Showing posts with label Open Government: minutes/agendas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Open Government: minutes/agendas. Show all posts

March 18, 2011

"Sunshine Week" turns out to be rather overcast

We have to agree with this editorial. Transparency is not hard but some government entities (especially local ones) sure like to make it appear hard. This week was supposed to be the celebration of "Sunshine Week" but as the Illinois editorial below points out things are not so sunny in these United States especially at the local level. Again this only repeats what LAAG has been saying for years now. Make transparency a goal, a basic tenant of local government. And transparency means fully accessible on the web. Not in a filing cabinet in the clerks office at city hall. Well perhaps our new city councilmember will make transparency a goal for 2011. We really liked the "Sunshine Review" website idea and have linked to it before on the links section of our page (right hand side of this page).

Our View: Basic transparency shouldn't be hard for local governments


Posted Mar 18, 2011
http://www.pjstar.com/opinions/ourview/x1664570603/Our-View-Basic-transparency-shouldnt-be-hard-for-local-governments

As newspapers, broadcast stations and websites across the nation mark the annual Sunshine Week focusing on government transparency and accountability, most of the attention goes to the typical themes: open records requests, compliance with open meetings rules, the various attempts by politicians to neuter the laws governing both.

On that last score, it's worth noting that despite a promise by President Obama to boost transparency, his administration faced more requests for documents over the last year but responded to fewer than the year before, according to an Associated Press analysis, with responses taking longer than in years past.

Meanwhile, Illinois' central clearinghouse for public data celebrated its one-year anniversary at www2.illinois.gov/sunshine, offering quick links to a treasure trove of information on state spending and oversight matters and sometimes laying bare the dysfunction of state government. Some local governments still don't quite get the Open Meetings Act - the most recent being the Midland School Board, which had to re-vote on a lawsuit settlement last month after trying to handle the matter behind closed doors. And last week we detailed in this space the latest effort by Illinois lawmakers to limit the queries some people can make for government data.

But the end-all, be-all of transparency isn't just Freedom of Information Act requests and compliance with the Open Meetings Act. What matters just as much on a daily basis are the common things that, if a municipality takes the time to establish and maintain a website, ought to be included there. That information would include meeting agendas, archives of minutes from past meetings, and the names, phone numbers and/or e-mail addresses of current board members.

To be sure, taxpayers interested in what their officials are doing in their name and with their money can already go to government offices to get meeting agendas and minutes. But it's far easier to have such information just a few keystrokes away. Absolutely, elected officials should make it easy for constituents to become informed. Representing people means being accessible to them.

As you can see from the chart included with this piece, our sampling of local government bodies across central Illinois found many are providing at least that information, and in some cases offering plenty more for inquisitive minds. A handful have slipped behind in letting citizens in on the debates held, the decisions made, the spending authorized. If your board met back in February, why aren't those minutes online yet?

To the others absolutely falling down when it comes to the basics - the Dunlap School Board, where voters only have contact information for one of seven board members; the city of Chillicothe and the Marshall County Board, where constituents searching online can't find e-mail addresses or phone numbers for the folks calling the shots in those communities (there are no minutes for anything the Chillicothe council has done so far this year either) - the message is simple: Step it up.

Even open-government advocacy groups like the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform acknowledge that it can be tough for public bodies to determine what documents citizens have an interest in finding online. What we've described above are the bare minimum. Citizens should complain - now and at the ballot box later if these situations aren't remedied - or things will never change. In our experience, a local government that isn't forthcoming about the basics will try to hide far worse, for the worse.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

February 17, 2011

The Lakewood transparency in local government pledge

Update: see related post on need for transparency and our Candidate Review


We are asking all Lakewood City Council candidates, and incumbents, to agree in writing (they can just reply to us and we will post their pledge as weak or strong as it is) to the following transparency pledge and to introduce legislation to insure that a city ordinance or section is added to the Lakewood municipal code to address all these issues below. LAAG will be glad to assist in this process in any way feasible.

Some of these ideas can be implemented immediately. Some will take longer but that is no reason for foot dragging. All are very technologically feasible and are already being done by other local government websites. These proposals are all very low cost and quite frankly will cost less than most of what the city has spent so far on technology issues (had the full budget been posted as it should have we would know that figure!!)

Why Lakewood voters/residents need this pledge

"Transparency" is the linchpin to ensuring that the city government does what its supposed to do. Quite frankly it is one of the most important factors to ensure a democracy remains a democracy.

