Harvard Study Ranks States By Public Corruption: See How RI Scored
GoLocalProv News Team
Harvard Study Ranks States By Public Corruption: See How RI Scored
Harvard University recently ranked the most and least corrupt states in the country, and Rhode Island might not rank where you think it does. The Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics surveyed news and investigative reporters covering issues related to corruption during the first half of 2014. According to the report, "Reporters have a better knowledge of state governments and spend a great deal of time observing the government officials and interacting with them." Nearly 1,000 reporters were contacted, and 280 replied. Lousiana, historically known as one of the most corrupt states in the union, had no reporters reply to the inquiry and therefore isn't included in this study.
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Rankings are broken down into two categories for each branch of government: "legal corruption" and "illegal corruption." Illegal corruption is defined by the study as "the private gains in the form of cash or gifts by a government official, in exchange for providing specific benefits to private individuals or groups." The study defines legal corruption as "political gains in the form of campaign contributions or endorsements by a government official, in exchange for providing specific benefits to private individuals or groups, be it by explicit or implicit understanding."
See where Rhode Island ranks in comparison to other states in the slideshow below:
See How RI Scored Ranks for Public Corruption
Executive Branch
Rank for Illegal Corruption: Slightly Common
According to the Harvard Study, Rhode Island is ranked to have only "slightly common" illegal corruption in the executive branch, rating 2 out of 5.
Executive Branch
Rank for Legal Corruption: Slightly Common
According to the Harvard Study, Rhode Island is also ranked to have only "slightly common" legal corruption in the executive branch, rating 2 out of 5.
Legislative Branch
Rank for Illegal Corruption: Very Common
Conversely, Rhode Island is ranked to have "very common" illegal corruption in the legislative branch, ranking 4 out of 5. No states ranked 5 out of 5 (Extremely Common), making Rhode Island one of the worst ranked in this category.
Legislative Branch
Rank for Legal Corruption: Very Common
Rhode Island is ranked to have "very common" legal corruption in the legislative branch, ranking 4 out of 5. However, 8 states rank higher with either a 4.5 or 5 on the scale. Legal corruption is perceived to be either "very common" or "extremely common" in nearly half of the states in the country.
Judicial Branch
Rank for Illegal Corruption: Slightly Common
The Harvard Study shows Rhode Island to have "slightly common" illegal judical corruption. No state scored higher than a 2.5 out of 5.
Judicial Branch
Rank for Legal Corruption: Slightly Common
The Harvard Study shows Rhode Island to have "slightly common" legal judical corruption. 12 states scored worse than Rhode Island.
Overall Results
Overall: The Most and Least Corrupt States
To determine the most and least corrupt states, Harvard added the median scores of each government branch and calculated the aggregate score of each state. Rhode Island made the group of 5th most corrupt states when it came to "illegal corruption," while with "legal corruption," Rhode Island was neither most nor least corrupt.
