Hahn's Ethics Plan Called Impractical
Commission finds fault with sections of mayor's proposal.
Taking a dim view of Mayor James Hahn's proposals to reform campaign financing in Los Angeles, officials from the city Ethics Commission questioned Tuesday whether parts of the plan would be practical, enforceable or even legal.
After months of opposing major reforms, Hahn suddenly turned around and released his five-prong plan in February as county and federal investigations widened into possible wrongdoing by mayoral staffers and city commissioners linked to tying contract awards to contributions to the anti-secession campaign and individual political campaigns.
Ethics Commissioner Bill Boyarsky, the most outspoken critic of Hahn's proposals, questioned whether the city needs new campaign finance rules in the wake of a just-adopted ban on fund raising by city commissioners.
"What these proposals would do is add another layer of unenforceable, difficult-to-enforce laws to the books," said Boyarsky, a retired journalist. "It would muddy the waters."
Hahn has proposed barring lobbyists from raising money for city politicians and banning campaign consultants from lobbying city officials. A major provision barring city officials and candidates from asking commissioners to raise money for candidates or ballot measures mirrors a measure adopted by the City Council and signed by Hahn last month.
Ethics Commission staffers recommended rejecting that part of Hahn's proposal as well as a measure to ban city contractors, land developers and lobbyists from contributing to or raising funds for city officials and candidates. Contractors, land developers and lobbyists also would be banned from soliciting funds for a political party, ballot measure or charity at a politician's request.
Ethics Commission staff members expressed doubts that the prohibition would be enforceable.
On Tuesday, the five-member Ethics Commission took up Hahn's proposal for the first time but did not formally recommend for or against it. Hahn, who spent Tuesday in Washington, D.C., on city business, is scheduled to discuss his ideas with the commission in April, and the panel could take a position on them in May.
Deputy Mayor Carmel Sella, who spoke for Hahn on Tuesday, urged the Ethics Commission to act quickly.
Some critics have suggested that Hahn's push for quick action on the proposal after earlier opposing many of the measures he now advocates is intended to stymie rivals in the 2005 mayoral race. Hahn raised more than $1.3 million for his re-election bid in 2003, and some critics say adopting new fund-raising restrictions now would put challengers at a disadvantage in catching up.
Sella said in an interview that the 2005 mayoral election "is not a factor at all" in the rush to enact the latest measures.
"It's important to move forward," Sella said. "This is an important and far-reaching proposal. We don't have the luxury to sit back and wait."
Hahn has said his proposals would eliminate the appearance of "pay to play" in city government trading political contributions for access to city officials and lucrative contracts. Hahn's administration is facing accusations that a Hahn appointee on the city airport commission sought funds for the mayor in exchange for contracts at Los Angeles International Airport.
Some government-reform advocates have endorsed pieces of Hahn's proposal.
The Los Angeles-based Center for Governmental Studies urged the Ethics Commission to seriously consider Hahn's proposals and added that it "could restore some of the luster that L.A. has had in terms of its reputation as one of the most ethical cities in the nation."
California Common Cause also called on the Ethics Commission to seriously consider several of Hahn's proposals.
Ethics Commission Chairman Gil Garcetti noted that Hahn's proposal would prohibit city commissioners from raising funds for presidential candidates and said that would take the ban too far. Garcetti called on the City Attorney's Office to look at whether such a broad ban would be legal.
Although Hahn served as city attorney prior to being elected as mayor, his ethics proposals have not been thoroughly vetted by lawyers, Sella said.
James Nash, (213) 978-0390 james.nash@dailynews.com
See the article on Los Angeles Daily News website
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.)