What do China, Iran, Egypt, N. Korea and host of other repressive regimes all have in common? No free press but most of all a total lock down on any information being leaked out other than what the government wants to have leaked out. The best way to insure you win re-election is make sure the voters never find out anything bad might be going on at city hall. The best way to do that is keep all information off line and away from snooping voters. Then when you run for re-election just say you support things like law enforcement, parks, baseball and puppies. Then get 2500 of your friends to vote for you no matter what and you are in. The rest of the voters have no idea what is going on as there is basically no media or investigative journalism going on (unlike in most larger cities) so the vast majority of voters have no real reason to vote...nothing bad is going on right? This is the formula Bell city officials used. Seem familiar to you? If Lakewood voters (all 41,000 of them) really felt strongly in favor of a candidate don't you think they would get more than 6% of the vote (3% of the population)? 2500 votes is not a mandate or an endorsement. Its a glee club.

Elements of this proposal were presented to (now) Candidate Joy Janes in December 2009 as proposed state legislation to be introduced thru Assemblyman Warren T. Furutani (D-Lakewood) but nothing ever came of it (no surprise there) Interestingly Janes re-requested it on 10/26/2010 (likely to use in creating her campaign website!). So it is not really a big surprise that she lifted some of our ideas to add to her current "platform" (of course with no thanks or attribution to LAAG).

Candidate Jeff Wood stated in one of his his campaign fliers he "support[ed] transparency in local government" but again no details what so ever on his website or anything else we could find on him. Disheartening. But this is typical with candidates. Say as little as possible. Just enough to get elected. Talking points are best. Don't use detailed substantive platforms, just mention your endorsements and that you belong to the YMCA. Who cares! We will discuss the candidates in detail in an upcoming post.

Both Wood and Janes are also long time sitting city commissioners so one has to wonder if they are so "pro" transparency why have they not enacted any of these proposals on their own commissions over the last 5 years. Again talk is cheap and politicians will say anything to get elected. That's why.

On Jan 7, 2011 LAAG sent all the candidates a link to some recent Long Beach proposed ordinances regarding transparency (here and here) so really all the candidates and the sitting council members have had more than ample opportunity to adopt these ideas as a platform but did not. LAAG also has posted numerous articles dealing with transparency over the years. The real question for voters is why have the city council and the two sitting city commissioners Janes and Wood not done more so far? What are they afraid of?What is the excuse they are going to hide behind?

We proposed our state legislation in December 2009. The City of Bell scandal broke in July 2010. Amazing. Again transparency is the key to keeping local government honest and under control. Anyone that fights against transparency is highly suspect as a politician in today's web enabled environment. Again its the appearance of impropriety that is the issue here not actual impropriety. Secretiveness breeds distrust. Oh and don't fall for the line that "all this stuff is out there" as its not. People don't have time to dig thru musty archives are do Public Records Act requests which as costly and time consuming for both the requester AND the city. People are busy with their lives. Government should make it easy for citizens to check up on what their elected leaders are doing. That should be part of what our tax money does. Posting it on the Internet accomplishes that at a very low cost.

This is a work in progress and will will amend this as time goes on as we refine it based on what other comparable cities are doing.Obviously there is lots of detail missing here which we will also try to flesh out as time goes by.

General conditions applicable to all postings:

* All material (material includes documents, photos, video or any other information in any form) must be posted as soon as it is made available to the city or city council. Static documents (like organizational charts) or information must be updated at least quarterly.

* All material must be posted on the web for a minimum of 2 years from date of posting regardless of the date of expiration of the information or notice. City emails should be archived for 5 years.

* All postings must visibly indicate to the viewer the day, month and year of the original date the document or material was first posted to the web;

* All materials posted must be text searchable (this includes pdf documents which can be rendered text searchable before posting)

* All postings to the web must be fully available to the "spiders" and "crawlers" of all major search engines such as google at the time they are posted and at all subsequent times. The material must also allow web search engines to "cache" posted material.

* Any material posted can of course be redacted to exclude private information already excludable from current Public Records Act request responses, such as home addresses, home phone numbers, social security numbers, drivers licences, etc.

* Postings of documents or other material must not require special software that must be purchased to view it. When possible documents should be posted in HTML or in open source formats. Documents or material must be downloadable and able to be saved on a viewers computer.

* If possible documents should have a unique URL or web address for the documents entire existence on the web.

* Any third party hosting site may be used to post documents but it should be a reliable host such as google.com and the city must use the most cost effective posting site and protocol.

* There must not be a user fee or registration requirement for viewing or saving any documents or material.

* Any Sheriff's department (LASD) material or that from any other contractor in city possession is subject to the same rules as the city with respect to posting and Public Records Act requests.

* The city can link to external government websites where such data is already posted so as to avoid duplication.

