Can we hire this guy in LA?

Standing up to public safety officers? Oh my God. This guy will be burned at the stake for heresy!


Saturday, July 21, 2007
Supervisor says deputies' pensions are illegal
John Moorlach singles out sheriff's deputies union for cuts.
By PEGGY LOWE
The Orange County Register

An Orange County supervisor's first step to reduce public pensions Friday placed sheriff's deputies on the defensive and triggered a legal battle that could have statewide consequences.

Supervisor John Moorlach, long a [public] union critic [as all politicians should be as public unions are anti taxpayer; LAAG ed.], announced his plan to cut pension benefits retroactively paid to members of the sheriff's deputies union by arguing they are an illegal "gratuity" that must be rescinded. He wants to cut the retirement payments by one-third by creating a "blended" formula.

The Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs, the only union Moorlach singled out, said it was surprised by the public announcement but will respond to the legal battle. Mike Carre, the union's interim general manager, wondered why Moorlach didn't ask for the union's opinion because the 1,800 members have been working without a contract since October and have been in negotiations.

"In a true collective bargaining environment, one side goes to the other and says, 'We want to talk about it,' " Carre said. "All of a sudden on a Friday morning, Supervisor Moorlach has a press conference."

The announcement comes seven months into Moorlach's first term as a supervisor, and his public launch sets the proposal into high gear. The five-member Board of Supervisors first debates the plan July 31, when Moorlach hopes to win approval to get an injunction that will halt some pension payments to retirees.

"How do you give a nice benefit when no one has paid for it?" Moorlach said, referring to the $2 billion unfunded liability of the county's retirement programs.

If the board gives Moorlach the go-ahead and a court approves an injunction, retirees' payments could be affected within months. The effort could take years, as it's expected to go to the California Supreme Court.

Moorlach seemed hopeful his plan would gather strength statewide, saying he planned first to take the issue to court, and then, "Every other municipality in the state would have to decide what action to take."

But a state coalition working to protect public employees' pensions quickly responded to the plan, calling it illegal and unethical. The county plan, coupled with Moorlach's support of a proposed statewide initiative that would cut the pensions of newly hired public employees, shows he wants to make public workers the "fiscal scapegoat," said Dave Low, chairman of Californians for Health Care and Retirement Security.

Here are the answers to some questions about the plan:

How does Moorlach justify changing a decision approved by a former board in 2002?

The first legal argument centers on the union's asking to reopen an existing contract in 2001 and winning that approval in 2002 for the "3 percent at 50" formula. The formula allows for what critics say is a generous annual pension at age 50 – 3 percent of final pay times years of service – but one the deputy sheriffs say is a well-earned retirement for people who work in dangerous jobs.

Moorlach's plan would blend two formulas, paying the deputies 2 percent for time up through roughly mid-2002 and 3 percent for time served after. He thinks that when the board approved the new formula and applied it retroactively, it was unconstitutional because of debt limitations on local governments and a constitutional ban on public-funds gifts.

Will this plan include the county's other unions?

No. The 13,500-member Orange County Employees Association, which represents the majority of county workers, doesn't fit into Moorlach's legal strategy because its members raised their contributions to pay for its 2.7 percent-at-55 formula.

How many people will be affected?

There are no specific figures, but it's estimated the plan could affect about 2,800 employees and 500 retirees.

Would Moorlach's plan save the county money?

The short answer is yes. The long answer is a little more difficult. County analysts haven't made a determination. Moorlach said the plan could save the county $184 million to $550 million, but it could also cost the county law-enforcement officers. Carre predicted many people thinking of joining the Sheriff's Department, as well as many current employees, may go to one of the city police forces, which use the 3 percent-at-50 formula.

SANTA ANA – Past pension benefits paid to members of the sheriff's deputies union are an illegal "gratuity" that must be rescinded, Supervisor John Moorlach said today.

In the formal announcement of his plan to cut public safety employees' retirement by a third, Moorlach said he will first seek an injunction against retroactive payments made on years served before 2002, creating a new "blended" formula for pensions.

Moorlach outlined a legal strategy he will ask the Board of Supervisors to approve July 31, hoping for long-promised public pension reform and stirring a political pot that will undoubtedly infuriate the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs union.

Wayne Quint, the union's president, did not return several calls seeking comment.

