Code of Ethics Update
AICP's Superpower: The AICP Code of Ethics
The AICP Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct guides and inspires ethical decision-making and protects AICP-certified planners when faced with controversial or difficult choices. To reflect our needs as professionals in the evolving planning environment, the Code was updated, effective January 1, 2022.
The following priorities were identified and incorporated into the updated Code based on feedback from Chapters, Divisions, and members regarding the clarity, efficacy, and relevance of the current Ethics Code. Member input was solicited during multiple presentations and comment periods, including a Town Hall webinar.
- Expand and reorganize the Principles to Which We Aspire (Section A) into logical groupings to highlight the planners' role in serving the public interest and to:
- more fully account for the planners' role in social justice and racial equity, while accepting our responsibility to eliminate historic patterns of inequity tied to planning decisions;
- recognize and respect the rights of others and not discriminate against or harass others; and
- increase opportunities for members of underrepresented groups to become professional planners.
- Reorganize the Rules of Conduct (Section B) into logical groupings to increase clarity for compliance and:
- eliminate geographic inconsistencies on who or how Rules of Conduct are enforced;
- clarify types of additional employment that would create an actual or perceived conflict of interest; and
- require an AICP member to cooperate with the AICP Ethics Officer or AICP Ethics Committee if it is determined that they have information relevant to a charge filed against another AICP member.
- Reduce the use of frivolous complaints by an aggrieved member of the public against an AICP member by allowing only AICP members the option to file an appeal of a determination by the Ethics Officer related to a complaint of misconduct.