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WELCOME TO THE CITY COUNCIL B SESSION OF NOVEMBER THE EIGHTH, 2017.
COUNCIL MEMBER TRAVINO, COUNCIL MEMBER SHAW.
COUNCIL MEMBER BROCK HOUSE PRESENT.
ALRIGHT, WELCOME EVERYONE TO OUR C COUNCIL.
UH, WE HAVE A COUPLE OF ITEMS ON THE AGENDA.
CHERYL, IF YOU CAN KICK US OFF.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL SAYS IT SOUNDS GREAT.
[1. A Briefing on proposed amendments to the Ethics Code and Municipal Campaign Finance Code, as recommended by the Ethics Review Board. [Kevin Barthold, City Auditor]]
AFTERNOON, AND TODAY WE HAVE TWO BRIEFINGS.THE FIRST IS ABOUT THE PROPOSED RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD TO CHANGE THE CITY'S ETHICS CODE AND, UH, MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE.
OUR CITY AUDITOR, KEVIN BARTOLD, IS HERE THIS AFTERNOON WITH ADRIANA GARCIA, THE CHAIR OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD, AND THEY ARE GOING TO PRESENT THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD'S, UH, REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BACKGROUND.
IN 2016, COUNCIL MEMBERS SALANA, NIERENBERG AND TRAVINO SUBMITTED CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION REQUESTS SEEKING REVIEW OF THE CITY CHARTER AND ETHICS CODE, UH, TO IMPROVE TRANSPARENCY IN CITY GOVERNMENT.
AND THEN IN JULY OF THIS YEAR, COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE SUBMITTED AN ADDITIONAL COUNSEL CONSIDERATION REQUEST ASKING FOR GREATER DISCLOSURES IN CAMPAIGN FINANCE FILINGS.
SO THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD HAS BEEN WORKING HARD TO FORMULATE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS, UNDERTAKING A COMPLETE REVIEW OF THE ENTIRE ETHICS CODE AND MUNICIPAL FINANCE CODE.
AND AS A RESULT OF THEIR WORK IN RESEARCH, THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD PRESENTED RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE ON SEPTEMBER 20TH WHO ASKED THAT WE DISCUSS THE CHANGES FURTHER AT A B SESSION.
AND SO THIS AFTERNOON, THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS WILL BE PRESENTED TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL.
AT THIS TIME, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO KEVIN BARTOLD, OUR CITY AUDITOR, AND HE IS GOING TO INTRODUCE, UH, THE TOPIC THIS AFTERNOON.
THANK YOU CHERYL AND MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
UH, THIS IS, UH, THE CULMINATION OF MONTHS AND MONTHS OF WORK THAT THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD HAS, HAS BEEN, HAS BEEN GOING THROUGH.
GARCIA WILL EXPLAIN THAT PROCESS IN, IN JUST A LITTLE BIT.
GARCIA HAS BEEN SERVING AS THE CHAIR OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD SINCE JANUARY OF THIS YEAR.
UH, SHE'S BEEN APPOINTED AND HAS BEEN ON THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD FOR JUST A LITTLE BIT, LITTLE BIT OVER TWO YEARS, AND SHE HAS CERTAINLY SPEARHEADED THIS EFFORT OVER THE, UH, THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF, UH, TO GET US TO THIS POINT.
AND, AND WORKING WITH THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD AND I THINK HAS DONE A WONDERFUL JOB.
UH, SHE IS, UH, THE APPOINTEE FROM FROM DISTRICT FOUR, AND SO I WOULD JUST SIMPLY LIKE TO INTRODUCE DR.
ADRIANA GARCIA AND SHE WILL WALK US THROUGH THE, UH, RECOMMENDED CHANGES.
OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, I'VE HAD THE PRIVILEGE AND HONOR TO WORK WITH SOME OF THE MOST DEDICATED AND FAIR-MINDED INDIVIDUALS I'VE EVER MET, AND TODAY I COME BEFORE YOU ALL REPRESENTING THE E R B MEMBERS AND TO SHARE OUR WORK WITH YOU.
TO SET THE CONTEXT, I FIRST WANT TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE PURVIEW OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD AND THE OFFICE OF MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY.
WE FOUND THROUGH THE PROCESS THAT THERE IS SOME CONFUSION BETWEEN THESE TWO GROUPS.
THE E R B IS APPOINTED BY CITY COUNCIL AND HAS RESPONSIBILITY OVER ETHICS CODE AND THE MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE.
THIS INCLUDES REVIEWS OF ETHICS COMPLAINTS FILED WITHIN THE PARAMETERS OF BOTH CODES.
THE CODES APPLY TO ELECTED OFFICIALS, CANDIDATES, LOBBYISTS, INDIVIDUALS DOING BUSINESS WITH THE CITY AND EMPLOYEES.
THE OFFICE OF MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY IS AN INTERNAL FUNCTION UNDER THE CITY MANAGER.
THE O M I ADDRESSES CONCERNS BROUGHT UP AND SUCH CONCERNS COULD BE ANONYMOUS.
RESULTS OF THE INVESTIGATIONS ARE REFERRED TO MANAGEMENT.
THE O M I APPLIES TO ALL EMPLOYEES AND VENDORS IN MANY OF THE CITIES THAT WE RESEARCHED.
WE FOUND THAT ONE OFFICE MAY BE OVERSEEING BOTH ROLES, AND IT WAS IMPORTANT FOR US TO MAKE THAT DISTINCTION UPFRONT.
E R B MEMBERS ARE APPOINTED BY CITY COUNCIL, AND I WOULD LIKE TO RECOGNIZE THOSE MEMBERS THAT ARE HERE TODAY REPRESENTING YOUR COUNCIL DISTRICT.
SINCE WE ARE A VOLUNTEER BOARD, SOME MEMBERS COULD NOT BE HERE TODAY.
HOWEVER, ALL MEMBERS ARE LISTED ON SLIDE THREE.
I'D LIKE TO START BY INTRODUCING VICE CHAIR MAYORAL APPOINTEE, MS. PAULA MCGEE AND WADE SHELTON FROM DISTRICT
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EIGHT.THE E R B WAS CHARGED WITH SEVERAL TASKS.
THE FIRST WAS TO REVIEW THE CURRENT ETHICS CODE AND MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE FOR POTENTIAL UPDATES GENERALLY EVERY TWO TO THREE YEARS.
THE E R B REVIEWS BOTH CODES FOR POSSIBLE REVISIONS.
DURING THE REVIEW PROCESS, WE SEEK INPUT FROM THE OFFICES OF THE CITY ATTORNEY, THE CITY CLERK, AND THE CITY AUDITOR.
THEIR INPUT IS USUALLY BASED ON EXPERIENCES, QUESTIONS, AND ISSUES THAT HAVE COME UP IN THESE AREAS.
OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, THE MEMBERS OF THE E R B ALSO REVIEW CODES INDIVIDUALLY AND MAKE SUGGESTIONS.
SOMETIMES QUESTIONS RAISED BY BOARD MEMBERS LEAD TO REVISIONS TO CLARIFY SECTIONS OF THE CODE.
DURING THIS REVIEW PROCESS, THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE ALSO ASKED US TO CONSIDER AND REVIEW THREE CCRS.
WE ALSO RESEARCHED A REQUEST REGARDING THE POTENTIAL FOR AN INDEPENDENT ETHICS OFFICE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY STRUCTURE.
A PROCESS STARTED UNDER FORMER E R B CHAIR SAM MILLSAP.
MORE RECENTLY, THE E R B ALSO CONSIDERED THE REQUEST MADE BY COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL AT THE SEPTEMBER GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE MEETING REGARDING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION DISCLOSURES.
THE OVERALL GOAL OF OUR REVIEW PROCESS IS TO MAKE RECOMMENDED CHANGES TO THE CITY COUNCIL OR THE CHARTER REVIEW COMMISSION AS APPROPRIATE, AND THAT'S WHY WE ARE HERE TODAY.
OUR PROCESS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE TASKS WAS EXTENSIVE AND COMPREHENSIVE.
WE MET 24 TIMES OVER THE PAST 20 MONTHS.
THESE MEETINGS INCLUDED FULL E R B MEETINGS OR PANEL MEETINGS TO ADDRESS THE ISSUES.
DURING THE PROCESS, I CREATED THREE PANELS.
ONE TO ADDRESS ETHICS CODE CHANGES, ONE TO ADDRESS CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE CHANGES, AND ONE SPECIFICALLY TO LOOK AT THE CCRS SUBMITTED.
AFTER THEIR PANEL MEETINGS CONCLUDED, EACH PANEL THEN BRIEFED OUR FULL BOARD AND CONSENSUS WAS GAINED ON PROPOSED CHANGES.
RAYMOND BAIRD, AN ETHICS RESEARCH EXPERT AND RETIRED PROFESSOR EMERITUS FROM U T SS A.
HE ATTENDED TWO MEETINGS AND PROVIDED US WITH SOME VERY RELEVANT INFORMATION.
WE PRESENTED A RECOMMENDATIONS AT THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE ON SEPTEMBER THE 20TH.
AT THAT MEETING, COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL REQUESTED ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURES BY THOSE SEEKING CITY CONSENT THROUGH APPLICATIONS FOR AWARD OF THIRD PARTY GRANTS FOR MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING PROJECTS SUCH AS THOSE FROM THE STATE OF TEXAS, THE HOUSING TRUST AND ITS ASSOCIATED ENTITIES.
THE FULL BOARD REVIEWED THAT REQUEST AND PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE ETHICS CODE AT ITS OCTOBER 17TH MEETING.
AT THAT MEETING, THE BOARD RECOMMENDED TO ADD THE DISCLOSURE TO THE PROCEDURES THE CITY FOLLOWS IN PROCESSING SUCH APPLICATIONS, BUT NOT TO ADD THE DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT TO THE CODE ITSELF.
TO OUR KNOWLEDGE, THIS PROCEDURE HAS ALREADY BEEN INCORPORATED.
WE CONDUCTED EXTENSIVE RESEARCH REGARDING THE ISSUES WE WERE TASKED WITH CONSIDERING INCLUDING CONTACTING 26 CITIES TO UNDERSTAND THEIR PROCESS AND STRUCTURE REGARDING THE ETHICS BOARD REP REPORTING TO THE CITY APPOINTMENT PROCESSES AND LEGAL COUNSEL RELATIONSHIPS.
THIS SLIDE SHOWS THE CITY'S CONTACTED, AND YOU CAN SEE THEY ARE A GOOD REPRESENTATION FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
MANY ORIGINATING FROM A LIST ORIGINALLY REFERENCED BY COUNCILMAN TREVINO'S OFFICE.
THE TEXAS CITIES WE CONTACTED INCLUDED AUSTIN, DALLAS, HOUSTON, FORT WORTH, LAREDO, AND EL PASO.
ETHICS TRAINING IS CURRENTLY PROVIDED BY THE COMPLIANCE AUDITOR AT BOTH NEW EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCES.
THIS USUALLY OCCURS BIWEEKLY WITHIN THE FIRST FEW WEEKS OF EMPLOYMENT, AND AGAIN, AFTER ABOUT SIX MONTHS.
EMPLOYEES ARE ALSO REQUIRED TO TAKE AN ONLINE REFRESHER COURSE EVERY TWO YEARS.
A NEW COURSE WILL BE ROLLED OUT LATER THIS FALL.
THERE'S IS ALSO TRAINING PROVIDED FOR CITY DEPARTMENTS AS NEEDED, CITY BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AND OTHER GROUPS SUCH AS THE MUNICIPAL LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE.
TRAINING IS ALSO PROVIDED FOR CANDIDATES WITH REGARD TO CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS AND LOBBYISTS THAT ARE REGISTERED WITH THE CITY.
REGARDING OUTSIDE COUNSEL, THE ETHICS CODE CURRENTLY REQUIRES THE ENGAGEMENT OF OUTSIDE COUNSEL FOR MATTERS INVOLVING THE MAYOR OR A MEMBER OF THE CITY COUNCIL AND OUTSIDE COUNSEL IS ALSO ENGAGED IF IT IS DEEMED PRUDENT.
WHEN A COMPLAINT INVOLVES A CITY EMPLOYEE WHO IS A DEPARTMENT HEAD OR HIRE, THE CITY ATTORNEY HAS THE AUTHORITY AND THE BUDGET TO ENGAGE COUNSEL WHEN NEEDED.
WE RECOMMEND A CHANGE TO INCLUDE A PROVISION THAT IF A COMPLAINT IS FILED AGAINST A CANDIDATE OUTSIDE COUNSEL WOULD ALSO BE REQUIRED.
THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH CURRENT PRACTICE.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT A REQUEST FOR OUTSIDE COUNSEL HAS NEVER BEEN DENIED REGARDING FINES.
THE CURRENT MAXIMUM FINE OF $500 THAT CAN
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BE IMPOSED BY THE BOARD WAS DETERMINED TO BE CONSISTENT WITH A CLASS C MISDEMEANOR, WHICH THE PRIOR BOARD BELIEVED WAS APPROPRIATE.AND THE CURRENT BOARD SEES NO NEED TO CHANGE.
THE E R B FEELS STRONGLY THAT ETHICS TRAINING IS MORE EFFECTIVE AND IDENTIFYING, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, BETTER SERVES THE PURPOSE OF THE BOARD AND OF THE CODE REGARDING THE APPOINTMENT OF THE PROCESS, UH, OF THE APPOINTMENT PROCESS FOR THE E R B.
THE CURRENT E R B APPOINTMENT PROCESS REPRESENTS ALL AREAS OF THE CITY.
THE E R B MEMBERS BELIEVE THIS IS IMPORTANT TO THE COMPOSITION OF THE E R B.
THERE IS CONCERN THAT OTHER MODELS MAY NOT ENSURE CITYWIDE REPRESENTATION AFTER EXTENSIVE RESEARCH ON COMPARABLY SIZED CITIES, AND AFTER MORE THAN 20 MONTHS OF DISCUSSION THAT E R B HAS CONCLUDED THAT CHANGING THE CURRENT APPOINTMENT PROCESS MAY CREATE UNINTENTIONAL MIS MISREPRESENTATION OF THE COMMUNITY, NOT A ILLUSTRATIVE OF SAN ANTONIO'S DIVERSE DEMO DEMOGRAPHICS SUCH AS ETHNICITY AND EDUCATION LEVELS.
WE ALSO BELIEVE IT'S IMPORTANT TO LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS FILED WHEN DISCUSSING THE POSSIBILITY OF CREATING AN INDEPENDENT ETHICS OFFICE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY STRUCTURE.
OVER THE PAST THREE AND A HALF YEARS, 26 COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED.
OF THESE 22 WERE RETURNED BECAUSE THEY DID NOT FALL WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF THE E R B ONE WAS WITHDRAWN AND ONLY THREE WERE HEARD BY THE BOARD.
AFTER BOARD CONSIDERATION, WE ALSO RESEARCHED A COUPLE OF AREAS REGARDING CONTRIBUTOR DISCLOSURES.
THE FIRST WAS TO SEE WHAT OTHER JURISDICTIONS REQUIRE.
AS SHOWN ON SLIDE NINE, WE FOUND THAT FEDERAL ELECTIONS REQUIRE OCCUPATION AND EMPLOYER DISCLOSURE AT $200.
THE STATE OF TEXAS REQUIRES THESE DISCLOSURES AT 500 DISCLOSURES, AT $500 FOR EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE BRANCH CANDIDATES, AND $50 FOR JUDICIAL CANDIDATES FOR BEAR COUNTY CANDIDATES.
THERE ARE NO REQUIREMENTS FOR DISCLOSURE OF OCCUPATION AND EMPLOYER, NOR AS YOU KNOW, ARE THESE DISCLOSURES REQUIRED FOR OUR MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS.
BAIRD, REVIEWED SOME RESEARCH ON CONTRIBUTOR CONTRIBUTIONS.
ONE RESEARCH REPORT SHOWS THAT THERE'S A CHILLING EFFECT OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND PARTICIPATION WHEN ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURES ARE REQUIRED.
SPECIFICALLY, IT WAS FOUND THAT MORE THAN 56% OF RESPONDENTS A POST DISCLOSURE WHEN IT INCLUDES THEIR NAME, ADDRESS, AND CONTRIBUTION AMOUNT OPPOSITION ROSE TO MORE THAN 71% WHEN THE EMPLOYER NAME MUST BE DISCLOSED.
RESEARCH ALSO INDICATES THE CHILLING EFFECT OF SUCH DISCLOSURES IS MORE PRONOUNCED IN LOCAL ELECTIONS.
THAT IS TO SAY IT APPEARS THE REQUIREMENT OF DISCLOSING OCCUPATION AND EMPLOYER WILL HAVE LESS NEGATIVE EFFECT FOR NATIONAL OR STATE ELECTIONS, BUT A MORE PROFOUND ON LOCAL, UH, ON LOCAL ELECTIONS.
THE BOARD ALSO CONSIDERED OTHER NEGATIVES THAT MAY BE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS DISCLOSURE, SUCH AS POTENTIAL MISUSE OF THIS INFORMATION WITH REGARDS TO EMPLOYMENT WITH A COMPANY THAT OPPOSES A CONTRIBUTOR'S POSITION IN AN ELECTION.
THE RESULT OF OUR RESEARCH AND DISCUSSIONS LEADS US TO THE PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE ETHICS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE THAT WE PRESENT TODAY.
THE CHANGES CAN BE CLASSIFIED INTO TWO CATEGORIES, HOUSEKEEPING AND SUBSTANTIVE CHANGES.
FOR THIS PRESENTATION, WE ARE FOCUSED ON SUBSTANTIVE CHANGES.
HOWEVER, THE REDLINE VERSION OF BOTH CODES YOU ALL HAVE BEEN PROVIDED INCLUDES ALL CHANGES.
HOUSEKEEPING CHANGES INVOLVE MINOR REVISIONS.
FOR EXAMPLE, CHANGING THE WORD DONATIONS TO CONTRIBUTIONS OR REVISIONS TO FURTHER CLARIFY EXISTING PROVISIONS.
THE SUBSTANTIVE CHANGES WE RAISED TODAY WILL IMPACT THOSE WHO ARE SUBJECT TO THE CODES AND THEREFORE WE BELIEVE REQUIRE DISCUSSION.
I'LL BEGIN WITH THE PROPOSED ETHICS CODE CHANGES.
WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT ENTERTAINMENT BE ADDED TO THE CODE AT THE SAME LEVEL AS MEALS.
THIS MEANS THAT GIFTS OF ENTERTAINMENT IN EXCESS OF $50 PER OCCURRENCE WOULD BE PROHIBITED AND THE TOTAL AGGREGATE VALUE CANNOT EXCEED $500 IN A CALENDAR YEAR.
ENTERTAINMENT MIGHT INCLUDE CONCERT TICKETS, SPURS TICKETS, OR RODEO TICKETS.
CURRENTLY, THERE ARE LIMITATIONS FOR MEALS AND GIFTS, BUT NOT FOR ENTERTAINMENT.
NEXT, WE RECOMMEND A CHANGE TO ALLOW AND ENCOURAGE SELF-REPORTING OF AN ETHICS CODE VIOLATION AFTER OCCURRENCE, AS WELL AS TO PROVIDE THE E R B OPTIONS TO TAKE IN RESPONSE TO SELF-REPORTED PAST ACTIONS.
CURRENTLY, THE CODE ONLY ALLOWS E R B TO ISSUE OPINIONS OF POTENTIAL FUTURE ACTIONS WHEN GIVEN A SET OF PROVIDED FACTS.
WE ALSO RECOMMEND A CHANGE TO REMOVE THE OPTION OF SELF-REPORTING TO THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE TO HONOR THE ATTORNEY-CLIENT CONFIDENTIALITY PRIVILEGE.
