Washington state tops list of states with tough corruption laws (Washington Post)
October 10, 2018
Washington state may share a name with the nation’s capital, but there’s no big swamp that needs to be drained in the Pacific Northwest, according to a new independent ranking of anti-corruption laws. The state topped the inaugural S.W.A.M.P. Index’s list of states with tough corruption laws, impressing the Coalition for Integrity with the strength of its ethics agency and measures to prevent lobbyists from plying elected officials with gifts. Read More
New ‘SWAMP’ Index Ranks States on Public Corruption Laws (Wall Street Journal)
October 4, 2018
A new index from the group formerly known as the U.S. chapter of Transparency International ranks the “state of ethics” in each U.S. state. The organization, now known as the Coalition for Integrity, analyzed the laws of the 50 states and the District of Columbia related to the scope, independence and power of ethics agencies, as well as the acceptance and disclosures of gifts by public officials, transparency of funding expenditure and client disclosures for legislators. Read more
S.W.A.M.P. Index
October 3, 2018The States With Anti-Corruption Measures for Public officials [S.W.A.M.P.] Index is a comparative scorecard which rates 50 states and the District of Columbia based on the laws and regulations governing ethics and transparency in the executive and legislative branches. Read more and see how your state stacks up here.
Shruti Shah appointed President & CEO of Coalition for Integrity
May 31, 2018Coalition for Integrity’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Shruti Shah as President & CEO of the organization effective June 1, 2018. Under Shruti’s leadership, we will continue to combat corruption in the United States and overseas. We are looking forward to collaborating and engaging with all of you as we continue our journey. Read more
Scott Pruitt’s scandals aren’t so bad—by Russian standards
April 19, 2018Shruti Shah of Coalition for Integrity discusses the Pruitt scandal with Quartz, comparing it to growing up in India under systemic corruption and the frustration experienced by citizens when they can’t hold those in power accountable. Read more
Growing bipartisan interest in beneficial ownership transparency (FCPA Blog)
April 11, 2018The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) recently renewed Geographic Targeting Orders (GTOs) that temporarily require U.S. title insurance companies to identify the natural persons behind shell companies that pay “all cash” for high-end residential real estate in select markets. This is the third time the GTOs have been extended. Read more
Trump sold $1.5 billion of condos to potential money launderers thanks to this gaping loophole (Quartz)
January 12, 2018Shell companies can provide an extraordinary level of secrecy, making it impossible for even the seller to know who they’re making a deal with. That helps out a huge array of people who want to hide illicit funds. As Shruti Shah of anti-corruption NGO Coalition for Integrity puts it, shell firms’ secrecy makes them “a favorite tool for just about any criminal from tax evaders and money launderers to drug traffickers and kleptocrats.” Read more
Secret Money: How Trump Made Millions Selling Condos to Unknown Buyers (Buzzfeed news)
January 12, 2018“It’s not that common for someone to buy expensive real estate with cash, and if it’s a shell company, you want to find out who the buyer is and the sources of their funds,” said Shruti Shah, vice president of programs and operations at the Coalition for Integrity, an anti-corruption group. “It could be illicit money from foreign corruption, drug trafficking, human trafficking – all sorts of bad things.” Read more
Integrity First
December 4, 2017Foreign Services Journal, December, 2017. Alan Larson – Chairman, Board of Directors, Coalition for Integrity, Inc., Ambassador, retired, DC. Read more
Shruti Shah and Marian Currinder: Friends don’t shower money and gifts on friends (FCPA Blog)
November 27, 2017The McDonnell decision has likely made it easier for politicians to engage in ethically questionable behavior. In the absence of much stricter gift laws or precedent changing court decisions, what can be done? For one, politicians can simply pledge to not accept extravagant gifts from their friends. Read more