If the injunction is won, it could affect retirees' payments within months. That, in turn, could send some retirees back to work and certainly change life plans about spending. The entire effort could take years, as it's expected to go to the California Supreme Court.

Moorlach acknowledged that his proposal could affect hundreds of retirees and those still working.

"We're talking about people's lives, so we're not excited about what we're going to share," Moorlach acknowledged. "But we also have taxpayers who are going to pay a high price."

The three key legal arguments all center on the union's asking to reopen an existing contract in 2001 and winning approval in 2002 for the "3 percent at 50" formula. That allows for what critics say is a generous annual pension at age 50, but one that the deputy sheriffs say is a well-earned retirement for people who work in dangerous jobs.

Moorlach's plan blends two formulas, paying the deputies 2 percent for years before 2002 and 3 percent for the years served post-2002. He believes that when the Board of Supervisors approved the new formula, and applied it retroactively, it violated three provisions of the California Constitution:

Debt limitations on local governments.

The ban on gifts of public funds.

The barring of extra compensation for work already performed.

The 13,500-member Orange County Employees Association, which represents the majority of county workers, doesn't fit into Moorlach's legal strategy because its members upped their contributions to pay for its "2.7 percent at 55" formula.

Although he didn't have specific figures, it's estimated that the plan could affect about 2,800 employees and an estimated 500 retirees. Moorlach said the plan could save the county $184 million to $550 million.

Long a critic of public pensions, Moorlach has had several public battles with the deputy sheriffs union. That fight intensified last year after the union endorsed and helped finance his challenger. After the election, Moorlach called union leaders "thugs," then quickly called for an audit of a multimillion-dollar health-insurance fund administered by union leaders. He said the deputies should also accept the same cuts on retiree medical benefits that other employees took last year.

Union leaders fired back, sending 870 signed letters to Supervisor Chris Norby, the board's chairman, asking him to bar Moorlach from attending law-enforcement functions and funerals. During a dramatic board meeting in January, uniformed deputies showed up in force and told the board that being called thugs was irresponsible and demoralizing.

Skyrocketing public pension costs have gained attention across California, and many are urging state and local governments to trim the benefits or change how they are funded.

In December, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed a 12-member commission to identify how much the governments owe and suggest ways to fund the benefit programs. Orange County faces a $2 billion deficit in its pension system and $1.3 billion for retirees' medical benefits.

Rich Wagner, president of the Lincoln Club, a group of GOP power brokers, said he hadn't heard of Moorlach's plan. But the county's unfunded liability is "irresponsible" and shouldn't be left for future generations to pay with their taxes, he said.

"Whatever is done, it's prudent for the supervisors to take a look at the cause of that and what should be done for the future," he said.

Contact the writer: (714) 932-1484 or plowe@ocregister.com

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

Bloggers as watchdogs

This is why we need the internet to remain free and "neutral". Without the internet LAAG could not exist. Blogs are the "printing press" of the 21st century. They will become even more important in the future. The question is who is going to run them or run them off.... Just look at some of the blogs and website we link to. Very important info that you cant find on nbc.com (well at least for those that are not brain dead or just interested in celebrity "news")

Bloggers take aim at city governments -- and hit home

Some websites are watchdogs, others are just scurrilous, but their influence on the cities they cover is growing.
By Jonathan Abrams
Times Staff Writer
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-blogs23jul23,1,7719611,full.story?coll=la-headlines-california
From the Los Angeles Times


July 23, 2007

"Grandpa Terrace" didn't mince words. He wanted the mayor of Grand Terrace, a small city wedged between two scenic mountain ridges in San Bernardino County, run out of office.

The anonymous blogger posted documents on his website that, he said, showed that Mayor Maryetta Ferre and Mayor Pro Tem Lee Ann Garcia were beholden to developers putting up big-box stores such as Lowe's.

"We need to recall them now," "Grandpa Terrace" fumed a year ago. "We don't want more traffic, more crime, dayworkers just to bring in some pocket change, when the cost to the city will go up to combat the problems brought by these types of development."

His rants helped fuel a recall effort last year against the two council members. Although the campaign ultimately failed, his blog was another example of the growing influence of citizen journalists roiling communities across Southern California, many of which rarely are covered by newspapers or other traditional media outlets.

These muckraking bloggers say they have stepped in to fill the government watchdog vacuum. Some are anonymous, others are scurrilous and, on occasion, possibly libelous. And to local politicians, most are a royal pain in the tuchis.