CURRENTLY, IF AN OFFICIAL SELF-REPORT TO THE ATTORNEY, A CONFIDENTIAL
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PRIVILEGED RELATIONSHIP IS FORMED, SO WE ARE CLARIFYING THAT THE SELF-REPORT SHOULD BE MADE TO THE COMPLIANCE AUDITOR OR DIRECTLY TO THE E R B SO THAT THEY WILL BE AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND CAN ADDRESS IT ACCORDINGLY.WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT THE CITY CLERK NOTIFY A RESPONDENT, THE PERSON BEING COMPLAINED ABOUT THAT A COMPLAINT HAS BEEN FILED.
CURRENT CODE DOES NOT SPECIFICALLY ALLOW THIS AND HAS CREATED INSTANCES WHERE THE SUBJECT OF THE COMPLAINT LEARNED ABOUT THE COMPLAINT FROM THE MEDIA OR OTHER OUTSIDE SOURCES, WHICH ISN'T FAIR TO THE RESPONDENT.
THE E R B IS ALSO RECOMMENDING THAT ALL COMPLAINTS MUST BE FORWARDED TO THE COMPLIANCE AUDITOR, CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND THE CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR OF THE E R B.
AGAIN, THIS ENSURES THAT ALL E R B SEES ALL COMPLAINTS REGARDING REQUESTED WAIVERS TO PROVISIONS OF THE ETHICS CODE.
WE RECOMMEND INCLUDING LANGUAGE THAT ANY WAIVER REQUEST MUST FIRST BE HEARD BY THE E R B AND THAT COUNCIL CAN TAKE ACTION ON A WAIVER ONLY AFTER RECOMMENDATION BY THE E R B.
THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH THE C C E R REQUEST BY COUNCILMAN SALANA AND COUNCILMAN.
NOW, MAYOR NURENBERG, THERE WAS ALSO A REQUEST NOT TO ALLOW THE COUNCIL TO GRANT WAIVERS.
HOWEVER, SINCE THE COUNCIL IS THE RULEMAKING BODY, LEGALLY THEY CANNOT BE PRECLUDED FROM GRANTING WAIVERS TO THE CODE IT CREATED.
MOVING FROM THE ETHICS CODE TO MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE, THIS PANEL WAS CHAIRED BY MR. RUBIN DELEON OF DISTRICT THREE.
THE FIRST ITEM HERE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO DEFINE A CONTRIBUTION FOR SPECIAL ELECTIONS.
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS NOT CURRENTLY ADDRESSED IN THE CODE.
OUR RECOMMENDATION IS THAT THE REPORTING OF CONTRIBUTIONS FOR SPECIAL ELECTIONS BE TREATED SIMILAR TO REGULAR ELECTIONS.
AN EXAMPLE OF A SPECIAL ELECTION IS AN ELECTION TO FILL A COUNCIL VACANCY.
WE ALSO RECOMMEND AMENDMENTS THAT CLARIFY THE TRANSFER OF FUNDS INTO A MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN ACCOUNT, SIMILAR TO A FIRST IN FIRST OUT APPROACH IN THE ORIGINATING CAMPAIGN ACCOUNT.
THIS IS ESPECIALLY REVEL RELEVANT WHEN TRANSFERRING FUNDS FROM A CAMPAIGN THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO THE LIMITS OF OUR MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS.
THE E R B RECOMMENDS INCREASING THE FREQUENCY OF CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS FROM SEMI-ANNUALLY TO QUARTERLY CAMPAIGN FINANCE.
REPORTS WOULD NOW BE REQUIRED IN APRIL AND OCTOBER OF NON-ELECTION YEARS.
IN ADDITION TO THE CURRENT JANUARY AND JULY REPORTS IN MAY ELECTION YEARS, AN OCTOBER REPORT WOULD NOW BE REQUIRED.
THESE ADDITIONAL REPORTS WILL PROVIDE TIMELY CONTRIBUTION DATA FOR EVALUATING HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS SOLICITATIONS.
WITH THIS IN MIND, WE ARE ALSO PROPOSING THE ELIMINATION OF THE THREE DAY CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORT.
THIS REPORT IS CURRENTLY FILED THREE DAYS BEFORE AN ELECTION DATE AND ONLY INCLUDES CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS BUT NOT EXPENSES.
THIS REPORT IS NOT REQUIRED BY THE STATE AND SEEMS EXCESSIVE.
GIVEN THAT THERE ARE ALSO 30 DAY AND EIGHT DAY REPORTS WHICH CAPTURE BOTH CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENSES.
REGARDING HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS, WE RECOMMEND SPECIFICALLY ADDING SUBCONTRACTORS TO THE LIST OF PROHIBITED CONTRIBUTORS DURING THE HIGH PROFILE SOLICITATION PROCESS.
WE CURRENTLY DISALLOW SUBCONTRACTOR CONTRIBUTIONS SINCE THEY'RE INDIRECTLY SEEKING HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS, BUT THIS CHANGE WOULD MAKE THAT PROHIBITION CLEAR.
ALSO, REGARDING CONTRIBUTION PROHIBITIONS, WE RECOMMEND EXPANDING THE CURRENT PROHIBITION OF SPOUSES TO FIRST DEGREE MEMBERS OF THE HOUSEHOLD.
THIS CONTINUES TO INCLUDE SPOUSES AS PROHIBITED, BUT ALSO EXPANDS TO INCLUDE PARENTS OR ADULT CHILDREN IN THE SAME HOUSEHOLD.
WE RECOMMEND LANGUAGE TO CLEARLY DISTINGUISH BETWEEN BUSINESS OFFICER AND BOARD OFFICERS AND INCLUDING BOTH IN THE LIST OF PROHIBITED CONTRIBUTORS OF HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS.
THERE HAS BEEN CONFUSION ON THIS PART, ESPECIALLY AS IT RELATES TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.
THIS LANGUAGE CLARIFIES THAT A BUSINESS OFFICER IS AN OFFICER OF THE ORGANIZATION, WHEREAS A BOARD OFFICER IS AN OFFICER OF THE BOARD ORGANIZATION'S GOVERNING BODY.
SOME INDIVIDUALS COULD BE MEMBERS OF BOTH GROUPS REGARDING THE ZONING CHANGE PROCESS.
CURRENTLY DURING THE ZONING CHANGE PROCESS, THE APPLICANT REQUESTING A ZONING CHANGE AND OWNERS OR OFFICERS OF ENTITIES REQUESTING A ZONING CHANGE ARE PROHIBITED FROM MAKING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS.
HOWEVER, PROPERTY OWNERS AND PEOPLE REPRESENTING THE ZONING APPLICANT, INCLUDING LOBBYISTS, ATTORNEYS, OR CONSULTANTS NAMED AS REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE APPLICANT ARE NOT CURRENTLY PRECLUDED FROM MAKING CONTRIBUTIONS.
WE RECOMMEND EXPANDING THE CONT THE PROHIBITION TO INCLUDE PROPERTY OWNERS, LOBBYISTS, ATTORNEYS, AND CONSULTANTS FOR THE ZONING CHANGE PROCESS.
THAT CONCLUDES OUR PRESENTATION.
WE UNDERSTAND THE MAYOR HAS SOUGHT THE ASSISTANCE OF COMMON
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COSTS IN REVIEWING THE ETHICS MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE, AND THE CITY CHARTER.IN AN EFFORT TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE THE BEST ETHICS REVIEW POSSIBLE, THE E R B IS AVAILABLE TO WORK WITH THEM AND LOOK FORWARD TO THE DIALOGUE.
AGAIN, I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND OPPORTUNITY TO REPRESENT THE E R B AND PRESENT TO YOU THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS.
I ALSO WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF THE MEMBERS OF THE E R B WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE PROCESS AND THOSE HERE TODAY, MAYOR.
AND ONE FIRST TASK TO RECOGNIZE THE WORK OF THE E R B AND THANK YOU TO ALL THE CITIZEN VOLUNTEERS WHO HAVE, UH, CONDUCTED THIS WORK OVER THE LAST COUPLE YEARS.
I THINK YOU SHOWED ON THE SLIDE THERE, YOU'VE MET 24 TIMES IN 20 MONTHS.
UH, THAT IS, UH, DIFFICULT WORK DELIBERATING ON SOME PRETTY DIFFICULT ISSUES.
SO THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WORK.
UH, YOU DID MENTION COMMON CAUSE.
UH, I WILL DEFER, UH, THE PROPER, UM, LAUDING OF THAT ORGANIZATION TO MY COLLEAGUE, UH, JOHN COURAGE, WHO USED TO BE ON THE BOARD OF COMMON CAUSE, BUT AS AN EXTRAORDINARY ORGANIZATION THAT'S BEEN AROUND FOR SEVERAL DECADES THAT REALLY DELVES INTO THE BEST PRACTICES IN ETHICS AND GOVERNANCE.
AND SO THEY'LL BE WORKING WITH US ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS AS WELL AS A REVITALIZED CHARTER COMMISSION CHARGE THAT LOOKS INTO SOME OF THESE MORE STRUCTURAL ISSUES.
I'VE SAID IT BEFORE, I THINK ONE OF THE, THE DEEPEST CHALLENGES THAT WE FACE, UH, AND ONE THAT I THINK NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED IS THE FACT THAT STRUCTURALLY WE HAVE, UM, UH, THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD APPOINTED BY THE MEMBERS OF COUNCIL WHO IT IS MEANT TO OVERSEE.
UH, THAT IS NOT A CHALLENGE, I THINK THAT WE CAN ADDRESS SIMPLY BY ORDINANCE THAT, YOU KNOW, IS AT THE WHIM OF COUNCIL AS WELL, IN ADDITION TO THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE THE FOLKS WHO ARE MEANT TO BE THE ONES OFFICIATED ALSO DOING THE OFFICIATING OF THE RULE BOOK.
SO, UH, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF, UH, DIFFICULT STRUCTURAL ISSUES THAT DO DELVE INTO THE ACTUAL CONSTITUTION OF THE CITY THAT WILL BE LOOKING AT, UH, AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
BUT IT DOES NOT, UM, AT ALL DIMINISH THE WORK OF YOU AND YOUR BOARD, UH, ADRIANA, AND THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE.
I'M GONNA PASS IT NOW TO MY COLLEAGUES, UH, STARTING WITH COUNCILMAN TRAVINO.
AND I WANT TO ALSO ECHO, UH, COMPLIMENTS TO DR.
GARCIA AND ALL, ALL THE MEMBERS OF THE E R B AND THE HARD WORK, UH, BEHIND THESE RECOMMENDATIONS.
THIS IS, UH, UH, AN IMPORTANT ISSUE THAT, UH, MUST ALWAYS, UH, BE ON THE FOREFRONT WITH REGARDS TO, UH, THE PUBLIC TRUST AND, UH, ALLOWING FOR A ROBUST, UH, SYSTEM THAT WE CAN, UH, DEPLOY REGARDING ETHICS.
SO I I WILL SAY, I MEAN, I APPRECIATE, UH, A LOT OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
I WOULD SIMPLY ASK THAT, UM, I WOULD, I WOULD RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE.
HOWEVER, UM, THAT, UH, AN INDEPENDENT ETHICS COMPLIANCE AUDITOR, ONE THAT IS TRULY, UH, INDEPENDENT AND, AND, UM, NOT APPOINTED OR HIRED BY THE CITY AUDITOR OR, OR WHICH IS HIRED BY THE CITY COUNCIL, IS A POSITION THAT SHOULD ALSO BE MORE INDEPENDENT FROM THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
UM, OUR C C R DID STATE THAT CLEARLY AND SET, SET FORTH SOME EXAMPLES FROM OTHER COMMUNITIES LIKE ATLANTA TALLAH AND TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA, UH, WHERE E R B MEMBERS ARE ALSO APPOINTED BY INDEPENDENT, UH, THAT ARE IN, THAT ARE APPOINTED BY PEOPLE WHO ARE INDEPENDENT OF CITY STAFF AND COUNSEL, AND ARE INSTEAD APPOINTED BY RESPECTED INSTITUTIONS IN THE COMMUNITY LIKE UNIVERSITIES, CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE, AND BAR ASSOCIATIONS.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, I, I STAND, UH, READY TO DO THE, THE HARD WORK I TO, TO TRY TO STRENGTHEN THAT LEVEL OF, OF TRANSPARENCY AND TRUST WITHIN OUR OWN COMMUNITY AND LOOK FORWARD TO, UH, WORKING, UH, WITH THE MAYOR AND, UH, UH, COUNCILING COURAGE AND, UH, COMMON CAUSE TO SEE HOW HOW THESE ITEMS, UH, CAN WORK TOGETHER TO, UH, HELP US BUILD A STRONGER ETHICS REVIEW PROCESS.
I WILL SIMPLY STATE REGARDING THE INDEPENDENT ETHICS REVIEW OFFICER, AS WAS POINTED OUT THAT, AND STATED MANY TIMES, IS THAT THERE ISN'T ENOUGH CASES OR COMPLAINTS TO JUSTIFY HAVING AN INDEPENDENT OFFICER.
I WOULD SAY IT'S NOT SIMPLY ABOUT COMPLAINTS, BUT RATHER THE ABILITY TO HAVE INQUIRY.
UM, I MEAN, WE HAVE SIX NEW COUNCIL MEMBERS ON THIS, THIS COUNCIL.
I CAN TELL YOU I STILL HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS AND I KNOW THAT MY COLLEAGUES, UH, WHO ARE NEW ON COUNCIL HAVE MANY QUESTIONS.
AND IT IS, IT IS VITALLY IMPORTANT TO HAVE ACCESS TO SOMEBODY WHO WHO CAN FRAME SOMETHING FROM AN INDEPENDENT LENS.
AND I THINK, I THINK THAT IS THAT THE SPIRIT OF WHY WE FILED OUR C C R, UH, TO, TO HAVE SOMEBODY WHO'S TRULY INDEPENDENT THAT WE CAN, THAT WE CAN, UH, SEEK ADVICE, UM, BOUNCE IDEAS OFF OF AND, UH, POTENTIALLY, UM, WORKING COLLABORATE WITH
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SO THAT WE CAN ELIMINATE AS MUCH OF THE AMBIGUITY, UH, THAT, THAT THE COMMUNITY FEELS, UM, OR MAY FEEL OCCURS AT CITY HALL.SO, UH, WITH THAT, AGAIN, I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK.
UM, BUT I LOOK FORWARD TO MOVING FORWARD, UH, WITH A PROCESS THAT, THAT THEY COULD ALSO POTENTIALLY LOOK AT A TRULY INDEPENDENT ETHICS REVIEW AUDITOR.
GARCIA, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION, AND I KNOW YOU'VE DONE A LOT OF, OF, OF HOMEWORK AND RESEARCH, UH, AT LEADING THE GROUP.
SO I WANNA ALSO, UH, YOU KNOW, LAD THE WORK OF, UH, PAULA MCGEE WHO IS HERE WITH US, WHO'S BEEN YOUR SIDEKICK ON A LOT OF THIS WORK.
AND I KNOW SHE'S BEEN VERY CLOSE TO SOME OF THE WORK THAT HAS, UM, MADE IT TO THE POWERPOINT PRESENTATION TODAY.
UH, AND THAT'S WADE SHELTON, WHO'S WITH US TONIGHT, WADE SHELTON.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMITMENT TO THIS.
THIS IS, UH, IF, IF YOU WERE TO CALL THE CHARGE OF WHAT YOU ALL ARE TASKED TO DO AND, AND GIVE IT A SENSE OF DESCRIPTION, I THINK IT'S THAT, UH, AS A RESULT OF, UH, LEARNING EXPERIENCES AND REFLECTING BACK ON SEVERAL YEARS OF, OF HAVING PRACTICE OF EITHER ELECTED OFFICIALS, UH, DEALING WITH CASES THAT ARE COMING BEFORE THEM, OR DEALING WITH THINGS OUTSIDE DURING THE CAMPAIGNING PROCESS, THAT WERE NOT YET AT THE, AT THE BEST SYSTEM TO DESCRIBE A SITUATION WHERE, UM, WHERE ELECTED OFFICIALS ARE NOT YET ABOVE THE LAW, OR THEY'RE, THEY'RE NOT ABOVE, NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW HERE, ESPECIALLY ELECTED OFFICIALS WHO IN SOME CASES ARE TASKED WITH THE RESPONSIBILITY OF, OF, UH, WRITING AND ENFORCING PERHAPS SOME OF THESE LAWS.
SO IT'S BEEN VERY IMP COMPLICATED FOR US TO GET TO THE POINT WHERE WE HAVE A CONVERSATION THAT SAYS, ARE WE THERE YET? ARE WE THERE AT A POINT WHERE WE FEEL COMFORTABLE TELLING THE COMMUNITY AROUND US THAT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS WILL BE HELD TO TASK? WE'LL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE IF THEY'RE MAKING MISTAKES? AND IN SOME CASES, UH, WE WANT TO BE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT TRIPPING UP ON, ON A COMPLICATED PROCESS.
UH, BECAUSE IN MANY CASES, AS I'VE SEEN REFLECTED OVER SEVERAL YEARS, UH, IF SOMEBODY'S MADE A MISTAKE, IT WASN'T OUT OF, UH, ILL INTENT OR MALICIOUSNESS, IT WAS MAYBE JUST NOT UNDERSTANDING THE RULES ENOUGH.
SO WE WANNA MAKE THEM CLEAR, UH, TO NOT JUST THE ELECTED BODY, BUT THOSE WHO ARE HOPING TO BE ELECTED MEMBERS.
AND SO, UH, I'LL START WITH JUST A FEW QUESTIONS IN THE C C R THAT, UH, UH, THE MAYOR AND I SUBMITTED CLOSE TO A YEAR AND A HALF AGO, WAS ENSURING THAT WE AS A ELECTED BODY DON'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO WAVE OFF RULES THAT WE FEEL, UH, SHOULDN'T APPLY TO US AT A SPECIFIC POINT.
OR IF WE'VE MADE A MISTAKE THAT, UH, WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO TAKE AN ERASER TO IT AND SAY IT NEVER HAPPENED BECAUSE, UH, WE AS A RULEMAKING BODY HAVE THE ABILITY TO TURN THE PENCIL AROUND AND ERASE THINGS.
SO ON THAT PIECE, WHAT YOU'VE RECOMMENDED IS THAT, UH, THAT THIS BODY CAN MAKE A DECISION BECAUSE YOU SAY, TECHNICALLY, LEGALLY, UH, WE'RE ALLOWED TO, BUT WILL NOT MAKE A RECOMMENDATION UNTIL YOU ALL FIRST AT THE E R B HAVE SEEN ANY COMPLAINTS OR SEEN ANYTHING THAT WE WANT TO WAIVE AND HAVE RULED A JUDGMENT ON IT.
SO, UM, IS THAT CLEAR ENOUGH? I, YES, THAT'S CLEAR ENOUGH.
AND SO THE REASON FOR THAT, WE WANTED TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE E R B REPRESENTING EVERY COUNCIL DISTRICT, FOR INSTANCE, IN THE MAYOR APPOINTEE, HAVE A CHANCE TO LOOK AT IT AND SAY, YES, UH, WE WOULD RECOMMEND A WAIVER, OR NO, WE WOULDN'T RECOMMEND A WAIVER, ALTHOUGH YOU ALL HAVE THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY TO DO, TO DO THAT.
UH, WE FEEL, WE FEEL THAT IF WE DO THAT, AT LEAST IT'S ON RECORD.
WE'RE SURE THAT THE MEDIA WILL BE AWARE ABOUT IT.
AND SO THEN OUR, UM, FULL COUNSEL WILL BE HELD TO A HIGHER STANDARD NOW THAT IT'S OUT IN THE PUBLIC.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHERE WE WANT TO GET, BECAUSE TODAY, AND, AND IN THE EXPERIENCE OF GOING THROUGH IT, IT NEVER REALLY PASSED THE SMELL TEST.
AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WILL, YOU ALL CAN DO SOMETHING WRONG, BUT THEN YOU CAN WAIVE YOURSELF FROM THE CONSEQUENCES OF DOING SOMETHING WRONG.
AND THE ANSWER IS YES, WE, UNFORTUNATELY, WE CAN, WE'RE TRYING TO FIX THAT.
SO WE'RE NOT GONNA PURELY, UH, FIX IT BECAUSE WE CAN'T TECHNICALLY, IS THERE A WAY TO LEGALLY CHANGE THAT? MAYBE THERE'S A QUESTION FOR OUR CITY ATTORNEY.
UM, THIS IS, I THINK, WHERE IT GETS COMPLICATED.
THE COUNCIL CREATED BOTH THE ETH ETHICS CODE, UH, AND THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE.
AND, UH, THEREFORE, THE COUNCIL CAN'T CREATE A BODY THAT HAS MORE, UH, AUTHORITY OR GEORGE JURISDICTION OVER THOSE STATUTES, AND THE COUNCIL DOES.
UM, SO THAT'S THE STRUCTURAL ISSUE THAT THE COUNCIL'S FACING.
AGAIN, WHAT THE, UH, UH, UH, WHAT THE, UH, GROUP IS RECOMMENDING IS THAT WE ATTACK THAT BY MAKING IT VERY PUBLIC AS TO WHEN YOU'RE DOING THAT, WHEN THE COUNCIL'S DOING THAT.
AND BY THAT BEING, UH, PRIOR TO YOU MAKING A DECISION ON THAT, DO THE COUNCIL THAT THERE'LL BE A, A PUBLIC RECOMMENDATION MADE BY THE E R B.
UH, SO THEREFORE, IT'S AS TRANSPARENT AS POSSIBLE, RECOGNIZING
[00:30:01]
THAT, AGAIN, STRUCTURALLY THE COUNCIL CAN'T CREATE A BODY THAT HAS MORE AUTHORITY WITH RESPECT TO THE ETHICS CODE THAN THE COUNCIL DOES.HOPEFULLY, THAT ANSWERS THE QUESTION WE WOULD HAVE TO CHANGE EITHER STATE LAW OR, OR LOOK AT THE CHARTER TO CHANGE, TO MAKE A CHANGE THAT STRUCTURALLY.
BUT AS OF NOW, THE COUNCIL CAN'T CREATE SOME SOMEBODY THAT HAS, OR, OR A GROUP THAT HAS MORE AUTHORITY THAN THE COUNCIL DOES WITH RESPECT TO THE ETHICS CODE.
AND DO YOU HAVE A HISTORY AS TO WHEN WE CREATED THE ETHICS CODE? I MEAN, WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT IS, GOES BACK TWO DECADES OR, OR BEFORE THE, UH, 'CAUSE I'M THINKING OF THE LAST TIME WE HAD SUBSTANTIVE CONVERSATIONS WAS IN 2003 WHEN WE CAME UP WITH SOME TIGHTENING UP OF THE ETHICS CODES.
BEFORE THEN, THERE WAS A, WAS IT THE WILD WEST? NO ETHICS BEFORE
I WOULDN'T CALL IT THE WILD WEST, UH, COUNCILMAN.
UH, BEFORE YOU WOULD HAVE TO ABIDE.
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY THE STATE HAS, UH, ETHICS CODES THAT, UH, REPLIED THE ELECTED OFFICIALS WAS SPECIFIC AS TO THE COUNCIL AND ITS OPERATIONS.
I, I THINK IF, YOU KNOW, WHAT I WANT COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO KNOW IF, IF, IF THEY'RE LISTENING IN OR IF THEY READ ABOUT IT, IS THAT THIS, THIS BODY IS TRYING TO MAKE RULES TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE HELD NOT JUST TO A STANDARD, BUT TO A HIGHER STANDARD, UH, BASED ON, ON RULES THAT APPLY TO US ON PAPER, BUT THAT WE ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S CONSEQUENCES TO DOING SOMETHING THAT WOULD VIOLATE ANY ONE OF OUR ETHICS CODES.
SO, UH, TAKE A SIMPLE EXAMPLE.
IF WE'RE BRINGING IN, WE TAKE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS.
IF, IF WE MISTAKENLY TAKE IN, UH, A DOLLAR MORE THAN WE'RE SUPPOSED TO FROM AN INDIVIDUAL, WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO REPORT THAT.
BUT, UH, IT'S NOT JUST A SLAP ON THE WRIST.
POTENTIALLY, YOU CAN, UM, TAKE THAT TO THE E R B, UH, AND THE OTHER CONSEQUENCES THAT PEOPLE WILL KNOW ABOUT IT.
AND, AND SOMETIMES IT'S, IT'S THE DARKNESS OR THE SHADOWS OF, OF MISTAKES MADE THAT NEVER MAKE THE PRESS THAT, UH, UH, UM, ENCOURAGE SLIPPERY, SLIPPERY BEHAVIOR.
SO, UM, I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO WITH THIS FIX ON THE WAIVERS OF EXEMPTIONS, I WOULD SAY COUNCILMAN, AGAIN, GIVEN THE CON UH, THE, UH, STRUCTURAL CONSTRAINTS MM-HMM.
BUT THEY'LL TAKE AN IN INDEPENDENT LOOK, AND BASED ON THE FACTS, THEY'LL PROVIDE A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL AS TO WHETHER A WAIVER SHOULD BE GRANTED OR NOT.
AND, UH, AGAIN, GIVEN THAT, UH, THE TRANSPARENCY, THE, UH, RECOMMENDATION FROM AN INDEPENDENT BODY, UH, I THINK THAT'S PRETTY STRONG.
AGAIN, GIVEN THE STRUCTURAL CONSTRAINT THAT COUNCIL CAN'T AGAIN, CREATE, UH, A BODY THAT HAS MORE AUTHORITY THAN THE COUNCIL WITH RESPECT TO THE ETHICS CODE.
BUT I THINK IF YOU WERE TO TRY TO SURPASS IT, SAY YOU WANTED TO, UM, CONDUCT SOMETHING, ASK FOR A WAIVER BEFORE, YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TO GO TO THE E R B, SO YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TO SEE A RECOMMENDATION FROM AN INDEPENDENT GROUP THAT SAID, WE AGREE THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS, IS BAD ENOUGH NOT TO, TO SEE A WAIVER AND WE RECOMMEND AGAINST IT.
SO IF YOU, AS A BODY WANTED TO DO IT, YOU WOULD'VE TO DO IT IN THE FACE OF AN INDEPENDENT ANALYSIS THAT SAID, THIS IS SOMETHING YOU CAN'T EXACTLY.
I THINK THAT'S THE GAP THAT THE, UH, GROUP IS RECOMMENDING THAT WE FILL WITH THAT, WITH THAT PROCESS.
WELL, I, LIKE I SAID, IT'S NOT THE PERFECT SYSTEM.
IT'S NOT THE PUREST SYSTEM, BUT IT'S, IT'S A SYSTEM TO ENSURE THAT PEOPLE ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE WHO ARE IN ELECTED OFFICE.
UM, THE, THE LAST QUESTION OR DISCUSSION POINT, UM, DR.
GARCIA IS ONE THAT I THINK IS, IS IMPORTANT FOR US.
'CAUSE IT'S, IT'S ANOTHER ONE OF THESE CATEGORIES OF WE CAN'T YET GET TO THE PERFECT, UH, BUT WE'RE GONNA TRY TO DO THE BEST WE CAN, WHICH IS THIS IDEA OF TRYING TO CREATE AN INDEPENDENT OFFICE AND AN INDEPENDENT BODY.
YOU'VE TALKED TO ME ABOUT STUDIES AND, AND YOU'VE SEEN THE EXAMPLES IN ATLANTA AND IN TALLAHASSEE.
UM, I GUESS THE QUESTION IS HOW WERE THEY ABLE TO PULL IT OFF? AND WHAT DISTINCTIONS SHOULD WE KNOW ABOUT SAN ANTONIO TO CO TO COINCIDE WITH THE RECOMMENDATION OF, UH, THAT YOU'VE MADE? WHAT, SO WHAT WE DID IS WE, UM, ALSO RESEARCHED OTHER CITIES BEYOND, LIKE YOU SAW THE, THE 26 CITIES.
AND THE DISTINCTION THERE IS THAT SOME OF THOSE CITIES ARE USING THE FUNCTION OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD ALSO, UH, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE OFFICE OF THE O M I.
SO WHAT WE FOUND, AND THAT'S WHY WE WANT TO MAKE THE DISTINCTION UPFRONT, UH, WAS THAT YES, SOME OF THESE OFFICES WERE, UH, INDEPENDENT, BUT THAT'S BECAUSE THEY NEEDED A STAFF BECAUSE WE HAD, OR THEY HAD ENOUGH COMPLAINTS FILED AGAINST EMPLOYEES, NOT ONLY AGAINST ELECTED OFFICIALS.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT WE FOUND, UH, WAS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT THEY HAD AND WHAT WE HAD.
WE HAD TWO SEPARATE ENTITIES HERE.
WE HAVE THE O M I AND WE HAVE THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD.
THE O M I DOES THE INTERNAL INVESTIGATIONS FOR EMPLOYEES.
A LOT OF THOSE CITIES WERE DOING BOTH IN ONE OFFICE, AND THAT JUSTIFIED, UM, THEIR EXISTENCE.
AND SO THEY HAD A LITTLE BIT MORE WORK, SO THEN THEY HAD FULL STAFFS THAT WORKED WITH THEM, AND THAT WAS THE ULTIMATE DIFFERENCE.
YOU AND I TALKED ABOUT WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF WE TRIED TO SET UP AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW, UH, OR AN INDEPENDENT AUDITOR, AUDITOR INDEPENDENT OFFICE.
THE, THE CONCEPT OF HISTORY IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE LOOK AT HOW MANY
[00:35:01]
COMPLAINTS WE GET AND HOW MANY INSTANCES WE HAVE, ESSENTIALLY, HOW MUCH WORK THIS OFFICE OR PERSON WOULD HAVE, UM, BECAUSE IT WOULD BE A, A A SALARY WOULD BE A PORTION OF OUR BUDGET THAT WE'D HAVE TO BE ABLE TO JUSTIFY TO THE COMMUNITY.UM, THAT'S SOMETHING MAYBE YOU HAVE A COMMENT ON.
'CAUSE I KNOW THAT IT'S, IT'S IMPORTANT TO GET TO THE POINT THAT COUNCILMAN TREVINO'S, THE SPIRIT OF HIS C C R IS LET'S TRULY CREATE AN OFFICE NOT UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THE CITY COUNCIL, NOT ON THE SUPERVISION OF THE CITY MANAGER, BUT COMPLETELY AND PURELY, UM, INDEPENDENT.
SO DEFINITELY, AND WE LOOKED AT THAT AND THE CONCERN WITH THAT WAS THAT WHO WILL OVERSEE THIS PERSON? WHO WILL THEY BE REPORTING TO? WHO WILL HAVE ACCESS TO INFLUENCE THEM? HOW DO WE CONTROL THAT ASPECT OF IT? OR CAN WE, WE PROBABLY CAN'T.
UH, WOULD THEY BE, UM, SUBJECT TO THE SAME, UM, UH, LAWS THAT WE WOULD, SO FOR INSTANCE, OPEN RECORDS REQUEST, WOULD THEY BE ABLE, WOULD MEDIA BE ABLE TO SUBMIT OPEN RECORDS, RECORDS WAS FROM THESE PERSONS? HOWEVER, THIS PERSON, SO IN CREATING A, UM, A ONE PERSON RIGHT, TO HAVE CONTROL OR TO OVERVIEW, UM, WE WERE JUST CONCERNED, UH, THAT WHEN IS TOO MUCH POWER TOO MUCH.
RIGHT? AND SO WE WANNA GIVE THEM, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE SOMEONE COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT, BUT THEN EVEN FOR REVIEW, UM, LIKE, WHO'S GOING TO REVIEW THIS PERSON? SO WHEN IT COMES TO EVALUATIONS, SO WHO WILL THEY BE REPORTING TO? WILL THEY STILL BE REPORTING DIRECTLY TO THE COUNCIL? HOW WILL, AND SO THOSE WERE ALL OF OUR CONCERNS.
YEAH, THOSE ARE, THOSE ARE JUST A LOT OF IMPORTANT THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS BECAUSE IT, IT SEEMS THAT YOU, YOU DO WANT TO CREATE A PERSON THAT DOESN'T HAVE TO REALLY ANSWER TO ANYONE AND CAN ANSWER JUST TO THE LEVEL BALANCING OF THE APPLICATION OF LAW OR THE APPLICATION OF ETHICS, UH, CODE THAT WE HAVE HERE.
AND THE REASON THAT WE RECOMMENDED THE CHANGE IN THE CURRENT REVIEW PROCESS, UH, ORIGINALLY IT ONLY WENT TO THE CITY, UH, TO THE, TO THE, UH, CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND TO THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE IF IT WAS FILED THROUGH THE CITY CLERK.
AND SO, UM, I'LL GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE.
I'VE BEEN ON THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD FOR MORE THAN TWO YEARS, AND I THINK MY COLLEAGUES WOULD, UM, SAY THE SAME.
WE DIDN'T FIND OUT ABOUT SOME OF THESE CASES UNTIL WE SAW IT IN THE MEDIA.
AND SO WE DO APPRECIATE OUR MEDIA PARTNERS FOR KEEPING US AWARE, BUT THEN AS COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UM, PEOPLE WOULD ASK US, AND IT'S NOT LIKE WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT PUBLICLY ANYWAY, BUT THEY WOULD ASK US, HOW DID YOU ALL NOT KNOW? AND WE REALLY DIDN'T.
AND SO, UM, WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE BUILT INTO THE PROCESS THAT AT LEAST THE VICE CHAIR AND THE CHAIR OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD IMMEDIATELY IS AWARE ABOUT THE SITUATION.
THE MINUTE THAT THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND THE CITY AUDITOR'S OFFICE, UH, RECEIVES THE COMPLAINT THROUGH THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE.
WELL, I KNOW THAT MY, UH, COLLEAGUES WILL ASK ABOUT A NUMBER OF ELEMENTS THAT YOU'VE PRESENTED TODAY.
BUT THE LAST ONE I WANTED TO ASK ABOUT IS SOMETHING THAT I HAVEN'T GIVEN 'EM A LOT OF THOUGHT TO, BUT I THINK IS AN IMPORTANT POINT, WHICH IS THAT, UH, WE AS ELECTED MEMBERS, UH, CAN SERVE A TOTAL OF, UH, EIGHT YEARS POTENTIALLY.
UM, AND THE LONGSTANDING FOLKS WHO ARE MAKING A LOT OF THE DECISIONS ARE ALSO CITY STAFF NOT ELECTED, BUT, UH, CAN BE IN OFFICE, ALSO MAY BE SUSCEPTIBLE TO UNDUE INFLUENCE.
WHETHER YOU'RE THE HEAD OF A DEPARTMENT, YOU'RE THE HEAD OF CONTRACTING OR, OR, OR ANY POSITION WITHIN CITY GOVERNMENT.
YOU, YOU'VE REVIEWED AND, AND, AND ARE IN OFFERING RECOMMENDATIONS TO ENSURE THAT THOSE INDIVIDUALS ARE PART OF THE ETHICS CODE AS WELL.
ARE THEY SIMILAR? MAYBE, MAYBE, CHERYL, YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH ME ABOUT THIS? 'CAUSE I DON'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF, UH, YOUR CODE YOUR STAFF FOLLOWS UNDER.
DO THEY HAVE TO REPORT ANY GIFTS? DO THEY HAVE TO REPORT ANY, UH, CONFLICTS OF INTEREST? OH, ABSOLUTELY, THEY DO.
AND I, I JUST COMMENT ON THIS BECAUSE I DON'T WANNA LEAVE THE IMPRESSION WITH THE COUNCIL MEMBERS OR THE PUBLIC THAT WE HAVE A HUGE PROBLEM TO CORRECT.
I'VE SPENT THE LAST DECADE, UH, MAKING SURE ENSURING THAT WE HAVE COMPREHENSIVE ETHICS TRAINING.
UH, WHEN I ARRIVED HERE 12 YEARS AGO, WE AVERAGED MORE THAN 250, AND SHE WAS USING, UH, THE ACRONYM O M I, OFFICE OF MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY.
WE HAD MORE THAN 250 COMPLAINTS A YEAR.
I WAS GETTING THEM EVERY DAY TO, WE'RE DOWN TO LESS THAN 50 AND WITH 12,000 EMPLOYEES.
AND THAT'S, UH, BECAUSE WE CLEARLY IDENTIFY FOR OUR CITY EMPLOYEES WHAT THE EXPECTATIONS ARE, INCLUDING VIDEOS THAT GIVE REAL LIFE EXAMPLES OF WHAT, UH, IS GOOD AND WHAT IS NOT PERMISSIBLE IN TERMS OF OUR ETHICS CODE.
IN FACT, E EACH OF OUR EMPLOYEES MUST SIGN A SHEET THAT THEY HAVE COMPLETED THE TRAINING, THEY UNDERSTAND THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT.
UH, AND THAT WAS MANDATORY TRAINING THROUGHOUT THE ORGANIZATION.
AND WE TEACH THAT AS PART OF OUR ONBOARDING FOR ALL OF OUR CITY EMPLOYEES, AND THEN HAVE REGULAR UPDATES AS WELL.
SO WE'VE, UH, IMPROVED THE SITUATION.
AND OF THE LESS THAN 50 WE RECEIVE, NOT ALL OF THOSE ARE FOUNDED.
UH, LESS THAN HALF OF THOSE ARE,
[00:40:01]
ARE, UM, ACTUAL VIOLATIONS.SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO MAKE TREMENDOUS IMPROVEMENTS THROUGH TRAINING.
AND THE OFFICE OF MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY, UH, DOES DO THOSE IN INDEPENDENT REVIEWS.
AND THAT'S SPECIFICALLY IF WE GET A COMPLAINT ABOUT AN EMPLOYEE.
WELL, GOOD, BECAUSE I THINK THE COMMUNITY NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND SOMETHING VERY CLEARLY.
THIS IS A MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR ORGANIZATION, WHICH MEANS THAT WE EXCHANGE WITH CONTRACTORS, VENDORS, UH, SOME OF WHICH COULD BE LOOKING FOR AN EDGE, AND THEY MIGHT BE LOOKING FOR A SUSCEPTIBLE PERSON WITHOUT PROPER CODES AND REGULATIONS AND RULES.
UH, FOLKS MIGHT BE, UH, MIGHT FEEL LIKE THEY COULD GET AWAY WITH RULES, THEY COULD BE SLIPPING AND, AND DOING THINGS THAT MIGHT PUT THEM IN A POSITION TO, UH, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY VIOLATE A RULE, BUT I HOPE IN THIS CASE THEY UNDERSTAND, UH, PAY THE CONSEQUENCES TO THOSE RULES.
SO WE NEEDED TO CLEAN UP THESE AREAS WHERE FOLKS FELT LIKE THERE WAS TOO MANY, UH, LOOPHOLES OR TOO MANY OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE WHO WERE IN OFFICE IN CHARGE OF MULTIMILLION.
AND, AND IN SOME CASES, UH, BILLION DOLLAR TRANSACTIONS FOR A, A CITY, UH, ARE HELD TO A HIGHER STANDARD.
THIS IS, THIS IS NOT THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
WE'RE HANDLING, UH, THE PUBLIC'S MONEY IN A WAY THAT NEEDS TO BE HELD TO A REALLY HIGH STANDARD.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING TO, TO TRY AND UNDERSTAND THAT ETHICS REVIEW BOARD, UH, IS GETTING TO WITH OUR ETHICS CODE.
SO I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT Y'ALL PUT INTO THIS.