Material/information to be posted following above guidelines:

* Organizational chart for the entire city by department, listing the functions, duties and areas of responsibility of each department, in addition to all commissions and the city council. Also list the top three persons in each department with a photo, as well as that persons direct extension or phone line as well as their cell phone number, if city funded. This must be updated quarterly. All other employees or contractors working in the department listed by name and title and direct email address (not a general one).

* City email addresses (name@lakewoodcity.org) for all commissioners, elected officials, city attorneys, code enforcement people or any contractors working more than 20 hours per week for the city.

* video of all council and other city public meetings and include all public comments full length (not cut off like now after 30 or 60 mins and public comments intentionally cut off) at all city meetings (timely released on Chanel 31 via Time Warner and Verizon FiOS) and posted on line in an on demand streaming format so that it can be viewed at any time. Link the FULL agenda package and meetings minutes (when completed) with it. example from long beach In addition there should be an online public comment ability so that people can comment in writing via the internet on all agenda items and these comments should be viewable by all and archived.

* all written comments to city council or commissions by any person or entity.

* all so called "press releases" or information provided to local newspapers such as the Press Telegram will be posted to the city website the same day it is sent to any newspapers or publications.

* all information or "notices" required to be (or which generally are) posted in the city clerks office (or publicly posted) or posted in a newspaper of general circulation in the city (even though the City claims Lakewood has no newspaper of general circulation; see Govt. code sections 6000-6159) must be posted on the website at the same time with dates posted and expiration dates and shall remain posted on the site for two years.

* post all rules relating to Public records act requests, costs for copies, time frames and who to write to for such requests (example) Allow non profit groups (or individuals that could prove they were working as a “private attorney general” or for the “common good” sort of speak) to obtain records without cost if provided electronically and less than 10 hrs of government employee time is required to obtain them. Create a maximum number of free requests per year. Create a realistic pricing structure for the cost of providing digital info via email as opposed to paper. See prior bills (2006) SB 1832 and AB 2927 and (2007) AB 1393. Post all requests and responses to public record act requests.

* post links to all salary info posted here (this state site was put up due to calls from LAAG and many others after the Bell scandal broke). Post all other city salary/pay/reimbursements/per diem information not requested by the state controllers office on a quarterly basis.

* Post all sitting council members FPCC filed materials regardless of date or link to them on the FPCC site.

* Post all staff reports and presentations to the council, including photos, power points and video.

* Full agenda packets with the full agenda. example from long beach

* full meeting minutes with all attached followup information referenced or attached and linked to the meeting video. example from long beach

* Detailed City budget in excell or html form. Not only forecast but actual expenditures and check register logs. Update this quarterly. Also log all incoming revenue and source as well as cash surplus.

* The city's checkbook register should be posted online. This information provided should include: The amount of each payment; Date; Check number; To whom the payment was made (including the address); Scan of Invoice or Purchase Order or Check Request (this often provides significant drilldown detail including who approved it); What it was for; Budgetary authority for the expenditure; Functional expenditure category; Sources of funds; Links to the relevant contracts under which the payment was made.

* all FULL survey results paid for or commissioned by the city including information on the approximate geographical location (by street intersection or rounded street address of those polled) and number of resident polled.

* public calendar of all private meetings and public meetings under the Brown Act along with dates times and locations as well as contact persons for the meeting and anticipated attendees or speakers. Similar to what is being done now but in greater detail.

* list all business licences that are current and have expired in the past three years searchable by business name and address within the city

* list all vacant commercial property updated quarterly searchable by address or former tenant (Ironically we saw a city employee walking the streets just today looking at vacant commercial property. When we asked him what he was going he said making a list of all vacant commercial property sites so the city can create a master list...hmmm..so the taxpayers are paying for the collection of the data they just don't get to see it....wonder why...is it foreboding? Does it show how ineffective the city's redevelopment efforts have been vs what we have paid for them?)

* list all redevelopment funds as spent or scheduled to be spent that budget year by address

* City contracts should be made available to the public once they are completed and become final. Placing completed contracts on line - with all private, personal information redacted - would support and demonstrate openness and transparency in government. The Sheriff's Department (LASD) should be included in this requirement.