Bloggers in the San Gabriel Valley have raised the alarm about a possible budget crisis in Sierra Madre; ones in the Inland Empire have written about the high costs of trimming city trees in Claremont and allegations that killers are getting away with murder in Pomona.

"We realize in today's electronic environment, it's a fact of life," said Grand Terrace City Manager Thomas Schwab. "The thing that's the most disturbing is they can put things on the blog that have no basis in fact, and you really can't refute it."

It may only be a matter of time before bloggers start to have a major influence in local politics and policymaking.

"It's inexpensive, and my guess is there are a lot of people who find it fun," said Matthew Spitzer, former USC Law School dean.

"There have always been citizens who love to go to city council meetings and see what's going on. Putting it on a blog makes it a lot easier and it increases accessibility to 24/7."

In Grand Terrace, the recall effort fell about 500 signatures short of the 1,506 needed to trigger the election. A citizen-driven group, buoyed by the blog, collected signatures at a Stater Bros. market and mailed petitions to residents.

"For years the city of Grand Terrace tried to keep residents in the dark," said resident Jo Springfield, a strong supporter of the recall effort. "The blog enlightened many residents to start asking questions and going to meetings."

Several bloggers interviewed by The Times insisted on anonymity, saying they feared a backlash from city officials.

All said they were residents of the area they report on and got involved because their community did not receive enough coverage from the traditional media.

"We want our words to stand on our own, and with anonymity, the only way someone can judge us is by what we write," said Publius of the Foothill Cities News Blog, who takes his pseudonym from the Roman whose name was used by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and James Madison when they wrote the Federalist Papers.

"If we send an e-mail to an elected official, the odds are we won't get a response," he said. "But if enough people read it, they are going to have to respond at some point."

The Foothill Cities Blog, which covers several cities in the San Gabriel Valley, was the first to report that Assemblywoman Nell Soto (D-Pomona) was absent from the Capitol for 25 days because of pneumonia. It was later reported that she still collected more than $20,000 in per diem pay.

The website also has been critical of Pomona's high crime rate, saying that the local press ignores the issue.

"It took a rash of violent crime, or should I say a rash of violent crime that finally received lots of press, but the council's new focus on law enforcement is commendable," said a post in June applauding efforts to hire additional law enforcement officers.

But the praise is mixed with criticism aimed at Pomona officials. The site drew the ire of administrators in May after posting that its city manager was forced to step down ­ which city officials said was untrue.

"It took me back to high school days when you gossip with girlfriends," said Pomona Mayor Norma Torres, adding that she may start her own blog to communicate directly with constituents. "Some of the information reads like a gossip column."

Pomona City Atty. Arnold M. Alvarez-Glasman sent a cease-and-desist letter to the website, ordering it to remove the post.

"While the City of Pomona strongly supports an individual's First Amendment Rights … it is difficult to respond to anonymous fabrications such as those published by you in your web-site publication," he wrote.

The website took down the post but enlisted free-speech attorney Jean-Paul Jassy to respond.

"In many ways, these kinds of sites are at the cutting edge and more modern vision of commentary," Jassy said. "The Constitution and the U.S. Supreme Court placed a high premium on making sure freedom of speech is protected, especially when it comes to commenting on public officials."

It is the anonymity that separates the bloggers from professional journalists, said Michael Parks, director of the journalism program at USC's Annenberg School for Communication.

"Journalists need to accept responsibility for their reporting and comments, and that provides for them to be identified," said Parks, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who is a former editor of the Los Angeles Times.

"Anonymous blogs are similar to writing something up, not signing it and putting it on a bulletin. It's more social commentary than anything."

Although blogs are protected under the 1st Amendment, they are vulnerable to libel lawsuits, said Erwin Chemerinsky, a Duke University constitutional law professor.

They present unique 1st Amendment challenges.

"They cannot have defamatory speech any more than a traditional media type; however, the difficulty with an anonymous blog is who is actually doing the blogging?" he said. "And if you ask a server to take it down, what happens if they refuse?"

Two years ago, the Delaware Supreme Court ruled that an elected official who makes a defamation claim against an anonymous blogger must have substantial evidence to support the claim. Otherwise the lawsuit could not proceed and the blogger would remain masked.