I THINK IT'S INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT FOR ANY CITY TO GO THROUGH THIS EXERCISE VERY OFTEN.
AND, UH, THANK YOU FOR THE COMMITMENT OF TIME TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GOING THROUGH THESE EXERCISES.
COUNCILMAN SALANA, COUNCILMAN BROCK HOUSE.
AND THANK YOU FOR COMING OUT ALL THE WAY TO THE FIELD OFFICE TO HANG OUT WITH US AND, AND GO OVER THESE THINGS A LITTLE WHILE AGO.
UH, AND THANK YOU TO THE REST OF THE BOARD AS WELL FOR THE GOOD WORK.
UM, I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS REALLY JUST AROUND, UH, PROCESS ON, UM, INITIALLY.
SO ON SEC, ON PA ON SLIDE EIGHT, IT SAYS, SINCE, UH, 2013, THERE WERE 26 TOTAL COMPLAINTS MM-HMM.
ONE WAS WITHDRAWN AND THREE WERE DISMISSED.
HOW, HOW DID THOSE NUMBERS, OR DID YOU RESEARCH HOW THAT COMPARES TO OTHER, LIKE SIZED MUNICIPALITIES? YEAH, THEY WERE VERY LOW COMPARED, SO ON AVERAGE.
SO IF YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT THREE OVER THREE YEARS, RIGHT? IF YOU, YOU CAN THINK ABOUT IT THAT WAY.
UM, IN COMPARISON, THEY HAD 50 PLUS CASES.
THERE WAS A CERTAIN CITIES, AND I DON'T HAVE, I'M SORRY I DON'T HAVE MY EXACT NUMBERS ON ME TODAY, BUT I JOTTED DOWN THE EXACT NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS THAT EACH CITY HAD.
AND SO OURS WAS BY FAR THE LOWEST NUMBER.
UH, SO THAT WAS, UM, IT WAS NICE IN A WAY, RIGHT? IT WAS A NICER PRICE.
UM, BUT THEN I REALIZED, WAIT A SECOND, ARE WE REALLY COMPARING APPLES, APPLES? AND THAT'S WHEN I STARTED TO DO FURTHER INVESTIGATION, AND THAT'S WHEN I REALIZED THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT, UH, EMPLOYEE CASES.
THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT WHAT THE FUNCTION OF OUR O M I OFFICE, OUR OFFICE OF MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY DOES.
THAT'S WHY THEY HAVE SO MANY, UH, IT WASN'T JUST ON ELECTED OFFICIALS.
AND SO THAT IS WHERE WE STARTED DRAWING THE COMPARISON.
AND WE THOUGHT THAT IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO DEFINE THAT SOME OF THESE CITIES, WE WERE NOT COMPARING APPLES TO APPLES.
AND SO WE WENT BACK AND MADE SURE THAT WE WERE, I YEAH, I CAN APPRECIATE THAT.
AND I, I, I'M JUST CURIOUS BECAUSE I MEAN, YOU'RE RIGHT, YOU COULD, YOU COULD LOOK AT THAT IN ONE SENSE AND SAY, WOW, THIS IS GREAT.
I MEAN, IS THAT REALLY, IS THAT THE REALITY OF THE ORGANIZATION? SO WHEN I LOOK AT THAT NUMBER, UM, I MEAN, I THINK IT'S WORTH THE CONVERSATION IN THE FUTURE.
ARE THERE IMPEDIMENTS OR, OR IN THE PROCESS, RIGHT? LIKE FILLING OUT THAT FORM AND CLEARLY IDENTIFYING TO HAVE A CITIZEN CLEARLY IDENTIFY WHICH PORTION OF THE CHARTER OR WHERE WHATEVER THEY'RE ALLEGING, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
LIKE, IS IT SO CUMBERSOME OR IS THERE A PROBLEM WITH IT? PEOPLE ARE JUST LIKE, YEAH, YOU KNOW WHAT? FORGET IT.
I'M NOT EVEN GONNA WASTE MY TIME.
I GOTTA FILL THIS OUT CORRECTLY.
AND THEN IF I DON'T CHOOSE THE RIGHT SUBSECTION HERE, IT'S GONNA GET RE REJECTED OR DENIED.
SO I WOULD BE CURIOUS, JUST BY VIRTUE OF THE ABSOLUTE, I MEAN, SO IN REALITY, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS, YOU LITERALLY, THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD LITERALLY SAW THREE CASES OVER THREE YEARS.
SO I, I, WHILE I WOULD LOOK AT THE POSITIVE OF THAT, I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU AND THE ORGANIZATION TO LOOK AT, UH, THE, THE, YOU KNOW, THE POSSIBLE LOOPHOLE IN THAT LIKE, OR THE DIFFICULTY, RIGHT? FOR A CITIZEN TO FILE AND HOLD THEIR GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE.
LIKE, WHAT'S WRONG THAT THEY DON'T WANT TO ENGAGE A PROCESS? I MEAN, I'D LOVE TO BE THAT GREAT, OBVIOUSLY, BUT, YOU KNOW, IT BEGS THE QUESTION ARE, ARE WE REALLY MISSING OR IMPEDING A CITIZEN'S OPPORTUNITY TO FILE AN ETHICS COMPLAINT, RIGHT? AND WE THOUGHT THE SAME THING.
WHAT DO YOU, AND WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS BEFORE IN THE PAST, BUT IT'S BEEN YES.
AND SO, AND SO THE BOARD THOUGHT THE SAME THING.
AND SO SAID, WELL, THERE MIGHT BE, AND I THINK I HAD DISCUSSION ALSO WITH COUNCILMAN TREVINO.
UH, AND SO, UH, SO WE, UM, WE PROPOSED TO SEE IF WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO MAKE
[00:45:01]
IT EASIER, UH, THROUGH THE, FOR THE PROCESS, YOU KNOW, SO MAYBE HAVE ON THE FRONT PAGE SOMEWHERE, ALTHOUGH THERE'S SO MANY THINGS ON THE FRONT PAGE ALREADY, LIKE A LINK SOMEWHERE WHERE IT'S EASIER.UM, ALSO THAT CLEAR DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE E R B AND ELECTED OFFICIALS AND THE OFFICE OF MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY IS IMPORTANT.
SO THERE'S A 2 0 7 CLUE NUMBER THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT, RIGHT? AND SO, UM, WHEN SOMETHING CAN, AND, AND, AND KEVIN CAN CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT SOMETIMES IF THERE'S CALLS TO THAT 2 0 7 CLUE NUMBER, UH, THAT ARE NOT IN, THAT ARE NOT EMPLOYEE RELATED, THEN THEY WOULD AT THAT POINT, UH, RECOMMEND THAT THEY FILE OR, OR RECOMMEND THEM OVER TO THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE TO FILE A FORMAL, UH, REPORT KEVIN.
AND YEAH, THE, THE, IT'S A LITTLE BIT OUT OF MY REALM WITH THE, THE 2 0 7 CLUE NUMBER.
UH, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE GONNA TAKE ANY CALL, ANY ALLEGATION OF FRAUD, WASTE, AND ABUSE, WHETHER IT'S A CITY EMPLOYEE OR A VENDOR, THERE'S A CONNECTION THERE.
SO THEY'RE GONNA TAKE ALL OF THAT.
UH, IF THEY DO DO THE INVESTIGATION AND THEY BELIEVE IT DOES HAVE AN ETHICS COMPONENT SPECIFIC TO THE ETHICS CODE COMPONENT, THEY WILL MAKE A PHONE CALL TO US.
UH, BUT YOU KNOW, THE TRIGGERING FACTOR OF THE ETH FOR THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD IS THE FILING OF AN ETHICS COMPLAINT, UH, ON THE FORM.
THE FORM IS AVAILABLE ON THE WEBSITE.
IT'S NOT A DIFFICULT FORM, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T HAVE TO PUT THE SUBSECTION A, B, OR C.
IF NOT, WE'RE GONNA LOOK FOR IT TO SEE IF IT HAS, UH, IF IT'S, IF IT'S APPLICABLE IN THAT CASE.
BUT WE DO COORDINATE WHERE WE NEED TO BETWEEN THE ETHICS, UH, AUDITOR, AS WELL AS THE O M I STAFF OVER THERE.
UM, WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION ON THAT.
AND THEN, UH, JUST A COUPLE OF THOUGHTS ON THE, UH, NON-ELECTION YEAR FILINGS.
UH, I WILL TELL YOU THAT THE CITY STAFF IS VARIED, UH, VERY THOROUGH IN NOTIFYING US OF HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS.
UH, THE COMMUNICATION, THE, I MEAN, IT IS RIGHT DOWN THE LINE, LIKE I PROBABLY SEE MORE MEMOS ON HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS FROM CHERYL'S TEAM, WHICH IS ACTUALLY A BLESSING TO KEEP US OUT OF RIGHT OUTTA TROUBLE.
UH, I WOULD, I, I WOULD TELL YOU THAT THAT ONE APPEARS TO ME TO BE A SOLUTION LOOKING FOR A PROBLEM.
UH, WE DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM IN IT.
THE FILING IN JA IN JULY AND JANUARY SEEMS TO FIT FINE, UH, AND OFF YEARS.
THE CITY STAFF GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND TO TAKE CARE OF US.
UH, THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND TO MAKE SURE WE'RE TURNING IN OUR DOCUMENTATION AND ADHERING TO THE LAW.
UH, SO I, I THINK I WOULD JUST, YOU KNOW, OFFER TO MY PEERS.
I THINK WERE WORKING WELL IN THAT POSITION ALREADY, AND IT SERVED ITSELF WELL, UH, TO, TO, YOU KNOW, TO MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT MORE CUMBERSOME.
I, I GUESS IT'S, YOU KNOW, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S NOT VERY A LOT OF WORK, BUT REALLY, DO WE EVEN NEED IT WHEN IT'S BEEN FUNCTIONING, UH, APPROPRIATELY AND WORKS WELL? UM, ON THE ZONING CONTRIBUTION PIECE, ON SLIDE 18, I THINK IT SAYS, UH, JUST ANOTHER THOUGHT ON THIS, UH, YOU KNOW, IT SAYS PROPERTY OWNERS, LOBBYISTS, ATTORNEYS, CONSULTANTS.
I, I MEAN, I WOULD JUST CAUTION THAT IMPRACTICAL APPLICATION, RIGHT? HOW IT WORKS DAY TO DAY THAT YOU'RE ESSENTIALLY BLOCKING THESE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE BLOCKING THESE PEOPLE OUT FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR.
LIKE, ALL THESE GROUPS WON'T BE ABLE TO GIVE.
I MEAN, IF YOU'RE A, IF YOU'RE A PROPERTY DEVELOPER, I, AND, AND THAT'S FINE.
I MEAN, I, I'M, I'M NOT OPPOSED, I'M, IN FACT, I'M, I'M INTERESTING.
I JUST, THE FIRST TIME I'VE SEEN THIS, SO I'M KIND OF JUST STILL NOODLING ON IT, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT MEANS.
BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, YOU WOULD ESSENTIALLY THIS CASE BE SAYING YOU ARE BLACKED OUT FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR.
I MEAN, THESE, A LOT OF THESE FOLKS ARE WORKING THESE CASES, AND THE ZONING STUFF IS SO MUCH, IT'S SO OFTEN IN THE DISTRICT, THERE'S SO MUCH WORK GOING ON THAT I WOULD JUST CAUTION YOU THAT SOMETIMES THE REGULATIONS, DO I WANT TO IMPEDE SOMEBODY'S ABILITY TO OFFER, UH, SUPPORT FOR A CANDIDATE? NO, I DON'T WANNA IMPEDE THAT.
BUT, BUT ALSO I THINK IT'S HIGHER, IT'S THE HIRING AND BEST PIECE IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE PROCESS ITSELF IS PROTECTED.
SO I I, I'M STILL KIND OF THINKING ABOUT THAT ONE, BUT I KNOW THAT IS SO BROAD, UH, WITH SOME, I MEAN, YOU, YOU WOULD, I, I THINK YOU'RE GONNA, THERE'S THE POTENTIAL THERE TO CAUSE PROBLEMS AND TO LI TO LIMIT A CITIZEN'S, RIGHT? TO ENGAGE THEIR PROCESS, THEIR, THEIR PUBLIC GOVERNANCE IN ANY WAY THEY SEE FIT, AS LONG AS IT ADHERES TO, UH, THE SPIRIT AND, AND THE LAW ITSELF.
SO I JUST CAUTION PROBABLY THAT THAT ONE COULD USE SOME MORE FINE TUNING, UH, JUST TO THINK ABOUT WHAT, YOU KNOW, ARE WE REALLY JUST TELLING PEOPLE NO THE ENTIRE YEAR? DEFINITELY.
AND WE ACTUALLY HAD A SIMILAR CONCERN BY COUNCILWOMAN VRAN, AND, UH, AND I'M SURE SHE'LL, SHE'LL ALSO EXPRESS THAT HERE MORE FULLY SOON.
UM, WE ARE ALREADY, UH, THINKING OF BRINGING IT BACK TO THE FULL ETHICS REVIEW BOARD SO THAT WE CAN THINK ABOUT THESE CONSIDERATIONS.
SHE JUST SHOULD JUST CUT ME OFF RIGHT THERE.
UH, AND THEN FINALLY, I, I'LL LEAVE YOU ON THE WAIVER PIECE, UH, FROM MAYOR NUREMBERG AND COUNCILMAN ALANA'S PIECE FROM A YEAR AND A HALF AGO.
UH, I, I THINK IT WAS IN, IT'S INTERESTING, I THINK WHAT ANDY SAID THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE COUNCIL ITSELF SETS THE RULES, UH, AND YOU CAN'T PUT ANYONE OVER A HIGHER AUTHORITY THAN THE RULE SETTING BODY THEMSELVES.
AND THE BOTTOM LINE IS, I JUST WANNA REMIND THE PUBLIC THAT THAT CITY COUNCIL COULD HAVE SAID NO.
UH, THEY CHOSE TO WAIVE SOMEONE'S ETHICS VIOLATION.
SO ULTIMATELY, AT THE END OF THE DAY, THE TRUE ACCOUNTABILITY IS THE VOTE THEY MADE ON THE
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CITIZENS CHOSE TO REELECT THOSE PEOPLE.UH, SO I MEAN, THEY STOOD FOR IT.
I MEAN, I THINK THERE WAS TRUE ACCOUNTABILITY IN THE PROCESS.
WELL, SOME OF THEM, UH, BUT
UH, BUT I DO TH I MEAN, I WOULD SAY THAT, UH, I, I THINK ULTIMATELY, YOU KNOW, THAT ONE AND THAT RECEIVED A LOT OF PUBLICITY.
SO TO, TO BE SUPPORTIVE OF THAT THOUGHT PROCESS, I WOULD SAY THE BETTER, THE TRANSPARENCY ON THAT, RIGHT? SO AT LEAST THE CITIZEN KNOWS, WELL, GEEZ, GREG VOTED FOR THAT WAIVER AND HE WAS OKAY WITH THAT PERSON BREAKING A LAW 'CAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW IT.
AND I AGREE WITH COUNCILMAN SALANI, A LOT OF TIMES, PEOPLE, THERE'S SO MUCH GOING ON THAT YOU MAY, YOU MAY MAKE A MINOR MISTAKE, AND IT'S, IT'S AN ACCIDENT, RIGHT? AND IT'S AN OVERSIGHT, AND I WANNA BE RESPECTFUL, RESPECTFUL TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO APPROPRIATELY BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THAT.
BUT AT THE SAME TIME, HOW YOU MEASURE AND WEIGH THAT.
SO I THINK THE, THE, YOUR TEAM BEING A PART OF THE PROCESS AND THEN AMPLIFYING THOSE WAIVERS, UH, HELP COUNCIL MEMBERS ULTIMATELY, WHO HAVE TO MAKE THAT FINAL DECISION BE JUST A TAD MORE ACCOUNTABLE TO THE PUBLIC, RIGHT? BECAUSE THAT VOTE THEN GOES ON THE RECORD AND THERE'S A RECOMMENDATION THAT SAYS, WHOA, WHOA, WHOA, WHOA, NO, RIGHT? THIS WAS OUTTA LINE.
THIS PERSON SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE THAT.
AND THEN THAT GETS AMPLIFIED, AND THE DECISION HAS MEANING, RIGHT? BECAUSE ULTIMATELY, ACCORDING TO THE CITY ATTORNEY, YOU CAN'T, THAT'S JUST NOT GONNA HAPPEN.
SO THE BEST THING WE COULD DO IS SHINE A LIGHT OF TRANSPARENCY ON IT SO THAT ULTIMATELY THE CITIZENS HAVE THE FINAL, THE, THE ULTIMATE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD IS THE VOTER.
SO THEY'LL HAVE TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THAT AT ELECTION TIME.
UH, AND I THINK THAT'S FAIR AND REASONABLE, BUT, UH, I, I APPRECIATE THAT PART OF YOU BEING IN THE PROCESS TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S A CLEAN RECOMMENDATION FROM, AS AN INDEPENDENT BODY AS WE CAN POSSIBLY GET TO.
SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION AND TO KEVIN AND THE TEAM AS WELL.
AND I, I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN DOING A TON OF WORK ON IT 'CAUSE YOU CAME OUT A COUPLE MONTHS AGO AND MM-HMM.
SO THERE'S A LOT MORE DISCUSSION YOU HAD, BUT I'M THANKFUL FOR THE, UH, PRESENTATION AT THE TIME.
UM, FIRST, FIRST OF ALL, I, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO REITERATE AGAIN, UH, THANK YOU TO, UH, WADE AND PAULA AND THE MEMBERS OF THE E R B AND, UM, EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEM.
I WAS LOOKING THROUGH THE LIST ON YOUR SLIDES AND EACH AND EVERY ONE OF 'EM, I DON'T THINK IT'S AN EXAGGERATION TO SAY, YOU KNOW, EACH OF THEM IS A PARAGON OF ETHICS IN THIS COMMUNITY, AND THEY'RE WALKING ICONS OF ETHICS.
UH, I CAN TELL YOU, UH, PAULA, YOU HAVE A REPUTATION, UM, FROM YOUR WORK ON THE, UH, ON THE ZONING COMMISSION TO HAVE BEEN FAIR AND VERY OBJECTIVE IN YOUR WORK.
AND WADE, FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT DON'T KNOW, IS, UH, A LAWYER, BUT HE'S A FREQUENTLY SOUGHT AFTER, UM, NEUTRAL IN, IN A LOT OF CASES.
AND WADE ACTUALLY IS, YOU KNOW, SAT ON THE, UH, GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE FOR THE STATE BAR AND, UH, BRINGS FELLOW LAWYERS TO TASK AND HOLDS THEIR FEET TO THE FIRE WHEN WE VIOLATE OUR ETHICS RULES.
NOT, I SHOULDN'T SAY WE, WHEN THEY VIOLATE THEIR ETHICS RULES.
UM, I, UH, I, I, I, I DO HAVE A QUESTION.
I, I SAW IN ONE OF YOUR SLIDES THAT YOU'RE RECOMMENDING THAT OUTSIDE COUNSEL BE APPOINTED, UM, TO THE TAR, YOU KNOW, THE OFFICIAL TARGETED BY ONE OF THESE COMPLAINTS.
NOW, IS THE RECOMMENDATION JUST THAT IT BE APPOINTED WHO DOES THE APPOINTMENT? OR IS THAT AT THE SELECTION? I MEAN, IS THE NAME SELECTED BY THE, UH, BY THE TARGETED OFFICIAL? HAVE YOU GIVEN SOME THOUGHT TO THAT, THAT, UH, THE CITY ATTORNEY HAS A LIST NOW? I'LL LET ANDY ANSWER THAT.
UH, COUNCILMAN FIRST TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION.
