ethics to guide the behavior of its boards, including and starting with the board of selectmen, who set an example and standard as a role model for the other boards and committees.

In some recent debates during their meetings, the unspoken but operative question for many of the selectmen has been, “What is the minimum required by law?” What has been missing is a consideration of what is ethical, which is a higher standard than the mere legal minimum.

I am convinced that most of the dissension and chaos could have been avoided if there had been an ethics policy in place to guide the selectmen’s deliberations.

I am aware that an increasing number of towns in Maine have developed, or are developing, ethics policies. These policies are established to set standards of behavior, which is what “ethics” means.

What a boon this would be for the current work of our selectmen, and a legacy for the future.

Anne Stanley, Paris