A similar case has yet to be heard in California.

The California Supreme Court, however, ruled last year that Internet service providers and bloggers cannot be held liable for posting defamatory material written by someone else. The case was brought by two doctors who said they were defamed by a San Diego activist for victims of problem breast implants who called one doctor "arrogant and bizarre" and the other "a bully and a Nazi."

In Claremont, former Mayor Diann Ring threatened the Claremont Insider blog with a defamation suit.

The blog has criticized moves by the city's landscaping and lighting district assessments and targeted former city officials, including Ring, for contracting with a water agency outside the city.

"When you turn on your tap, when you pay your water bill, or if your house burned down in 2003, think of Diann Ring; in fact, call her up and thank her personally for her 'vision,' " one April post said.

Claremont Mayor Peter S. Yao said the blog provided a bit of insight but had to be taken with a grain of salt.

"It certainly is one additional input for the City Council on how some of the population feels on certain issues," he said. "Occasionally, it sheds a little light on a situation, but most of the time it is a rumor mill."

For all the furor the blogs create, city officials could take a cue from Fontana Mayor Mark Nuaimi.

Nuaimi routinely posts on a blog in his city and said he welcomed it as a way to communicate with citizens.

"I'm not going to sugarcoat things," he said. "If somebody misses the issue, I'll tell them. I'm sure folks in the future will use whatever I've written and will twist it. Frankly, my job is to do my job, and part of my job is to answer people's questions."

jonathan.abrams@latimes.com

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

RV plan deemed unsafe

LAAG is going to have to call BS on the fire dept again. Lots of junk cars and huge RVs jammed in between single family homes is fine. Fireworks are fine. Nurseries and or dry brush under high power lines is fine. Homes backing up to powerlines are fine. But dont park an RV under them. Lets see this "study". Post it on the web. I know people who have lived right next to the powerlines since the early 1960's. Never had a fire. I think this is related to the LA Times story a few months back where a bunch of Pasadena residents got all fired up over this and so they likely leaned on the Fire Dept. to come up with a "study" (the folks in Pasadena actually partake in political activism unlike Lakewood residents). Again show us a fire anywhere in the state involving high power lines that was somehow made MORE unsafe for a firefighter due to an RV parked under them. Next they will say RV's cause the lines to fall. No intelligence or facts there folks. Just a parade of "what ifs". Sorta like the Bush administration before going into Iraq. Maybe the fire departments better stick to their roles as permanent heroes and get out of the politics business.


RV plan deemed unsafe
County Fire Dept. decision dooms right-of-way storage proposal.
By Karen Robes, Staff writer
Article Launched: 07/12/2007 09:32:17 PM PDT

LAKEWOOD - Los Angeles County Fire Department officials Thursday quashed efforts to develop a storage facility for 350 recreational vehicles on a utility right-of-way near Woodruff Avenue because the project posed an extreme fire hazard.

Fire Marshal Scott Poster sent city officials a new fire code regulation Thursday that now prohibits the construction of an RV and trailer storage facility beneath a transmission power line.

News of the new regulation crushes Lakewood's hopes of having 350 12-foot-wide by 40-foot-long RV spaces on the Southern California Edison right-of-way stretching from Allington Street to the Lakewood Community Gardens.

The project would have helped ease hundreds of RV owners' concerns about finding storage since new city laws took effect July 1.

Tired of the blight and traffic safety hazards posed by the oversized vehicles, residents voted in November to ban RV and trailer parking on city streets without a three-day permit.

"We thought we found a solution and we were of course disappointed when we heard from the Fire Department," Mayor Diane DuBois said. "But we have to abide by that."

The Fire Department decided to explore projects built underneath high-voltage transmission lines after Edison decided to lease out land to developers wanting to build self-storage, commercial buildings and projects other than light/agricultural, Poster said.

An official from Southern California Edison could not be reached for comment.

After conducting extensive research - which involved speaking with Edison consultants and assembling a power-line safety committee - Fire Chief P. Michael Freeman determined that firefighters and the public would be placed in unnecessary risks, including electrocution, if the high-voltage cables were to catch fire and land on a structure while a firefighter is putting out a blaze, Poster said.

"The dangers well exceeded the advantages," Poster said.

Also, power line failure could affect cities served by the cables, he added.