THE ROLE OF THE OUTSIDE COUNCIL REALLY IS TO LOOK AT THE COMPLAINT AND FIRST TO DETERMINE WHETHER IT FALLS WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF THE E R B OR NOT.
NOW, THE, IF THERE'S THE ELECTED OFFICIAL WHO IS, UH, NAMED ON THE COMPLAINT, THEY THEMSELVES, YOU KNOW, OR THEY CAN ASK FOR, YOU KNOW, RECOMMENDATIONS FROM US.
THEY SELECT OUTCO OUTSIDE COUNSEL TO REPRESENT THEM.
BUT THE OUTSIDE COUNSEL THAT'S SELECTED BY MY OFFICE, THEIR ROLE IS SIMPLY TO LOOK AT THE COMPLAINT AND ASSIST THE E R B IN DETERMINING AND WHETHER THAT COMPLAINT FALLS WITHIN THEIR JURISDICTION OR NOT.
SO FOLLOWING UP ON THAT, THEN MM-HMM.
I THINK THOSE HOURS ARE THREE HOURS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT IN ORDER TO KEEP, I MEAN, IT'S REALLY SILLY.
WELL, IT'S PART OF THE OVERALL C L E, BUT IT'S THE, THE ACTUAL ETHICS COMPONENT YES.
IS, AND I HAVE TO SAY, IN THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, THERE'S NO C L E REQUIREMENTS, SO WE'RE BETTER THAN
UH, BUT THE REASON I BRING THAT UP IS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IN YOUR SELECTION CRITERIA MM-HMM.
[00:55:01]
ETHICS.AND SO, UM, BE THEY LAW, YOU KNOW, LAW PROFESSORS WHO TEACH ETHICS OR BE THEY, YOU KNOW, UM, N P R E ETHICS TESTS, UH, TESTERS, RIGHT.
AND GRADERS OR SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES.
AND SO I DON'T, I DON'T, I HAVEN'T GOTTEN THAT IDEA VERY WELL FLESHED OUT, BUT YOU KNOW, THERE'S LAWYERS AND THEN THERE'S EXPERTS.
RIGHT? NO, I, I AGREE A HUNDRED PERCENT COUNCILMAN.
THAT'S WHEN, UH, SO WHEN A SITUATION LIKE THAT COMES UP, UH, OUR OFFICE TRADITIONALLY LOOKS TO SOMEONE, UH, WHO AS YOU SAID, IS AN EXPERT, EITHER, UH, IN ETHICS, UH, OR MUNICIPAL LAW, OR ON THE PARTICULAR COMPLAINT ON THE, ON THE TOPIC OF THE PARTICULAR COMPLAINT.
OBVIOUSLY, WE'D LOOK TO SOMEBODY WHO'S AN EXPERT IN ALL THREE, RIGHT? UH, BUT WE CONSIDER ALL THAT AS WE SELECT OUTSIDE COUNSEL.
I HAVE TO SAY, AS WE, AS WE'VE DONE THIS OVER THE YEARS, I'M PRETTY CONFIDENT THAT WE'VE SELECTED, UH, PEOPLE WHO ARE ADEPT AT UNDERSTANDING THE ISSUE, AT UNDERSTANDING THE ETHICS, THE CORE ETHICS ISSUE THAT WE'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS.
UM, BUT I'D BE HAPPY TO SIT DOWN WITH YOU AND, AND GO OVER WHAT WE CONSIDER GREAT.
IN TERMS OF CRITERIA FOR SELECTING OUTSIDE COUNSEL.
ANDY, UH, I DID IS DO ANY OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS INCLUDE ANY AFFIRMATIVE DUTIES IMPOSED ON LOBBYISTS? IN OTHER WORDS, I MEAN, I KNOW THEY'RE MENTIONED IN HERE, BUT DO THEY HAVE ANY NEW REPORTING REQUIREMENTS? DO THEY HAVE TO REPORT AND DISCLOSE MORE OFTEN OR FILL OUT ADDITIONAL FORMS OR, OR DO MORE THAN THEY'RE DOING TODAY? I THINK THE, UH, IF I UNDERSTAND THE E R B RECOMMENDATIONS CORRECTLY, UM, I THINK THERE'S ONLY ONE PART WHERE WE'RE ASKING LOBBYISTS TO DO SOMETHING OTHER THAN WHAT WE'RE DOING.
CAN YOU COMMENT ON THAT OR NO, JUDGE, SPECIFICALLY, THERE IS NO ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING LOBBYISTS ABOVE WHAT THEY ARE READY OR REQUIRED TO DO, WHICH IS BE REGISTERED WITH THE CITY AND FILE CERTAIN FORMS FOR, UH, THEIR ACTIVITIES AND WHO THEY'RE REPRESENTING, SUCH AS THAT, UH, THERE IS NO FURTHER STIPULATIONS ON, IN FROM THE ER B'S RECOMMENDATIONS TO INCREASE THAT, UH, WHERE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT LOBBYISTS, MAYBE AS IN THE ZONING APPLICATIONS WE WOULD, WHERE THEY'RE RECOMMENDING THAT WE EXPAND, UH, THOSE WHO ARE PROHIBITED FROM MAKING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS TO INCLUDE LOBBYISTS, CONSULTANTS, OR ATTORNEYS, UH, THAT HAVE BEEN ENGAGED TO WORK WITH SOMEONE, UH, DURING A ZONING CASE.
AND DID I HEAR CORRECTLY, IT'S A ONE YEAR PROHIBITION, MR. BROCK HOUSE SAID SOMETHING, YOU'RE KNOCKING 'EM OUT FOR A YEAR.
OH, UH, SOMEONE MADE A, YOU'RE KNOCKING 'EM OUT FOR A YEAR.
IT'S, I, I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF YOUR BUSINESS, IF YOUR BUSINESS IS A CONSULTANT TO, UH, WORKING ON, UH, ZONING CASES, PRESUMABLY YOU'RE GONNA HAVE AN ACTIVE ZONING CASE YEAR ROUND.
AND THEREFORE, YOU KNOW, FOR EACH ZONING CASE, IT HAS ITS PROHIBITED PERIOD.
WELL, IF YOU'RE JUST MULTIPLE ZONING CASES, YOU WOULD BE PROHIBITED, UH, FROM MAKING CONTRIBUTIONS AT ANY TIME, JUST BECAUSE OF YOUR BUSINESS MODEL.
UH, IF IT'S THE ONE-OFF AND SOMEONE'S DOING A JUST ONE TIME REPRESENTATION OF A ZONING CASE DURING THAT ZONING CASE, THEY'D BE PROHIBITED.
BUT ONCE THAT ZONING CASE HAS COME TO CONCLUSION, WELL, THEN IT'S BACK TO BUSINESS AS USUAL, AND THEY WOULD THEN BE, UH, ALLOWED TO MAKE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS TO COUNCIL MEMBERS OR TO CANDIDATES.
UH, ARE THERE ANY, IS THERE ANYTHING EXOTIC IN THIS PACKAGE OF, OF, OF RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE DON'T SEE IN OTHER CITIES? IN OTHER WORDS, ARE WE GONNA BE AN OUTLIER WITH REGARDS TO SOMETHING THAT'S JUST SPECIAL FOR US? OR ARE THESE JUST ADOPTED FROM EVERYWHERE ELSE? I MEAN, CAN I SEE AN EXAMPLE OF SOMETHING LIKE WHAT WE'RE DOING AT OTHER CITIES? YEAH.
GARCIA DID LOOK AT OTHER CITIES, UH, BUT I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANYTHING EXOTIC.
UH, WE LOOKED AT, UH, OTHER CITIES AND THERE'S, THERE'S, UH, RESEARCH OUT THERE OF THE MODEL, UH, ETHICS CODE.
AND WE, THE COMMITTEE WENT THROUGH THAT AS THEY WENT THROUGH THIS PROCESS, BUT, RIGHT.
I WOULD NOT THINK, AND MY QUESTION, I I, AND THE WORD EXOTIC IS, IS THE WRONG WORD, THEN UNIQUE TO US, RIGHT? SO I'M NOT GONNA, I'M, AS I LOOK THROUGH THE RECOMMENDATIONS, IT'S NOT, NOBODY'S GONNA SAY, OH, AND BY THE WAY, SAN ANTONIO IS THE ONLY CITY IN THE UNITED STATES DOING THIS ONE RECOMMENDATION, NOT FROM THE CITIES THAT WE RESEARCHED.
UM, HOWEVER, ONE UNIQUE THING YES, IS THAT, UM, AND, AND IT'S PROBABLY THE MOST UNIQUE, IS THAT COMPLAINTS ALSO ARE, UH, GIVEN TO THE, UH, VICE CHAIR OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD.
UH, SO NOW, NOT ONLY ARE WE ADDING, ADDING THAT THE CHAIR OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD ARE ALSO THE VICE CHAIR, UH, SEES THEM IMMEDIATELY.
AND THEN, UM, YOU KNOW, I STRUGGLE WITH THIS RECOMMENDATION FOR AN INDEPENDENT AUDITOR, UH, YOU KNOW, ETHICS OFFICER.
AND THE REASON I STRUGGLE IS IT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, YOU, I I'M NOT SURE HOW MUCH INDEPENDENCE YOU REALLY CAN ACHIEVE, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
AND THOSE, THOSE AREN'T MEANINGLESS.
THOSE ARE REALLY, REALLY STRINGENT.
UH, I KNOW BECAUSE I, I HAVE TO LIVE BY THEM TOO, AND I TAKE AN OATH TO LIVE BY THEM.
AND IF I DON'T, UM, IF I DON'T LIVE UP TO THAT OATH, I CAN LOSE MY LAW LICENSE AND MY CHILDREN DON'T EAT THAT DAY.
UM, THE, I KNOW THAT WE'VE ALSO GOT AN AUDITOR WHO LIVES ALSO BY A SET OF RULES OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND
[01:00:01]
ETHICS, UH, AND THOSE ARE REALLY QUITE ROBUST.AND IN ORDER FOR HIM TO KEEP HIS CERTIFICATIONS UP, HE HAS TO TAKE THAT OATH AND LIVE UP TO IT.
AND SO, UM, I, IT TO ME, ADDING A THIRD LAYER OF, UM, I'M JUST, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER PERSON, UM, WHO IS BASICALLY DOING THE EXACT SAME FUNCTION THAT THESE OTHER INDEPENDENT FOLKS DO, UM, SEEMS LIKE A LITTLE OVERKILL.
BUT, UH, I WILL TELL YOU THAT CRUZ AND I, WE HAVE, I MEAN, WE, WE HAVE, WE'VE TAKEN AN AFFIRMATIVE OATH, AND OUR, WE HAVE, I, I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY THAT HE, HE AND I ARE THE ONLY ONES ON THIS COUNCIL WHO HAVE SORT OF AN, A HEIGHTENED DUTY OF CARE.
UM, BECAUSE IF WE SCREW THIS UP HERE ON CITY COUNCIL, WE, YOU KNOW, WE MAY ALSO FIGHT OURSELVES SCREWING IT UP, YOU KNOW, IN FRONT OF THE STATE BAR ASSOCIATION AND, UH, WHEREVER IT IS THAT WE'RE LICENSED.
AND SO, A LOT OF THESE RULES OF ETHICS THOUGH, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I DO THINK THAT THESE ARE A HIGH BAR THAT Y'ALL ARE SENDING FOR US.
AND I'LL CLOSE BY URGING MY, MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES THAT WE FIND WAYS TO NOT JUST DO THE SHEER MINIMUM, BUT THAT WE ALWAYS STRIVE TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND THAT.
AND I LOVE THAT THERE'S A SELF-REPORTING COMPONENT TO THIS.
WHAT WORRIES ME THOUGH IS THAT I DON'T SEE A, WHAT HAPPENS IF WE DON'T REPORT, RIGHT? I MEAN, WE'RE SORT OF ON THE HONOR SYSTEM FOR MOST OF THESE THINGS.
UM, SO THERE'S NO RECOMMENDATION OR IS THERE ANY MECHANISM FOR LIKE A SUBPOENA, UH, POWER FOR THE COMMITTEE TO BE ABLE TO INVESTIGATE AND DEMAND DOCUMENTS FROM US? IF WE DO SOMEHOW MANAGE TO RUN AFOUL OF THE RULES, BUT REFUSE TO TURN OVER, SOMEBODY CAN ACTUALLY SUBMIT.
UM, IT, IT WOULD BE SOMEBODY THAT WOULD HAVE KNOWLEDGE, OF COURSE, CAN SUBMIT A, UM, A, A FORMAL COMPLAINT, UH, AND START THE COMPLAINT PROCESS.
UM, BUT YOU'RE, YOU'RE CORRECT.
SO, UM, WHAT WE ARE DOING, OR WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO BY ELIMINATING THE SELF-REPORTING, UM, FOR INSTANCE, TO THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE IS HELPING, UH, HELPING COUNSEL OR HELPING, UM, THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD, UH, OR, OR, I'M SO SORRY, HELPING THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD SO THAT THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE DOES NOT HAVE THAT, UH, ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE WITH, WITH THE COUNCILPERSON OR THE ELECTED OFFICIAL.
UM, AND SO SPECIFIC TO THE SELF-REPORTING CLAUSE, IT WOULD BE, WE, WE WOULDN'T NOOK FAVORABLY, OBVIOUSLY, AT A SELF-REPORT.
WE WOULD STILL LOOK AT IT, BUT IT'S OBVIOUSLY GONNA BE BETTER FOR YOU TO SELF-REPORT IF YOU THINK, OR ALL, IT'S ALWAYS NICE TO PICK UP THE PHONE AND CALL THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
AND I THINK, UH, ANDY, DO YOU WANT TO, UM, TURN HIM UP? MM-HMM.
IT'S NOT THAT WE DON'T HAVE AN ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE IS THAT IT? WHEN WE DO, AND ONCE, IF YOU COME TO US AND, AND COME TO ME AND ASK A SPECIFIC ISSUE, WE DO HAVE ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE.
WE JUST DIDN'T WANT THAT TO CLOG UP OR IN ANY WAY INTERFERE WITH, UH, PEOPLE REPORTING, UH, OR COMPLAINT OR ISSU UH, FILING COMPLAINTS WITH E R B.
SO THAT'S WHY THEY ELIMINATED MY OFFICE.
I GUESS MY POINT, ANDY, IS UHHUH, WHAT DISCOVERY TEETH ARE THERE TO THESE ENFORCEMENT MECHANISMS, RIGHT? SO ONE THING IS FOR THE E R B TO SAY, HEY, BY THE WAY, WE RECEIVED A COMPLAINT, YOU KNOW, THAT YOU DID, YOU KNOW, YOU WERE UP TO SOME HINKY PINKY, AND WE NEED TO FIND OUT ABOUT IT.
SEND US THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION, RIGHT? AND INSTEAD, I JUST SEND 'EM $500 AND SAY, HERE'S MY FINE, GET OFF MY BACK.
GOOD LUCK FINDING OUT THE DOCUMENTS.
UH, THE, THE, THE, THE ANSWER TO THAT COUNCILMAN IS, IS WE WOULD, UH, THEY E R B WOULD RELY ON THE PERSON WHO'S SUBJECT TO THE COMPLAINT TO ONE, EITHER TO EXONERATE THEMSELVES OR PRESENT FACTS THAT WOULD SHOW TO MITIGATE WHATEVER THE, UH, COMPLAINT OR THE CLAIM IS.
AND SO, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, THERE'S NO REAL QUOTE UNQUOTE TEETH TO IT.
UH, BUT USUALLY JUST THE SELF-INTEREST OF WHEREVER THE COM YOU KNOW, THE, THE SUBJECT OF THE COMPLAINT IS, I WOULD IMAGINE THEY WOULD WANT TO PUT FORTH INFORMATION, FREELY PUT FORTH INFORMATION THAT WOULD AGAIN, EITHER EXONERATE 'EM OR PRESENT FACTS THAT WOULD MITIGATE WHATEVER, YOU KNOW, THE CLAIM IS IN TERMS OF UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR.
YEAH, I, I, I'D WANT THAT TOO.
I, I'M JUST, I, I WISH THERE WAS SOME WAY WE COULD ADD TEETH TO THIS THING TO REALLY HOLD OUR FEET TO THE FIRE.
UM, I'D LIKE TO COMMEND YOU AND YOUR COMMITTEE FOR THE WORK THAT YOU DID.
'CAUSE IT'S OBVIOUS THAT YOU WORKED, UH, LONG AND HARD AND, AND DID SOME SUBSTANTIAL RESEARCH TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, THE, THE POSSIBILITIES THAT, UH, YOU NEEDED TO CONSIDER.
AND I, I AGREE WITH MUCH OF WHAT I'VE SEEN IN HERE.
I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO STUDY AT ALL IN DEPTH, BUT IT LOOKS GOOD.
UM, AND I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, ONE OF YOUR TASKS WAS TO REMU REVIEW MUNICIPAL CAMPAIGN FINANCE AND CODE.
BUT TO MOST OF US, I THINK WHAT THAT USUALLY MEANS IS BEING ABLE TO FOLLOW THE MONEY.
AND I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT PART OF WHAT YOU'RE COMING OUT WITH AS A WAY FOR THE PUBLIC AS WELL AS US AS
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ELECTED OFFICIALS TO FOLLOW THE MONEY, TO FOLLOW THE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS, WHICH I THINK WE ALL KNOW IS THE MOTHER'S MILK OF POLITICS.AND IF YOU'RE NOT ABLE TO UNDERSTAND WHERE THAT'S COMING OR WHERE THAT'S GOING, YOU REALLY MAY NOT UNDERSTAND THE POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS OF WHAT'S BEING DONE.
UH, ONE, ONE THING I NOTICED WAS THAT, UM, WHEN WE LOOK AT CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS, WE LOOK AT BUSINESS OWNERS AND BUSINESS OFFICERS, BIDDERS CONTRACTORS, PEOPLE INVOLVED IN ZONING AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
UH, THOSE REFERRED TO ON PAGE 17 AND PAGE 18 IN YOUR REPORT.
BUT I RECOGNIZE THAT YOU'RE RECOMMENDING ADDING LIMITATIONS BY INCLUDING SUBCONTRACTORS, PROPERTY OWNERS, LOBBYISTS, ATTORNEYS, UH, BUT WHAT PUZZLES ME IS THE COMMITTEE HAS DECLINED TO RECOMMEND INCLUDING WHAT THE PERSON'S OCCUPATION MAY BE, OR WHO THEIR EMPLOYER IS.
AND SO HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY SUBCONTRACTORS, PROPERTY OWNERS, LOBBYISTS, ATTORNEYS, UH, BUSINESS OFFICERS, ET CETERA, ET CETERA, IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THEIR OCCUPATION IS OR WHO THEY WORK FOR WHEN THEY'RE MAKING A POLITICAL CONTRIBUTION.
SO I THINK THAT'S A REAL FAULT IN WHAT YOU'RE BRINGING FORWARD AS A RECOMMENDATION.
UH, WHAT YOU'RE DOING BASICALLY, I GUESS, IS DEPENDING ON PEOPLE TO STEP UP AND SAY, OH, I'M ONE OF THESE.
UH, AND SO, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU NEED TO GO AHEAD AND, AND LIST THE FACT THAT I'M MAKING A CONTRIBUTION.
UH, AND I THINK THAT WHAT WE'RE MISSING IS, UH, THAT WE'RE OUT HERE TO GO AHEAD AND HAVE MORE DISCLOSURE.
AND I DON'T THINK WE'RE DISCLOSING ENOUGH IF WE DON'T, IF WE JUST KNOW THE NAME OF JOE SMITH, BUT WE DON'T KNOW WHAT JOE SMITH DOES FOR A LIVING AND WHO HE WORKS FOR.
UH, AND I THINK SUNLIGHT IS THE BEST DISINFECTANT, AND I THINK WE NEED MORE SUNLIGHT BY INCLUDING THAT.
