PUEBLO in the NEWS

Sunshine law may be ripe for fixes City's ethics panel says open meetings ordinance should apply to Oakland's top three elected officials

Oakland Tribune, July 14, 2004

By Heather MacDonald, STAFF WRITEROAKLAND -- The mayor, city attorney and city auditor should be required to submit agenda-related materials 10 days in advance of a city meeting, the city's Public Ethics Commission says. The commission ruled late Monday that the city's Sunshine Ordinance -- which requires the city to conduct official business in the open and give the public ample notice of issues to be considered -- should be revamped by the Oakland City Council to include the city's three top elected officials.

The recommendation was prompted by a complaint filed by People United for a Better Oakland after Mayor Jerry Brown introduced a last-minute proposal to change the city's risk-management policy at the Oct. 14 meeting of the council Finance and Management Committee.

PUEBLO accused Brown of violating the Sunshine Ordinance by not including his proposal in the agenda. Group spokeswoman Rashidah Grinage praised the commission's recommendation, which will be considered by the council after it returns from its summer recess in September.

" This change shows respect to the public and the principles of open government," Grinage told the commission. Commissioner Andrew Wiener, who was not on the panel when PUEBLO's complaint was considered, abstained from the otherwise unanimous vote.

In March, the commission agreed the public would have been better served if Brown's risk-management proposal had been contained in the meeting's agenda. However, it also found the Sunshine Ordinance did not apply to the mayor because of changes to the City Charter recently approved by voters.

Commissioner Peter Reinke called Brown's actions a "willful and successful attempt to flout the Sunshine Ordinance."

" We have to close this loophole," Reinke added.

Brown has denied violating the ordinance, agreeing with the commission it did not apply to him.

The commission also proposed two new exemptions to the Sunshine Ordinance. The first would not require speeches or the visual aids that often accompany oral presentations to be included in the agenda.

The second would allow city officials to propose written amendments or recommendations pertaining to items on the agenda. Both of the exemptions, suggested by Brown and City Auditor Roland Smith, often occur at council meetings.

In a separate action, the commission recommended the city provide limited public financing for the next City Council election, scheduled for March 2006.

Hoping to encourage more people to run for council and make it easier for first-time candidates to become viable, the commission recommended the council agree to match up to 25 percent of the voluntary expenditure limit, which is about $100,000.

Only contributions from Oakland residents or businesses should be matched, in order to foster more local involvement in elections, the commission agreed. In the last election, Council President Ignacio De La Fuente (Glenview-Fruitvale), Councilmember Jane Brunner (North Oakland) and City Attorney John Russo ran unopposed.

It will be up to the council whether to accept the commission's recommendations and fund the program. Earlier attempts at public financing for the council election were scrapped because of budget constraints.

E-mail Heather MacDonald at [email protected]