Despite the collapse of the 350-space project, residents may still see another storage facility being developed on Woodruff Avenue, just south of South Street.

Jim Isham, nine-year owner of Jim's Automotive on 5414 Woodruff Ave., has been working with the city to develop the property behind his business into an RV storage facility.

Isham, a Lakewood resident, said if his project is approved, his facility would provide 80 storage spaces and he would give priority to Lakewood residents.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

Long Beach Web Of Bike Trails Moves Ahead

http://www.gazettes.com/biketrail07262007.html

New City Web Of Bike Trails Moves Ahead
7/26/07
By Kelly Garrison
Features Editor

Plans for new bicycle trails that would connect paths from the San Gabriel River to the Los Angeles River will soon enter the design phase.

The Long Beach City Council approved unanimously on Tuesday a proposal to begin the “East-West Bikeway Connections and Signage Program” project, which would create new trail connections and new signs identifying them. Traffic and Transportation Manager Abdollah Ansari said that bicyclists will find “comprehensive coverage throughout the city” once the project is in place.

The design will consist of three parts. First, a bikeway will link the downtown area to the southeastern portion of the city — with additional connections to Orange County, the San Gabriel River, the Alamitos Bay area and the Seal Beach bike route system.

Another bikeway will link California State University, Long Beach, with the San Gabriel River Bike Path. Some paths will line busy roadways, while others will be situated in residential areas, Ansari said.

“It will provide local and regional circulation,” he said. “For a beach city, it’s good to have a continuous bike path system. People will be able to get to other areas by taking these river paths.”

The third phase adds signage throughout the system.

The city currently has bike paths that link different areas of the city, including the Shoreline Pedestrian Bikepath, but has no connector between the San Gabriel and Los Angeles rivers. Other trails include the Los Angeles River Bikeway, the San Gabriel River Bike Trail and the El Dorado and Heartwell park bike paths.

They range from two to about 30 miles in length.

“Right now, these are just scattered connections,” Ansari said. “This will provide alternative movements for recreational and commuting purposes.”

In addition, new signs and stenciling will be placed within the area of the project to warn vehicles of bikers on roadways. Designs also will include a new city bikeway logo to promote the paths for current and potential bicyclists, he said.

The project design should be completed by early next year, he said, with construction beginning by Dec. 31, 2008.

The paths likely would open within a year of their completion.

City officials chose KOA Corporation, based in Tustin, to design and develop the plans after reviewing proposals from two other firms.

The design phase will cost about $98,000 and will be paid for by federal and city money.

For more information about city bike paths, visit the city’s Web site at www.longbeach.gov/park.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

Perhaps a Presidential limo?

Sigh...this stuff never ends. "We work in state/local govt. We are privileged. We are the ruling class. We dont want to hear complaints from you 'little people'. Just pay your taxes and shut up." Hmmm well I guess the 'little people' found the internet. Read more about that here.


http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_6438788
Officials balk at driving hybrids
County supervisors cling to gas-guzzlers
By Alison Hewitt Staff Writer
7/26/07

The Board of Supervisors voted to encourage the county to use hybrid vehicles a year and a half ago, but several supervisors are still buying and driving regular gasoline-powered cars.

The supervisors asked in 2005 that the county buy hybrids for the county fleet to protect the environment.

But some of the supervisors and their press deputies described hybrids as generally too small for the county's five elected representatives, although all 16 new cars purchased for the supervisors' staffs since late 2005 have been hybrids.

"I don't see any benefit to driving large, non-hybrid vehicles on the highways," said Mark Bernstein, a USC politics professor and member of the USC future fuels and energy initiative.

"Hybrids are significantly cleaner than other vehicles," Bernstein said. "It's not like the electric vehicle, those tiny cars that were out a few years ago. Hybrids are regular cars."

Supervisor Michael Antonovich's press deputy said Antonovich, who has a Cadillac, is too tall and spends too many hours traveling each day to be comfortable in a hybrid.

Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke said she would need a hybrid large enough to ferry her and her constituents around, but
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the hybrid waiting list was too long when she got her Chrysler.

A spokeswoman for Supervisor Gloria Molina said Molina wanted an American car, but American-made hybrids were unsatisfactory, so she stuck with a Buick. Even Supervisor Don Knabe, who does drive a hybrid, noted that it was smaller than what he was used to.

Four of the five supervisors have replaced their county-provided vehicles since enacting the policy.