NOW, I KNOW WHEN YOU RESEARCH, YOU WENT BACK AND YOU LOOKED AT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, WHICH REQUIRES THAT, AND THE STATE GOVERNMENT, WHICH REQUIRES THAT, AND MUNICIPAL, I MEAN, UH, STATE JUDGES ARE REQUIRED TO DO THAT, UH, UH, BUT I, I CAN'T SEE WHY MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT CITY WOULDN'T ALSO FOLLOW THAT SAME POLICY.
NOW, I REALIZE THAT THERE WAS, UM, SOME RESEARCH YOU LOOKED AT THAT SAID, UH, 50 SOMETHING PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SURVEYED SAID IF THEIR NAME WAS INVOLVED IN A POLITICAL CONTRIBUTION, THEY DON'T WANT TO GIVE.
AND, AND THERE WAS 71% WHO SAID, WELL, IF MY NAME AND MY OCCUPATION WAS LISTED AND WHO I WORK FOR, I WOULDN'T WANT TO GIVE.
BUT I DON'T, I DON'T THINK THAT'S A VALID CONSIDERATION, BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHAT? I'LL BET THERE AREN'T 10% OF THE PEOPLE IN THE COUNTRY WHO GIVE.
AND SO THOSE 71 WHO SAID, WELL, I'M, I'M A LITTLE NOT LIKELY TO GIVE 'CAUSE I NEED TO GIVE MY NAME OR MY EMPLOYER.
THOSE AREN'T THE PEOPLE WE'RE THINKING ABOUT.
THOSE AREN'T THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MAKING THE CONTRIBUTION.
IT'S THE OTHER 20% PLUS WHO DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT IT, WHO SAID, I'M PERFECTLY WILLING TO GIVE, IT'S NO PROBLEM FOR ME.
THEY'RE THE ONES WHO ARE GIVING, THEY'RE THE ONES WE NEED TO TRACK.
SO I, I THINK THAT RESEARCH ISN'T PARTICULARLY VALID IN TRYING TO HAVE THE DISCLOSURE.
WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE CAN FOLLOW THE MONEY.
SO I'D REALLY RECOMMEND THAT IF THE COMMITTEE'S GOING TO MEET AND, AND RECONSIDER ANY OF THESE THINGS THEY DO.
AND IF NOT, IF THE COUNCIL WILL CONSIDER THAT ITSELF WHEN THIS IS BROUGHT TO THE COUNCIL.
MAYOR, IF I MAY, I JUST WANNA MAKE, UH, ONE POINT, UH, UH, UH, TO WHAT YOU SAID, AND THAT INVOLVES, IF WE DON'T KNOW, THEY, THEY'RE NOT TELLING US WHO THEY WORK FOR, WHAT THEIR OCCUPATION IS FOR HIGH PROFILE CONTRACTS.
WE DO SPEND A LOT OF TIME REVIEWING, UH, CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS THERE.
AND WE LOOK AT THAT FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE EQUATION.
UH, WHENEVER SOMEONE IS, UH, PROPOSING ON ANY HIGH PROFILE CONTRACT OR ANY CONTRACT, THEY'RE REQUIRED OBVIOUSLY TO GIVE, UH, THEIR MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE.
AND THAT INCLUDES THEIR BOARD OF DIRECTORS AS WELL AS THEIR OFFICERS OF THE COMPANY.
UH, IF THEY DON'T DISCLOSE THAT WE DO A SEARCH ON THAT COMPANY, WE CAN VERY EASILY GET THAT INFORMATION AND WE TAKE THOSE INDIVIDUAL NAMES THAT THEY, UH, REPORTED AND THAT WE VERIFY AND THEN SEARCH AT AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL THROUGH THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE.
UH, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT LAW FIRMS HAVE 50 MEMBERS, AND THOSE 50 MEMBERS HAS FAMILY MEMBERS AND CORRECT.
WE DON'T KNOW THE NAMES OF ALL 50 MEMBERS OF THAT LAW FIRM.
WE KNOW, WE DUNNO THE NAMES OF THE 200 EMPLOYEES OF THAT CONTRACTOR.
WE DON'T KNOW ALL OF THE OTHER PEOPLE EXCEPT THE PRIMARY PEOPLE INVOLVED.
AND THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF THAT POLITICAL INFLUENCE THROUGH FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS CAN BE MADE UNBEKNOWNST TO US, IF WE DON'T KNOW WHO WORKS FOR WHO AND WHAT COMPANIES THEY WORK WITH.
WE ONLY SEARCH FOR THE BOARD AND THE OFFICERS OF THE COMPANY.
[01:10:02]
THANK YOU, COUNCILMAN.UM, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS PRESENTATION.
IT WAS EVEN BETTER THE SECOND TIME WHEN I SAW THIS PRESENTATION.
GARCIA, I DO WANNA THANK YOU AND ALL OF THE BOARD MEMBERS, UM, AND MY APPOINTEE, RUBEN DEON, WHO'S WORKED SO HARD.
AND I HAVE TO SAY, I THINK THAT THIS HAS BEEN THE MOST IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF, UM, THAT WE'VE HAD IN THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD OR THE ETHICS, UH, COMMISSION FOR A VERY, VERY LONG TIME.
AND, UM, I THINK AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS, WE SHOULD BE VERY PROUD OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT YOU HAVE HIGHLIGHTED AND VERY PROUD OF THE, UM, WAY THAT WE'RE MOVING FORWARD AND WHAT YOU ALL, AND LOOKING AT THE NAMES.
I THINK WE HAVE SOME EXPERTS ON THIS E R B AND MOVING FORWARD, AND I AM VERY GRATEFUL FOR ALL OF THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE.
GARCIA, YOU HAVE HAD SO MANY, UH, WE, THERE ARE SO MANY GOOD GOVERNMENT GROUPS THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, GOVERNING GROUPS THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, AND THAT YOU AND THE SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS HAVE SPOKEN TO IN DOING ALL OF YOUR IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS.
CAN YOU SPEAK TO MAYBE A COUPLE OF THOSE GROUPS THAT YOU, YOU SPOKE TO THAT REALLY DID HIGHLIGHT YOUR, UM, YOUR, UH, COMING UP WITH THESE RECOMMENDATIONS? SURE.
UM, AND SO, AND SO, A LOT OF THEM WERE CITIES.
UH, BUT I WANNA POINT OUT THAT WE HAVE A LOCAL, UM, ETHICS EXPERT.
RAYMOND BAIRD, WHO'S A RETIRED PROFESSOR EMERITUS FROM U T S A.
UM, AND SO I, UH, HAD BEEN FAMILIAR WITH HIS WORK, UH, FROM YEARS AGO WHEN I FIRST, UH, JOINED THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD.
AND SO HE PRESENTED UNDER CHAIRMAN MILLSAP.
UM, WE CALLED HIM BACK AND WE JUST HAD A CONVERSATION WITH HIM ORIGINALLY ABOUT SOME OF THE PROPOSED CHANGES.
AND SO HE REALLY SHED SOME LIGHT ON, UM, SOME ITEMS THAT WE WOULD'VE NEVER CONSIDERED.
UM, WE HAD HE NOT, UH, TALKED TO US ABOUT THIS.
SO, FOR INSTANCE, WHEN WE WERE CONSIDERING, UM, THE C C R BY COUNCILMAN COURAGE, UM, A LOT OF THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD MEMBERS WERE IN FAVOR OF THAT.
AFTER, UH, THE EXPERT CAME IN AND AFTER HE PRESENTED SOME MORE RESEARCH, WE REALIZED, OKAY, WE SEE SOME ADDITIONAL, UM, SOME ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT MAYBE WE WERE NOT AWARE ABOUT.
AND SO TALKING TO THESE PEOPLE REALLY HAS HELPED.
UM, I KNOW THAT I, I SPOKE WITH SEVERAL OF THE, UH, FOLKS FROM, UM, DIFFERENT CITIES.
AND SO I, I THINK YOU HAVE, UH, OR HA OR MAYBE IT WAS IN THE GOVERNANCE PACKET.
I'M NOT SURE IF YOU ALL, UM, HAD THIS IN YOUR, UH, REVIEW TODAY, BUT I SPOKE WITH SEVERAL OF THE, UH, COMMISSIONS.
AND SO, OF COURSE, UM, DEPENDING ON, ON THEIR, MOST OF THEM WERE APPOINTED BY THE, BY THE, UM, UH, COUNCIL PEOPLE.
BUT THE ONES THAT WE, UM, REALLY FOCUSED ON WERE THE ONES THAT WERE DEP, UH, APPOINTED BY THE OUTSIDE ENTITIES.
AND SO WE WERE CONCERNED, UM, THAT IF THE APPOINTMENT PROCESS CHANGES, SOME OF THE ENTITIES THAT HAVE ACCESS TO APPOINTED ARE AGAIN, UM, UH, HAVE MORE ACCESS TO PEOPLE WITH HIGHER LEVELS OF EDUCATION, WHICH IN TURNS MEAN, IN TURN MEANS THAT THEY HAVE HIGHER LEVELS OF, UM, OF, OF INFLUENCE MAYBE IN THE COMMUNITY AND THEIR CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE.
UH, THEY'RE NOT ONLY THOUGHT LEADERS, BUT THEY ALSO, UH, SHARE IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT DEMOGRAPHIC.
AND WE WERE VERY, UM, VERY ADAMANT THAT WE WANTED TO BE REPRESENTED, UH, REPRESENTATIVE OF THE CITY THAT WE SERVE.
UM, AND SO WE FELT THAT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO COMPARE OURSELVES TO SOME OF THESE OTHER CITIES, UM, THAT HAD BEEN APPOINTED BY THE CITY, UM, BY, BY CITY COUNCIL.
UM, WE LOOKED AT ONE OF THE ONES THAT, UM, I'M, I'M TRYING TO LOOK AT IT.
SO THERE WAS, THERE WAS, SO SAN DIEGO WAS A BOARD THAT WAS APPOINTED BY THE CITY OFFICIALS.
UM, AND SO THAT ONE, THEY HAD NO MORE THAN THREE REGISTERED, NO MORE THAN THREE MEMBERS MAY BE REGISTERED WITH THE SAME POLITICAL PARTY.
RIGHT? AND SO OURS, UH, IN OUR ELECTION, IT DOESN'T MATTER.
UH, IT'S A NONPARTISAN, UH, BUT THEN WE ALSO SAW THAT IT WAS NOMINATED, UM, BY THE COUNCIL AND BY THE CITY ATTORNEY, THEN APPOINTED BY MAYOR.
SO THEN THERE WAS A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE CONSIDERED HOW DO WE, UM, ENGAGE THE BEST PRACTICES? WE SAW THAT THERE WAS SOME CITIES THAT WERE APPOINTED AGAIN, BY, UM, UNIVERSITIES.
WELL, WHAT THAT MEANS IN TURN FOR US IS THAT, WELL, WE HAVE A LOT OF GREAT UNIVERSITIES, BUT THEN AGAIN, THAT SPEAKS TO A CERTAIN LEVEL OR A, A OCCUPATION.
AND SO WHAT HAPPENS TO THE COMMUNITY MEMBER THAT WANTS TO BE INVOLVED, AND THAT IS HIGHLY ETHICAL AND INVOLVED IN DAY-TO-DAY, UH, ACTIVITIES IN HIS OR HER NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, FOR INSTANCE, DO THEY EVER HAVE A CHANCE IF THEY DON'T HAVE THE $250 TO PAY TO BE A MEMBER OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, OR IF THEY'RE NOT ASSOCIATED, THEY DIDN'T HAVE MONEY TO, UM, GO TO THE UNIVERSITY AND THEY ARE NOT EMPLOYED BY THE UNIVERSITY, ET CETERA.
[01:15:01]
THOSE WERE SOME OF THE CONSIDERATIONS THAT WE MADE.UM, THE CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO HAD ANOTHER ONE.
UM, AND SO THE MAYOR AND THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, THE CITY ATTORNEY, THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY, AND THE ASSESSOR OF 0.1 MEMBER.
SO AGAIN, SO IT WAS JUST A, A WHOLE BODY.
UM, AND WE THOUGHT THAT, THAT WITH THEM, FOR INSTANCE, THEY ALSO LOOKED AT, UM, AUDITS AND INVESTIGATIONS, FOR INSTANCE.
SO WE DID DO, UM, WE LOOKED AT BEST PRACTICES, REALLY IN, SO WE, UM, TALKED ABOUT IT AS A BOARD.
THERE'S LINKS TO ALL OF THEIR, UM, DIRECT WEBSITES ON THERE.
UH, WE SPOKE WITH THEM BY PHONE.
I MEAN, SOME PEOPLE WERE VERY GRATEFUL, GAVE US UP TO AN HOUR.
SOME PEOPLE WERE A LITTLE SHORTER, RIGHT? SO 20 MINUTES, ET CETERA.
UM, BUT JUST A, A, A PLETHORA BASICALLY OF INFORMATION, A WEALTH OF INFORMATION THAT WE REALLY DIDN'T EVEN THINK ABOUT UNTIL SOMETIMES THAT WE SPOKE TO THESE PEOPLE.
AND SO, EVEN THE REALIZATION THAT WE WERE NOT COMPARING APPLES TO APPLES ORIGINALLY, AND THAT CAME FROM A CONVERSATION, UM, BECAUSE IT WAS A, WAIT A MINUTE, HOW MANY? AND SO IT WAS JUST AN, AN UN UNBELIEVABLE NUMBER COMPARED TO OUR NUMBER THAT MADE US REALIZE THAT, WAIT A SECOND, THEY, IT, THEY'RE ALSO DOING THE OFFICE OF THE O M I AND THE OFFICE OF THE CITY AUDITOR'S JOB IN SOME CASES AS WELL.
AND I THINK YOUR, YOUR, UM, COMMENTS ESPECIALLY ABOUT THE DISTRIBUTION AND THE REPRESENTATION ON THE E R B IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE DO WANNA MAKE THIS PUBLIC.
WE DO WANNA MAKE THIS TRANSPARENT.
AND ALSO WHAT'S IMPORTANT IS WE DO WANNA MAKE SURE THAT IT IS AN EQUITABLE, DIS EQUITABLE, UH, DISTRIBUTION AND REPRESENTATION OF PEOPLE WHO WILL SERVE ON THIS.
NOT ONLY THOSE WHO SERVE ON, UM, YOU KNOW, CHAMBERS OR BARS OR UNIVERSITIES OR, UH, DIFFERENT, UH, OTHER GROUPS TOO.
I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE THE OPTION TO HAVE THAT, AND THAT'S WHY I ALSO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE MAKE IT PUBLIC AND OPEN INSTEAD OF TAKING IT OUT OF THE OUT AND GIVING IT TO A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT, UM, YOU KNOW, ORGANIZATION.
I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, WE ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY THE VOTERS, PERIOD, WE AS THE CITY COUNCIL.
AND I THINK THAT'S EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.
I DO AGREE WITH MANY OF THE, THE STATEMENTS, UH, THAT WERE MADE BY MY COLLEAGUES, UM, UH, COUNCILMAN, UH,
I THINK IT'S EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE THE, THIS DIALOGUE AND WE HAVE IT TRANSPARENT, BUT WE ALSO HAVE THE REPRESENTATION AND WE CAN MAKE IT, WE CAN DO IT CORRECTLY HERE WITH OUR CITY AND WITH OUR E R B, UM, AS WELL, AND ALL THE WORK THAT'S BEEN GOING ON.
UM, SO I, I DO WANT TO, UH, I, I THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE, THE CONVERSATION PIECES YOU'VE BEEN HAVING WITH THE CITIES AND THE EXPERTS.
I DID, UM, HAVE SOME, I DID HAVE A QUESTION ON HERE.
THE, UH, OH, I DID WANNA MAKE ONE COMMENT ON THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE COMPLAINTS TO BE FORWARDED BY THE CITY CLERK TO THE CHAIR AND THE VICE CHAIR OF THE E R B.
I THINK THAT'S A GREAT MOVE, UH, FORWARD.
AND THEN WE WILL, I THINK, BE ABLE TO GET THAT TRUE TELLING OF WHAT OUR NUMBERS ARE, THE TRUE NUMBERS ARE TOO.
SO I THINK THAT'S A GREAT MOVE FORWARD, UM, THIS WAY.
AND YEAH, I THINK I DO NEED SOME MORE CLARITY IF WE CAN TALK ABOUT OFFLINE, THE, UM, AND I'LL TALK TO MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES AS WELL ABOUT THE, UM, RECOMMENDATION OF TWO DASH 3 0 9, UM, AS WELL FOR THE, THE, UM, CONTRIBUTIONS, UH, AND OTHERS, JUST SO WE CAN HAVE SOME, SOME MORE CLARITY ON THAT.
UM, BUT THEN FINALLY, I DO WANNA THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE, BECAUSE I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE, AS WE ARE, UM, WE'RE MAKING SURE THAT YOU, ONE, YOU AS THE E R B ARE DOING THE WORK THAT YOU ARE DOING, EVEN OUTSIDE OF ANY INFLUENCE, UH, THAT WE CAN EVEN HAVE.
BUT YOU ALL ARE STAYING AND WORKING, UH, AMONGST ALL OF THE, THE ITEMS THAT YOU HAVE HERE.
AND YOU'RE BEING THOROUGH AND YOU'RE BEING THOUGHTFUL.
AND, UM, IT'S JUST TO MAKE US A BETTER SAN ANTONIO AND TO HOLD US EVEN MORE ACCOUNTABLE EVEN TO OUR VOTERS.
AND COUNCILWOMAN, TO YOUR POINT, I WANTED TO ADD ALSO, UM, THERE ARE SOME ENTITIES THAT ARE LOOKING AT, UH, ETHICS.
AND SO WE LOOKED AT ANYTHING FROM THE, UM, UH, STATE ETHICS CODE TO T M L TO, I MEAN, EVERYTHING.
WE ALSO, UM, COUNCIL, OR I'M SORRY, MAYOR NIERENBERG AT THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE MENTIONED COMMON CAUSE.
SO WE ALSO LOOKED AT THEM, AGAIN, SOME OF THESE ENTITIES, WE LOOKED AT THEIR BOARD MEMBERS AND THEIR DIVERSITY WASN'T WHAT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO'S DIVERSITY IS.
UM, WE WERE CONCERNED A LOT OF THE BOARD MEMBERS WERE IVY LEAGUE EDUCATED FOLKS.
UH, AND SO AGAIN, SO WHAT DOES THAT RING? UM, WE WERE ALSO CONCERNED THAT, SORRY, COUNCILWOMAN
AND SO THAT, THAT WAS IMPORTANT, RIGHT? UM, WE ALSO LOOKED AT THEIR EXPERIENCE IN MUNICIPAL, AND SO THEY HAD STATEWIDE, SO THEY'RE, WHEN LOOKING AT STATEWIDE ETHICS, AND, YOU KNOW, WE WERE JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO, WHAT, WHO CAN
[01:20:01]
WE LEARN FROM? UM, WHAT CAN WE DO THAT REALLY REFLECTS THE LOCAL, UH, SAN ANTONIO COMMUNITY? I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT TOO, BECAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE EXPERIENCE LIVING AND WORKING AND DOING BUSINESS IN SAN ANTONIO, YOU'VE SEEN THE PAST.YOU'VE SEEN WHERE WE'VE, WE ARE, AND THEN YOU CAN SEE WHERE WE CAN BE GROWING AS A FUTURE AS WELL.
SO I, I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT TOO, AN IMPORTANT, UH, FLAVOR TO HAVE AS PART OF IT AS WELL, UM, TO MOVE AND WORK FORWARD.
SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT.
AND I KNOW NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, I DEFINITELY HOPE THAT YOU, AS THE E R B DOES HAVE THAT LENS AND ALWAYS CAN BE ABLE TO LOOK AT IT.
COUNCILWOMAN VERUN, COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL, UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MAYOR.
