By JIMMY LAWTON

OGDENSBURG -- A claim by City Councilor Timothy Davis that officials have leaked confidential information has raised concerns for the deputy mayor and at least one other city councilor, but Davis says it wasn’t meant to sound accusatory.

During items for discussion Thursday councilor Davis said he would like the city to take a look at its existing ethics policy and consider some reforms.

Specifically Davis raised concerns regarding confidential information being released to the public and pointed out that councilors or department heads could be removed from their positions if they were to release confidential information.

Davis went as far as to say that in the past “information has been given out without the consent of the board.” Davis said he wanted to ensure that trend does not continue

Davis’ call for ethics reform comes amid controversy regarding the city’s decision to withhold information from the press regarding city council meetings. Deputy Mayor Michael Morley and councilor Brian Mitchell had both pushed to ensure the press would receive more information prior to city council updates, while councilors Davis, Jennifer Stevenson, Dan Skamperle and David Price had opposed that plan.

In an interview Friday, Deputy Mayor Morley said he was confused and concerned with Davis’ call for reform because it sounded as if he was blaming other members of the board for leaking confidential information. Morley said it never hurts to revisit the ethics policy, but said it seemed that Davis might be pointing fingers at fellow councilors.

“I didn’t know where he was headed with it, it kind of came out of nowhere. I didn’t know what it was all about. I have seen no confidential information leaked by anyone that I know of,” Morley said.

Councilor Brian Mitchell shared a similar view on Friday. Although he said he supports Davis’ call to review the city’s ethics policy, he was concerned with manner in which it was expressed.

“I think being a new member of the board to throw that statement out there, when you’ve only been there for a few meetings, it felt like it was kind of directed at existing members,” he said.

But Davis said that he did not intend to come off as accusatory. He pointed to an apparent leak during the hunt for a new city manager, in which names of candidates were published in the local paper before the city was ready to release them.

“I didn’t mean to come across as accusatory,” he said. “I was referring to leaks in the past and they have occurred, but it wasn’t directed at anyone on the board.”

Davis said his goal in bringing up ethics reform was to ensure it’s serving the public well.

“I want to work for cohesion and maintaining the integrity of the office. I want to make sure were are all on the same page,” he said. “I probably shouldn’t have stated things the way I did, but my goal is to get everyone working together,” he said.

All three councilors expected to discuss the issue at the next council meeting.