The cars are bought with county funds, then either leased by the supervisors for $670 per month - after they receive a $620-per-month car allowance and $70-per-month parking allowance - or the supervisors are taxed for their personal use of the vehicle, said Don Ashton, the administrative deputy for the executive office of the Board of Supervisors.

The county has replaced 170 cars in the fleet with environmentally friendly, gas-sipping hybrids, primarily Toyota Priuses.

Conversely, the supervisors' replacement autos have been large cars.

Molina drives a Buick Lucerne, bought by the county for $32,409; Burke has a Chrysler 300, bought for $37,854; Antonovich has a Cadillac DTS, bought for $31,663; and Knabe a hybrid Toyota Highlander, bought for $39,795.

Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who still drives the same car as when he and Antonovich authored the motion supporting hybrids, has a Buick Park Avenue, bought for $27,600.

There aren't many hybridized luxury vehicles available for those who prefer larger cars, said Matt Miyasato, a technology demonstration manager at the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

"Hybrids are better for the air than a regular gasoline-powered car," said Miyasato. "For air quality, there are some equivalent models out there among regular gasoline-powered cars, but where the hybrids really shine is in fuel economy."

The AQMD's "Clean Air Choice Vehicles" list includes the Prius, listing it as getting up to 60 miles per gallon. The list also includes Knabe's hybrid Highlander at up to 33 mpg. Also on the list, as a "Partial Zero-Emission Vehicle," is Molina's regular Buick Lucerne at up to 29 mpg.

"When you look at the Clean Air Choice list, there are very few large luxury vehicles on the list," Miyasato said.

The motion the supervisors passed in November 2005 called for cars to be replaced with hybrids only "where practical and economically feasible."

"This motion is designed to have the county make a priority out of buying ... hybrid vehicles," Yaroslavsky said at the 2005 meeting. "We can contribute in that way to cleaning our air ... we can do something about conserving fuel."

Tony Bell, Antonovich's press deputy, said the 6-foot-3-inch supervisor has to spend an unusual amount of time in his car - three to four hours daily - to traverse his large district and meet with constituents.

"For the supervisor's job, a large sedan is more suitable for covering an area twice as large as Rhode Island," Bell said. "Hybrids are small by design. They are lightweight, the materials can be fairly flimsy, and the interiors are not that large."

USC's Bernstein disagreed.

"A Prius is a really nice car. It's not a chintzy little car ... (and) the Prius meets all the crash tests that everyone else does," he said. "I would ask them if they actually went in to drive one ... They're not as big as a Cadillac DTS, but do they need that size vehicle?"

Those of Antonovich's deputies who have hybrids spend less time in the car than the supervisor, Bell said.

"It was Supervisor Antonovich's motion that began the process of replacing retired cars with hybrids," Bell noted.

Knabe also found hybrids to be too small, but ultimately settled on the SUV hybrid Highlander.

"Other than it being smaller than what I'm used to, it's very comfortable," Knabe said. "I'd driven some of my staff's Priuses, and I liked the feel of it, but they were way too small. It sounds hokey, but I wanted to do my share (for the environment)."

Burke said when she replaced her last car, there were no hybrids available for her or her deputies because there was a waiting list. She said she would be interested in exchanging her Chrysler, which she added gets 16 mpg in city streets, for a hybrid when her lease ends next year, especially now that hybrids are getting bigger.

"We have to get cars sufficient to be able to carry constituents or staff ... so we do have to have something of a certain size," Burke said.

Yaroslavsky, who co-authored the motion encouraging the purchase of hybrids, will keep driving his Buick until it's time to replace it, said his press deputy, Joel Bellman.

"Zev definitely intends to replace his car with a hybrid," Bellman said.

Molina's press deputy, Roxanne Marquez, said the supervisor prefers an American car.

"She did research to see if there were any hybrid vehicles that were to her liking, but it was important to her to drive an American-made car, and the only two American-made hybrids at the time in `07 were SUVs, and she was not comfortable driving one," Marquez said. "She is used to Buick, therefore we stuck with that."

Bernstein acknowledged that American-made hybrid options are limited.

"You really don't have too many options if you're buying U.S.," he said. "You basically have to buy the Ford Escape or the Lincoln."

alison.hewitt@sgvn.com

(626) 962-8811, Ext. 2730

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™