GARCIA, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK, UH, FOR THAT OF THE COMMITTEE, OR SORRY, THE BOARD.
THEY'VE DONE A, A GREAT JOB, EXTREMELY THOROUGH, UM, AND TO THE AUDITOR AND THE CITY ATTORNEY FOR ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE.
UM, I APPRECIATE THE EXTRA TIME YOU AND THE AUDITOR HAVE TAKEN, UH, TO TALK TO ME ABOUT MY SPECIFIC REQUESTS, AND I'LL, I'LL GET INTO THOSE IN A SECOND.
UM, SO I AM, UH, DEFINITELY IN FAVOR OF SOME OF THE CHANGES YOU'VE BROUGHT FORWARD.
UH, LIKE MY COLLEAGUES BEFORE ME SAID, IN TERMS OF THE WAIVER, IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT A PERFECT SOLUTION, BUT IT IS, UH, I THINK IT IS A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION, UM, IN TERMS OF THE COMPLAINTS THAT, UH, THAT WOULD BE FORWARDED TO YOU AND THE VICE CHAIR TO THE CHAIR AND THE VICE CHAIR.
I THINK ALSO THAT, LIKE THE COUNCILWOMAN SAID, THAT'S A GREAT NEXT STEP.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULD SHARE WITH THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, LIKE AS AN F Y I? YES, WE WOULD.
AND SO WE BUILT THAT IN, UH, FOR EVERY MONTH.
AND SO I'M, I'M NOT SURE IF YOU ALL WERE AWARE, BUT FOR THE LAST FEW MONTHS, WE'VE BEEN MEETING MONTHLY.
UM, AND SO BEFORE THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD WOULD ONLY MEET AS NEEDED, WHICH MEANS THAT IF WE DIDN'T HAVE COMPLAINTS, WE REALLY DIDN'T MEET.
SO I THINK WE MET MAYBE TWICE, UM, MY FIRST YEAR OR SOMETHING.
AND SO INTO THAT WE'VE BUILT IN, YES, THE FULL BOARD WILL BE BRIEFED ON ANY COMPLAINTS.
AND SO, UM, THAT IS THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, UH, DOES THAT FOR US.
AND I ALSO APPRECIATE THE MAYOR, UH, THE LEADERSHIP.
DOES ANYBODY KNOW? THEY HAVEN'T REACHED OUT TO ME AT ALL, SO I'M NOT, I HAVEN'T BEEN IN CONTACT WITH 'EM.
I, I'VE ASKED A COUPLE OF TIMES, JUST IN CASE.
'CAUSE WE'RE READY TO WORK WITH THEM.
WE'RE JUST READY TO MAKE EVERYTHING.
UM, IN TERMS OF COUNCILMAN COURAGES, UH, COMMENT ABOUT, UM, UH, SORRY, UH, IDENTIFYING YOUR EMPLOYER.
WAS IT EMPLOYER AND ANYTHING ELSE? OCCUPATION AND OCCUPATION? UH, I, I AM KIND OF TORN ON THAT, BUT I THINK ABOVE A CERTAIN AMOUNT, LIKE MAYBE $250, UH, I'M THINKING ABOUT MY OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.
IF I HAD ASKED THAT OF PEOPLE WHO CONTRIBUTED MAYBE 75 OR A HUNDRED DOLLARS, I MIGHT HAVE GOTTEN LESS CONTRIBUTIONS.
BUT I THINK ONCE WE START TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE WHO CONTRIBUTE AT A HIGHER LEVEL AT $250, IT'S, IT'S LIKE THE COUNCILMAN SAID, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE PROUD TO, TO SUPPORT A CANDIDATE IF THEY'RE WILLING TO PUT THAT KIND OF MONEY BEHIND YOU.
SO I'D, I'D BE WILLING TO ENTERTAIN THAT, UH, WITH THE, WITH THE REST OF THE COUNCIL.
UM, I, I GUESS, WE'LL, WE'LL TALK ABOUT IT OFFLINE ONE BY ONE.
I'M, I'M GETTING FUNNY LOOK, SO, UH, WELL, ANYWAY, I'D BE WILLING TO, TO DISCUSS THAT AS WELL.
UM, I DO WANT TO TALK TO VERY FUNNY LOOKS RIGHT NOW, UH, FROM THE OTHER IVY LEAGUERS IN THE, IN THE ROOM.
I DO, NO, AND ACTUALLY, TO, TO THAT POINT, I DO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE VERY LOCAL REPRESENTATION THAT, THAT REPRESENTS OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, I DO WANNA TALK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE, THE REQUEST THAT I MADE.
SO, UM, I TALKED, UH, SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE HOUSING TRUST AND, UH, REQUESTING NOT A BLACKOUT PERIOD FOR ENTITIES DOING BUSINESS WITH THE HOUSING TRUST, BUT MERELY A DISCLOSURE.
I REALLY DON'T THINK THAT IS TOO MUCH TO ASK.
UM, I DID SPEAK WITH, UH, ONE OF THE ATTORNEYS AT ONE POINT, AND WE HAD A DIFFERENCE OF OPINION ON, YOU KNOW, THE CODE AS IT'S WRITTEN, STATED, UH, ANYONE DOING BUSINESS WITH THE CITY IS REQUIRED TO, UH, TO COMPLETE THIS DISCLOSURE FORM.
AND BUSINESS WITH THE CITY WAS CONSIDERED, UH, MAYBE HAVING A, A CONTRACT OR A, WHERE THERE WAS AN EXCHANGE OF MONEY, RIGHT? LIKE THEY'RE, THEY'RE GONNA COME AND PAVE OR, OR PUT SOME ASPHALT DOWN.
I CONSIDER IT DOING BUSINESS WITH THE CITY.
IF WE ARE APPROVING SOMETHING ON OUR AGENDA THAT GIVES SOMEONE, UM, YOU KNOW, PERMISSION AUTHORITY TO DO SOMETHING IN, IN OUR CITY, SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE OVERSIGHT OVER, I THINK THAT IS A FORM OF BUSINESS IF WE HAVE A, SOME SORT OF AGREEMENT WITH THEM.
SO FOR INSTANCE, WHEN, UH, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION IS, UH, WE HAVE SOME AGREEMENT, THEY HAVE AN AGREEMENT WITH A BUSINESS THAT'S COMING FORWARD, THAT'S THE TYPE OF BUSINESS WE'RE DOING WITH THEM.
WE MAY BE GIVING THEM A SMALL GRANT, WE
[01:25:01]
MAY BE GIVING THEM AN ABATEMENT.UM, BUT NONETHELESS, THAT'S A FORM OF BUSINESS THAT CAN BE SUBJECT TO INFLUENCE, WHETHER PERCEIVED OR ACTUAL.
AND I THINK WE OWE IT TO OUR CONSTITUENTS TO BE AS TRANSPARENT AS POSSIBLE IN THAT SITUATION.
AND, AND I JUST, I DON'T THINK A DISCLOSURE IS TOO MUCH TO ASK.
ANOTHER CONCERN WAS, WELL, IF WE DO IT FOR THIS ONE ENTITY, OH MY GOD, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO DO IT FOR EVERYTHING.
UM, I DON'T THINK THAT'S BAD EITHER,
BUT THE TRUTH IS, I, I TALKED TO KEVIN AND I SAID, OKAY, IF WE DID IT FOR THESE OTHER ENTITIES, UM, HOW MANY ARE THERE? AND WE DIDN'T KNOW.
UM, SO I THINK THAT IS A KIND OF SHAME ON US FOR NOT KNOWING HOW MANY OF THESE ENTITIES THERE ARE OUT THERE.
AND IT TURNS OUT THERE ARE ONLY SEVEN.
SO I DON'T THINK THAT'S A LOT TO ASK.
UM, AND IN TERMS OF THESE SEVEN, THEIR BOARD MEMBERS ARE MADE UP OF US, OF MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL.
SO WE ARE STILL MAKING THOSE DECISIONS.
WE ARE STILL TAKING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS.
SO I, I WILL ASK MY COLLEAGUES TO CONSIDER REQUIRING DISCLOSURE FOR, UH, DOING BUSINESS WITH THOSE TYPES OF, WITH THOSE ENTITIES THROUGH THOSE, UH, THROUGH THOSE BOARDS.
AND KEVIN, COULD YOU, COULD YOU GO THROUGH WHAT THOSE BOARDS ARE? YES, MA'AM.
AS A COUNCILWOMAN, UH, MENTIONED, THERE ARE SEVEN BOARDS, AND THESE ARE BOARDS THAT, THAT WOULD HAVE A POTENTIAL TO COME TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS OR, UH, SOMETHING.
BUT, UH, THERE'S SEVEN OF 'EM, AND I'LL JUST LIST THROUGH 'EM.
IT'S THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS EDUCATION FACILITIES CORPORATION, UH, OF WHICH THE COUNCIL MAKES UP THE BOARD, THE HEALTH FACILITIES DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION.
AGAIN, THE COUNCIL MAKES UP THAT BOARD, THE HEMISPHERE PARK, P F C, UH, THE COUNCIL'S, THE BOARD, AND THEN ALSO THE OFFICE OF URBAN REDEVELOPMENT, SAN ANTONIO, ALSO KNOWN AS R S A, AND THEN THE SAN ANTONIO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, THE SAN ANTONIO HOUSING TRUST FINANCE CORPORATION, AND THE SAN ANTONIO HOUSING TRUST PUBLIC FACILITIES, UH, CORPORATION.
THOSE LAST TWO SPECIFICALLY, OBVIOUSLY DEALING WITH THE HOUSING.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, KEVIN FOR, FOR FINDING THAT SO QUICKLY.
AND IN TERMS OF THE, UM, SO AGAIN, IF WE'RE, IF WE'RE GOING TO EXPAND THE BLACKOUTS FOR ZONING, AND THAT'S NOT AN EXCHANGE OF, OF DOLLARS TO FIRST MEMBERS OF, OF THE HOUSEHOLD.
I, AND, AND ZONING COMES TO, YOU KNOW, ZONING COMMISSION AND THEN IT GOES TO THE COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL.
I DON'T THINK DISCLOSURE IS TOO MUCH TO ASK.
UM, AND I HOPE THAT YOU ALL WILL, WILL CONSIDER, UH, THAT TYPE OF CHANGE IN, IN THIS CODE.
NOW, WHEN IT COMES TO THE HOUSING TRUST, THERE WAS ONE SPECIFIC REQUEST THAT I MADE, AND I KNOW THAT, UM, STAFF IS CONSIDERING IMPLEMENTING THAT INTO THEIR OPERATING PROCEDURES, UM, THAT HASN'T BEEN FULLY IMPLEMENTED YET.
I DO THINK THAT IS A STEP IN, IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
I DID MEET WITH STAFF ABOUT THAT, SO I, I APPRECIATE THAT MOVE.
UM, BUT I WOULD, IF I HAVEN'T SAID IN ENOUGH TIMES,
SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK AND, UM, AND FOR, FOR THE TIME THAT YOU'VE SPENT ON THIS THINGS.
WELL, AND COUNCILWOMAN, WE WILL BE DISCUSSING IT AT THE NEXT E R B BOARD NOW THAT WE HAVE A FULL LIST.
AND SO WE'LL, WE'LL BRING IT TO FULL DISCUSSION BY THE FULL BOARD FOR NEXT MEETING.
YES, YOUR, YOUR RECOMMENDATION, IT WAS CONSIDERED BY THE E R B AND THE STAFF, AND BY PROCESS WE'RE ALREADY IMPLEMENTING THAT IN TERMS OF WHEN, UH, THESE ORGANIZATIONS SUBMIT, WE'RE REQUIRING TO SUBMIT THE, UH, APPLICATION FORM THAT LISTS THE THINGS THAT YOU'RE REQUIRING.
THE ONLY ISSUE IS HOW WE, UH, THEN, UH, PUT THAT PRACTICE INTO THE CODE, WHETHER WE LIST THE ACTUAL GROUPS OR WE DEFINE IT IN SUCH A WAY THAT'LL COVER THE GROUPS WE WANT TO COVER.
BUT BY PRACTICE, WE ARE DOING WHAT YOU'RE SUGGESTING ALREADY.
UM, AND THAT IS FOR ALL SEVEN ENTITIES OR FOR ONLY THOSE TWO? UM, I KNOW OF THAT FOR SIX OF 'EM.
THE ONLY QUESTION I HAD IS ON THE SAN ANTONIO HOUSING.
I THINK THAT ONE WE'RE GONNA START MM-HMM.
UM, BUT FOR THE OTHER ONES, I THINK WE'VE ALREADY STARTED MM-HMM.
UM, BUT THAT ONE, AS I UNDERSTAND IT, WE'RE GONNA, FOR ALL SEVEN, WE WILL IMPLEMENT IT FROM A PROCESS STANDPOINT.
AND I'LL JUST SAY LIKE, THAT'S, WHEN IT COMES TO THE HOUSING TRUST, THAT'S PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE FINANCING BY THAT ENTITY MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR, FOR DEVELOPER A TO PROVIDE AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR US.
AND THAT'S GREAT, BUT ALSO TO MAKE A PROFIT MARGIN THAT MAKES IT WORTHWHILE FOR THEM TO DO IT, TO DO THAT.
SO THERE IS A FINANCIAL, FINANCIAL INTEREST IN THAT.
COUNCILWOMAN AL, COUNCILMAN PERRY.
GARCIA, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
I DO HAVE A COUPLE OF, UH, QUESTIONS HERE ON, ON THE, UH, PROCESS THAT THE, UM, YOU KNOW, ETHICS COMPLAINTS COME IN.
THE CURRENT PROCESS IS, WHERE DOES IT GO TO FIRST? SO IT WILL COME TO THE, WELL, IT DEPENDS.
[01:30:01]
SO IF IT'S FILED TO THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE, GO AHEAD.CURRENT, THE CURRENT PROCESS IS THAT THEY COME TO OUR OFFICE AND FILE A COMPLAINT WITH OUR OFFICE.
AND THEN WHERE DOES IT GO? WE SUBMIT THAT COMPLAINT TO THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
AND HOW MANY OVER THIS THREE YEARS, YOU'RE SAYING THERE'S ONLY BEEN 26 TOTAL THAT HAS COME TO YOU IN YOUR OFFICE? THAT'S CORRECT.
UM, SO YOU'VE GOTTEN 26, RIGHT? SHE, THEY, THEY'RE TRYING FILED WITH THE CITY CLERK.
SHE THEN FORWARDS BOTH THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE TO MY OFFICE, OUR COMPLIANCE AUDITOR.
WE HAVE RECEIVED 26 COMPLAINTS OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS.
UM, YEAH, I, I, I, I SHARE COUNCILMAN BROCK HOUSE APPLIES.
UH, WE GRINDS, UH, CONCERNS ABOUT, UH, AN INDEPENDENT, UM, PERSON OR AUTHORITY AND WHO'S THEIR AUTHORITY AND WHO, WHO'S GONNA WATCH OVER THEM.
AND, YOU KNOW, IT, IT JUST BRINGS UP TO ME A LOT OF DIFFERENT QUESTIONS IN THAT, THAT PARTICULAR PROCESS AS TO WHO'S ACCOUNTABLE TO WHO, UH, IN THAT.
SO IT'D BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHAT Y'ALL COME UP WITH ON FURTHER RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND I'D SURE LIKE TO, UH, DISCUSS THAT FURTHER WITH YOU AS WELL.
UH, LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS CAMPAIGN.
YOU KNOW, I GOT A RECOMMENDATION TO SOLVE ALL THIS CAMPAIGN FINANCES.
EVERYBODY DO AWAY WITH ALL CANT CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS.
NOBODY CAN CONTRIBUTE TO A, TO A POLITICIAN.
WOULD THAT TAKE CARE OF IT? SURE.
LITTLE BIT UNFAIR, BECAUSE THEN BASICALLY WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, YOU GOTTA HAVE SOME MONEY IN YOUR BANK IN ORDER TO RUN MM-HMM.
SO IT'S, IT'S UNFAIR, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
UM, I, I DON'T, I DON'T, I DON'T SEE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS AS BEING OUR MOTHER'S MILK, THOUGH.
I, I, I THINK, UH, YOU KNOW, I, I LIKEN, UH, I I WOULD SAY THAT IT'S REACHING OUT TO PEOPLE THAT AGREE WITH YOUR POSITION AND HOPEFULLY THEY, THEY SUPPORT YOU IN ELECTION AND THEY'RE WILLING TO SUPPORT IT WITH A, A FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION.
SO I, I DON'T SEE THAT AS MY REASON FOR RUNNING OR WHAT, WHAT, UM, PROMOTES THEM TO, UM, MAKE A CONTRIBUTION.
BUT, UH, HAVING SAID THAT, I, I DO HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT HOW, WHY, I MEAN, THIS IS ONE THING THAT I REALLY HATED ABOUT CAMPAIGNING, WAS GOING OUT AND ASKING FOR A CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION.
I, I REALLY THOROUGHLY HATED THAT.
AND I'M LOOKING ACROSS THE BOARD HERE, PROBABLY IT'S IN NOBODY'S NATURE, BUT IT'S, IT'S THE NATURE OF THE BEAST, YOU KNOW, RUNNING FOR OFFICE, IT TAKES MONEY.
AND, UM, UH, I THINK THE CITY HERE, NUMBER ONE, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE PRETTY STRINGENT AS WE ARE.
UM, I, I'VE GOT CONCERNS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, MAKING THAT SPIDER WEB EVEN BIGGER TO CAPTURE MORE PEOPLE AND GET MORE DATA AND GET MORE INFORMATION OUT THERE TO, UM, I, I DON'T WANNA SAY EXPOSED, BUT TO, UM, LOOK AT EVERY LITTLE DETAIL THERE IS OUT THERE ABOUT A CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION.
I, I, YOU KNOW, AS HARD AS IT IS NOWADAYS TO DO THAT, WE'RE JUST TALKING ABOUT MAKING IT HARDER.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, IT IS JUST VERY UNFAIR TO FOLKS THAT WANT TO GET INTO POLITICS AND SERVE THEIR, UH, NEIGHBORHOODS, THEIR DISTRICTS, WHATEVER, UH, TO COME DOWN WITH ADDITIONAL RESTRICTIONS AND DISCLOSURES AND THAT KIND OF THING THAT THEY FEEL IS INVADING IN THEIR PRIVACY AND THEIR WHAT, WHO THEY WORK FOR, ALL THAT OTHER STUFF THAT, YOU KNOW, DISCOURAGES THEM FROM SAYING, HEY, I'M GONNA SUPPORT THAT GUY OR THAT GAL, UH, BECAUSE I AGREE WITH WHAT THEY'RE, UH, RUNNING ON AND I WANT TO HELP THEM IN THEIR CAMPAIGN.
I, I JUST, UH, I, I, I'VE GOT BIG CONCERNS ABOUT THAT.
I, I DON'T WANT THAT SPIDERWEB TO GET ANY BIGGER TO, UH, PRECLUDE THAT FROM HAPPENING.
UM, I, I GOTTA CONFESS, I NEVER GAVE A CONTRIBUTION TO ANYONE IN MY WHOLE LIFE.
I NEVER DID THAT, YOU KNOW? AND, UM, I THINK BACK AS TO WHY I DIDN'T DO IT, I SAID, WELL, GEEZ, YOU KNOW, IF THEY WANNA RUN, THEY CAN PAY FOR IT THEMSELVES.
BUT NOW HAVING DONE THIS
AND, UM, IN TODAY'S ECONOMY, IN TODAY'S POLITICS, YOU CANNOT EXPECT TO DO VERY WELL IF YOU DON'T PUT SOME DOLLARS OUT THERE TO RUN FOR THESE OFFICES.
WHICH, UM, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, UH, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A CAPITALISTIC SOCIETY AND, AND, UH, YEAH, IT, IT TAKES MONEY TO BE SUCCESSFUL, UM, IN, IN A POLITICAL CAMPAIGN, UNFORTUNATELY, THAT'S THE WAY IT IS.
[01:35:01]
UM, HOW ABOUT PUBLICLY FINANCED CAMPAIGNS? WELL, THERE, YOU KNOW, UH, I, I REALLY RESPECT WHAT YOU SAY, MR. COURAGE, BUT, UH, UH, COUNCILMAN COURAGE, EXCUSE ME.BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, LET'S NOT MAKE THIS SO CONSTRICTIVE THAT, UM, YOU'RE DISCOURAGING SOMEONE FROM SUPPORTING WHO THEY WANT TO SUPPORT.
I MEAN, THERE'S A, THERE'S A REASON WHY THEY'RE GOING TO CONTRIBUTE TO YOUR CAMPAIGN.
UM, I, I, YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S ALL I'LL SAY ON THAT.
UM, JUST POINTS OF CLARIFICATION, UH, DOCTOR, SO, WELL, I ACTUALLY TOO, SO WHEN YOU'RE SAYING THE HOUSING TRUST, YOU MEAN P F C AS WELL.
UM, BUT THEN ALSO, UM, WHENEVER THIS COMES UP, UH, AND WHEN WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS, WILL THE E R B PLEASE MOVE FORWARD AND BRING ALSO A RECOMMENDATION OF WHEN TO START THE IMPLEMENTATION? 'CAUSE I THINK IF WE HAVE A LOT OF CHANGES, WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE VERY NEED TO KNOW FULL WELL WHAT WE'RE GOING TO GET INTO.
SO IF Y'ALL CAN PLEASE GIVE THAT RECOMMENDATION OF HOW LONG IT WOULD TAKE, I'D APPRECIATE IT.
WE'LL HAVE A TIMELINE FOR YOU THAT, THANK YOU.
AND I JUST HAD A QUICK FOLLOW UP IF I CAN.
UH, ARE WE JUST KIND OF SPEAKING AND, AND SPEAKING THIS INTO LAW NOW, OR ARE WE TAKING THIS TO A NEXT STEP? I, I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE, WHAT IS THE PLATFORM? IT WAS MY UNDERSTANDING WE'RE TAKING IT TO THE NEXT STEP, SIR.
YEAH, LET'S TALK TO KEVIN, IF I CAN.
I GUESS THE, THE RECOMMENDATION, UH, WOULD BE THAT IT DOES GO TO THE NEXT STEP.
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THIS IS DISCUSSION.
AND SO FOR THIS TO, TO BE IN PLACE, WE WOULD, UH, HAVE TO TAKE IT TO A SESSION AND TO CODIFY THIS INTO THE CURRENT ETHICS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE CODE.
AND, YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU HAVE THE RED LINE VERSIONS OF BOTH, UH, CODES, UH, IN Y'ALL'S PACKETS.
AND, YOU KNOW, SO THIS PRESENTATION REPRESENTS THOSE RED LINE VERSIONS.
Y'ALL CAN MODIFY THAT, UH, BEFORE IT GOES TO FULL SESSION.
I, I THINK I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS A CURRENT DRAFT OUT THERE THAT EXISTS THAT WOULD IMPLEMENT RULES TO COUNCILWOMAN VIA GROUND'S POINT.
WE DON'T WANNA KNOW WHEN THOSE RULES ARE GONNA GO INTO EXACTLY EFFECT IN MANY CASES BECAUSE IT, SOME OF THOSE INCLUDE EXTRA FINANCIAL REPORTING DATES.
UM, AND A LOT OF US ARE VERY CONSCIOUS OF THAT AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE NOT FALLING OUTSIDE THE RULES OF REPORTING WHEN WE'RE GETTING CONTRIBUTIONS AND NOT, SO IF THOSE RULES ARE SHIFTING, WE JUST WANNA GET A SENSE OF THE RUNWAY WE HAVE PREPARED, AND THERE'S A SYSTEMS COMPONENT TO GOING FROM BY OUR SEMI, UH, ANNUALLY TO, TO QUARTERLY.
SO THAT'S GOTTA BE WORKED INTO THE PROCESS OF WHEN WE ACTUALLY IMPLEMENT, UM, THESE, THESE RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND WHAT WE'VE SEEN BEFORE US ARE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE WOULD FIND ALSO INCLUDED IN THE RED LINE VERSION OF THE DRAFT THAT WE CAN REVIEW BEFORE POTENTIAL A SESSION.
SO AS AN EXAMPLE, IF, UH, YOU KNOW, COUNCIL OF COURAGE, WHICH BROUGHT UP A DISCUSSION OF, OF, YOU KNOW, EMPLOYERS DISCLOSING DONORS, EMPLOYERS, AND EMPLOYEES WHO ARE WORKING FOR A CERTAIN COMPANY, THAT'S, THAT'S ONE WHERE I, YOU KNOW, STILL NOT FALLING DOWN ON THE IDEA OF THINKING THAT THAT'S THE BEST PRESCRIPTION FOR A, A PROBLEM AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.
UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S CERTAINLY WORTHY OF THE DEBATE, BUT WE'LL SEE IT REFLECTED AS A RECOMMENDATION THAT IN THAT SPECIFIC CASE, THE E R B IS NOT RECOMMENDING THAT WE GO TO THOSE DISCLOSURES.
SO THE RED LINE VERSION THAT YOU WILL SEE WILL NOT INCLUDE THAT LANGUAGE.
SO TO BE CLEAR TO THE COUNCIL COUNCILMAN, ENCOURAGE, IF HE WANTED TO MAKE A CASE FOR THAT, HE WOULD REACH OUT TO YOU ALL OR TO THE REST OF THE COUNCIL AND THEY'D MAKE A CHANGE ON THE DAAS DURING THE A SESSION SUGGESTION? CORRECT.
I JUST WANNA BE CLEAR, I I, I DON'T KNOW, I, IT COULD BE ME, BUT I JUST HEARD A LOT OF DEBATE HERE AND IT WOULD SEEM ODD TO ME.
I MEAN, I, I I GUESS THAT WE GO STRAIGHT TO A SESSION FROM THIS POINT WHEN I, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF UNSETTLED.
I MEAN, THERE'S SEVERAL UNSETTLED ITEMS I WOULD ASK THAT WE, WHAT, WHAT YOU, I WOULD LIKE TO PUT THIS ON THE TABLE TO THE TEAM HERE, WHICH IS LET'S COME BACK AGAIN TO ANOTHER B SESSION AND LET'S HAVE CURRENT, LET'S, THIS, THIS PRESENTATION IS VERY THOROUGH, BUT IT'S ALSO, I MEAN, WHEN I'M GOING THROUGH IT, I WAS HAVING, I DON'T ABOUT ANYBODY ELSE, BUT A HARD TIME FOLLOWING WHAT THE CHANGES EXACTLY WERE, AND NOW WITH THIS DEBATE, WHICH I FELT WAS A VERY GOOD DEBATE TODAY, THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS.
SO I KNOW THAT IF IT COMES UP IN, I OBVIOUSLY WE'LL HAVE PRE BRIEFINGS, RIGHT? RIGHT.
BUT THEN THERE'S GONNA BE A LOT OF MOTIONS AND CHANGES, AND I KNOW I'M GONNA BE AMENDED STUFF ON THE DICE RIGHT.
AND, AND I JUST THINK THAT'S NOT A VERY BENEFICIAL WAY, AT LEAST IF WE CAME BACK TO ANOTHER B SESSION AND THEN HAD A TABLE THAT SAID CURRENT CODE RECOMMENDED CHANGE.
SO THAT WE JUST DEALT WITH THAT IN, IN YOUR PACKET RIGHT NOW, ONE OF THE ATTACHMENTS THAT SHOULD BE THERE, I BELIEVE IT IS, IS A TABLE.
[01:40:01]
KNOW, BUT THIS IS, BUT THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CONVERSATION HERE THAT THERE'S PEOPLE THAT ARE SEVERAL POINTS THAT AREN'T, THEY'RE NOT HAPPY WITH, RIGHT? SO, AND, AND, AND THE CHAIRS SAID, WE'LL TAKE SOME OF THOSE BACK BOARD.I DON'T THINK WE'RE READY TO GO TO AN A SESSION WITH THEM, BUT THAT'S ME.
I'LL JUST PUT THAT ON THE TABLE.
AND, AND I PREFER TO CONTINUE TO DEBATE THESE ITEMS. UH, THESE ARE INSTITUTIONAL, SYSTEMIC CHANGES WE'RE, WE'RE ADVOCATING FOR HERE.
AND I THINK IT DESERVES, UH, MORE TIME.
I'LL JUST PUT THAT ON THE TABLE.
COUNCILMAN, COUNCILMAN PALICE.
JUST REALLY SHORT, I, I, I WILL POINT OUT COUNCILMAN BROCK HOUSE.
I WAS WONDERING TOO, WHILE YOU WERE SPEAKING, AND I DID FIND THEY DID INCLUDE A, A RED LINE VERSION OF THE PROPOSED CHANGES FOR THE CODE, WHICH IS VERY HELPFUL.
UM, WAS THERE ANY DISCUSSION BY THE E R B WITH REGARDS TO THE CAP OF $500, UM, UH, FOR CONTRIBUTION LIMIT? DR.
GARCIA? I'LL LET HER ADDRESS THAT ONE.
WE DIDN'T, UM, DISCUSS IT IN DETAIL, AND I BELIEVE IT'D BE, IT, IT WAS BECAUSE OF THE $500.
UM, I BELIEVE IF WE DID ANYTHING OVER THAT, IT WOULD BE CONSIDERED IT OR NO, NO, WE DIDN'T.
NO, THERE WAS NO DISCUSSION OVER THE 500.
WHY NOT? I DON'T, I THINK WE WERE JUST WORKING ON EVERYTHING ELSE, AND WE DIDN'T CONSIDER THAT.
BUT WE'RE GONNA GO BACK NOW TO THE ETHICS REVIEW BOARD, UM, AND WE DO HAVE, UH, COUNCIL TO COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL'S POINT, WE'LL ALSO GO BACK AND REVISIT WHAT, UH, COUNCILMAN COURAGE MENTIONED.
UM, AND SO WE'D BE HAPPY TO DO THAT IF YOU'D LIKE US TO, SINCE WE'RE GOING BACK TO, UH, THE FULL E R B TO DISCUSS IT FURTHER.
YEAH, I, I MEAN, I'LL, I'LL TELL YOU THAT, YOU KNOW, WHEN IT COMES TO CAMPAIGN FINANCE, THAT NUMBER IS IMPORTANT TO US.
UH, AND WHETHER THAT NUMBER NEEDS TO STAY THE SAME OR GO UP, IT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING I'D LOVE IT FOR YOU GUYS TO DISCUSS AND BRING BACK RECOMMENDATIONS.
UH, SO, UH, THAT, THAT WOULD BE MY ONE REQUEST.
AND IN LIGHT OF THAT ONE REQUEST, AND IN LIGHT OF WHAT I'M HEARING FROM YOU, YOU KNOW, THE NEXT STEP BEING, TAKING IT TO A SESSION TO ME SEEMS PREMATURE.
I MEAN, IT SOUNDS TO ME LIKE YOU GUYS STILL HAVE SOME BAKING OF THE CAKE TO DO BEFORE YOU BRING IT BACK UP AGAIN IN LIGHT OF THESE COMMENTS, RIGHT? IN LIGHT OF THESE COMMENTS, YES.
SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR TWO YEARS.
SO IDEALLY, SO GET A LONGER, A LITTLE LONGER IF WE HAVE ANYTHING THAT WE COULD, BUT, BUT YES.
SO WE, UH, NEXT STEPS WOULD BE TO, UM, HAVE A FULL E R B UM, DISCUSSION, RIGHT? RIGHT.
AND SO TO DO SOME RESEARCH ON THESE THREE ADDITIONAL ITEMS AND THEN BRING IT BACK AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, UH, BUT TO HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO DO SOME DUE DILIGENCE.
AND I THINK IT WAS ALL ABOUT THAT.
WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE HAD, UH, EVERY, UH, EVERY ANGLE, UH, POSSIBLE COVERED, AND YOU JUST DISCOVERED A EVEN, SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT MAYBE WE DIDN'T NECESSARILY TALK ABOUT.
SO THIS IS GONNA, YOU COULD GO ON AND ON DISCUSSING CHANGES.
UM, BUT WE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WOULD LOVE TO GET TO SOME SORT OF A POINT OF STOPPING EVENTUALLY, BUT NO PROBLEM.
WE CAN GO BACK AND RECOMMEND THE THREE CHANGES OR THE THREE CONSIDERATIONS BROUGHT UP TODAY FURTHER WITH THE FULL ETHICS REVIEW BOARD TODAY.
WE ONLY HAVE THREE MEMBERS HERE, SO THANK YOU.
UM, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, THE ONLY REALLY QUESTION IS WITH ON SLIDE 18, AND I THINK YOU'VE HEARD THIS SEVERAL TIMES REGARDING TWO DASH 3 0 9, UM, I, I THINK WE NEED TO, TO REALLY LOOK AT THIS AND REALLY DEFINE WHAT WE'RE, WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH HERE.
UM, I, I THINK WE WE'RE LOOKING AT PROPERTY OWNERS, LOBBYISTS, OR ATTORNEYS OR CONSULTANTS, THE, THE HIGH DOLLAR INDIVIDUALS WHO CONTRIBUTE THE, THE, THE MASSIVE, YOU KNOW, $500 TO OUR, OUR CAMPAIGNS.
WHAT I DON'T WANT TO DO IS DISREGARD OR, UM, CAUSE HURDLES FOR THAT YOUNG PROPERTY OWNER WHO CAN GIVE 10, $20, UM, FOR A ZONING CHANGE, OR THAT THEY'RE COMING FOR THE CITY FOR SOMETHING, BUT THEY WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN THE POLITICAL ARENA AS WELL.
SO I'M NOT SURE IF WE CAN, IF WE CAN GET CREATIVE AND LOOK AT DOLLAR AMOUNTS, NOT, NOT NECESSARILY LABELS ON INDIVIDUALS, OR HOW DO WE CLASSIFY AN ATTORNEY, IF AN ATTORNEY REPRESENTS A PERSON THAT WANTS TO CONTRIBUTE ON A MATTER THAT'S MAYBE A TRAFFIC TICKET MM-HMM.
SO I, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT AREA THAT WE NEED TO, TO KIND OF LOOK INTO AND DIVE INTO.
UM, I THINK IT'S A GREAT FIRST STEP, LIKE MY COLLEAGUES.
I THINK WE, IT'S IN TERMS OF FURTHER DISCUSSION, AND THEN ALSO TO, TO KIND OF AGREE WITH, UH, MY COLLEAGUE COUNCILMAN PERRY, IF, AND COUNCILMAN PAL TO A CERTAIN EXTENT, UM, IF WE'RE GONNA CREATE PARAMETERS TO MAKE IT MORE DIFFICULT TO, TO CONTRIBUTE, BUT WE MAY NEED TO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION ON RAISING, UH, HOW MUCH FOLKS CAN CONTRIBUTE.
UM, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY THOUGH, I DO NOT WANNA DISREGARD THOSE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO GIVE SMALL AMOUNTS, 10, $25, BUT THEY MAY BE A PROPERTY OWNER, OR THEY MAY BE INVOLVED IN THE CITY SOMEHOW.
I WANT KEEP THEM ENGAGED TOO, BECAUSE THEY'RE THE ONES THAT WE'RE HERE FOR.
UH, WE'RE HERE TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THOSE HIGH DOLLAR INDIVIDUALS, IT'S THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE THE, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
COUNCILMAN COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL.
[01:45:03]
THANK YOU, MAYOR.AND I'M, I, I JUST REMEMBERED YOU ARE A VOLUNTEER AND WE'RE
GO BACK AND DO THIS, GO BACK AND DO THAT.
UH, BUT THANK YOU AGAIN FOR, FOR YOUR WORK.
I NEED A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME,
UM, THE ONE REGARDING THE, UM, HOUSING TRUST AND THE P F C, UH, COUNCILMAN COURAGES REQUEST AGAIN, UH, TO CONSIDER THE, UM, THE CONTRIBUTIONS.
AND THEN THE THIRD ONE WOULD BE, UH, COUNCILMAN P'S, UH, REQUEST TO CONSIDER THE AMOUNTS OR THE POSSIBLE, UH, RAISE IN THE AMOUNT OR INCREASING IN THE AMOUNT IN THE ZONING.
AND THEN THE, THE TIMELINE, SORRY, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS FOR STAFF OR THE MAYOR, IS, ONCE THOSE CHANGES, OR ONCE YOU'VE REVIEWED THAT AGAIN, THAT WOULD COME BACK TO B SESSION, OR IT WOULD GO STRAIGHT TO A, JUST SO I'M CLEAR, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU ALL WANT A B SESSION, SO, OKAY.
IT'S YOUR CHOICE, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
AND I JUST WANT TO, UM, SHARE SOMETHING WITH MY COLLEAGUES IS WHEN WE DID DISCUSS THIS AT GOVERNANCE, WHEN YOU GAVE US THAT FIRST PRESENTATION, UH, I BASED MY NEWSLETTER ON THAT DISCUSSION.
SO I HAVE A LETTER THAT GOES OUT AT THE BEGINNING, AND I HAVE TO TELL YOU, BY FAR OF ALL THE NEWSLETTERS I'VE SENT OUT, I SEND ONE OUT EVERY WEEK.
THAT'S THE ONE THAT HAD THE MOST RESPONSES BACK.
SO, UM, I JUST WANNA TELL YOU, EVERYONE THANKS YOU FROM, FROM DISTRICT SEVEN.
THANK YOU, MAYOR AND THE COMMITTEE.
AND I'LL JUST WRAP UP AGAIN BY, UM, THANKING, UM, YOU, ADRIANA, AND THE WORK OF THE BOARD MEMBERS WHO ARE HERE.
UM, I WILL SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, FROM A PUBLIC PERSPECTIVE, WE CAN OVERCOMPLICATE THIS.
I MEAN, THE FACT THAT WE NEED ETHICS RULES IS, IS A COMMENTARY INTO OF ITSELF.
BUT, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO STRIKE AT IS THAT THE FOLKS THAT ARE BEING OVERSEEN BY THE RULES SHOULD NOT ALSO BE THE ONES TO CREATE AND, UH, OFFICIATE THE RULES.
AND, YOU KNOW, UNFORTUNATELY, UH, ONE COULD SAY THAT INTEGRITY NEEDS NO RULES, BUT AT SOME POINT WE NEED TO MOVE ON WITH SOME OF THESE EASIER ADJUSTMENTS, KNOWING THAT WE HAVE SOME MAJOR STRUCTURAL ISSUES THAT WE'VE BROUGHT UP MM-HMM.
UM, MY PREFERENCE WOULD BE TO COME BACK TO THIS AS, AS YOU KNOW, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, BECAUSE THERE ARE A NUMBER OF LOW HANGING FRUIT THAT WE CAN TAKE CARE OF, UH, BUT THEN DEAL WITH THE STRUCTURAL ISSUES, UH, AS NECESSARY WITH, AGAIN, THE CHARTER REVIEW COMMISSION AND, AND, UH, COMMON CAUSE.
SO I THINK WE'VE GOT, UH, A CONCLUSION OF THIS DISCUSSION.
LOOK FORWARD TO COMING BACK TO IT.
UM, AND AT THIS POINT, DO WE HAVE AN EXECUTIVE SESSION? WE, NO.
UH, WE DO HAVE CEREMONIALS AT FIVE 15, INCLUDING A SPECIAL RECOGNITION, UH, OF SOME OF OUR CITY EMPLOYEES, SO HOPEFULLY EVERYONE CAN GET BACK HERE AT FIVE 15.
UNTIL THEN, ENJOY YOUR TIME OFF.