* adopt as many of the ideas in the two Long Beach proposed ordinances (here and here) as possible to the extent any items were not mentioned in this LAAG proposal or to the extent the Long Beach proposals detail more information.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

Comments:

One anonymous poster (likely a plant or one of the candidates...thus the anonymity) was perplexed why we were "blaming" lack of transparency on the sitting commissioners and not the sitting city counsel. We weren't. We are not letting anyone off the hook either, especially those who claim to be campaigning on transparency and also currently sit on city commissions. All we are saying is that there is no "transparency policy" at this time, so there is nothing stopping commissioners from being transparent other than state law. We welcome any information from the commissioners themselves as to how they tried to do things like post full commission agenda packets (not just abbreviated ones), why they did not obtain and or post all their email addresses and info on line etc. The campaigning commissioners apparently have the time to run campaign websites but not enough time to post their own blogs like this ever since they have been on a commission and or post public items or documents from their OWN commissions on their own sites. Nothing illegal about this. I have not seen a case made by the commissioners noted above for holding them blameless for their own lack of transparency on their own commissions or why we should blame the city council for the commissioners own lack of diligence. LAAG is not saying that the commissioners should set policy for the whole city, the city council or the city website. But again we see no indication that transparency talk amongst the commissioners running is anything but campaign fodder.

February 16, 2011

Why public official city email addresses are important

The news articles below regarding the continuing saga of the rampant corruption in the City of Bell is a reminder about what LAAG has been saying for some time: City council members using private email to conduct matters related to the city is ripe for abuse. The emails below were likely from public or city official email address used by Rizzo and others at the city. Had these emails not been on the city email server which was readily available to prosecutors (but rather on some private laptop or on a private email server that would require additional legal hurdles to get to) those emails would likely have never been located, even in a criminal investigation. City officials could also have argued that their "unofficial" city email was mixed with their "private" email and as such the entire private email account was off limits in any public records request for a city council person to produce all incoming and outgoing massages from such "private account". This is a huge problem in Lakewood as none of the current city council members have an official city email address (i.e. name@lakewoodcity.org) and in fact two of the current committee members running for city council are also guilty of the same problem most likely (Jeff Wood and Joy Janes). So if Janes and Wood, who have been commissioners in the city for years, dont have city email accounts after serving in the city for years, what are the chances they will do so if elected? You get the point. The other problem of course is unlike most cities, even the people in the city that DO have official city email addresses, they are not posted on the city website for all to see! (surely out of a fear that some angry citizen will contact them in writing and they wont be able to delete the email off the city server it as easily as they can voice mail).

Again the Bell debacle is what results from a lack of transparency.  It creates an environment ripe and tempting for abuse and it leads to misinformed voters who really have no sense of what is REALLY going on in the city behind closed doors. It is not that impropriety is always occurring but rather it creates an air of suspicion and an "appearance of impropriety" and this is a huge problem in and of itself. The fact that no current city council member or candidate has put forth a comprehensive transparency pledge or plan, other than just vaguely talking about it in a "talking point" or using the phrase as "window dressing" for the useless campaign fliers littering the mail now, is telling. Buyer beware. Talk is cheap and campaign promises are made to be broken. The only two rules in politics are (according to lobbyists we have talked to): 1. get elected; 2. get re-elected.


Revealing e-mails unveiled in Bell scandal
Monday, February 14, 2011
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=7958735&rss=rss-kabc-article-7958735

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Explosive evidence was unveiled in court on Monday in the city of Bell's salary scandal. Prosecutors filed documents quoting e-mails between former city officials that they say reveal their actions to hide their exorbitant salaries.

E-mails and other documents from former Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia's computer will show that beginning in 2005 she and former City Manager Robert Rizzo created phony contracts never approved by the City Council that raised their salaries to "outrageous" levels and made it difficult to determine exactly how much they were being paid, according to the 19-page memorandum from District Attorney Steve Cooley.

The e-mails were sent in 2009 by then assistant city manager Angela Spaccia as city officials were preparing to hire Randy Adams as Bell police chief.

Spaccia: "We have crafted our Agreements carefully so we do not draw attention to our pay. The word Pay Period is used and not defined in order to protect you from someone taking the time to add up your salary."

Adams: "I am looking forward to seeing you and taking all of Bell's money?! Okay ... just a share of it!!"

Spaccia: "LOL ... well you can take your share of the pie ... just like us!!! We will all get fat together ... Bob has an expression he likes to use on occasion ... Pigs get Fat ... Hogs get slaughtered!!!! So as long as we're not Hogs ... All is well!"

Rizzo had an annual salary and benefits package of $1.5 million a year when he was fired last year. Spaccia, who was also fired, was making $376,288 a year. Each of the six current and former council members facing charges was making about $100,000 a year.

Adams, who was paid $457,000 a year, was also fired but has not been charged with a crime. Prosecutors say simply accepting a huge salary is not illegal.

A hearing may begin this week to determine if there's enough evidence to try Spaccia and former city manager Robert Rizzo on felony charges of misappropriating public funds.

E-mails show Bell officials sought to conceal their high pay

Originally printed at http://www.wavenewspapers.com/news/local/E-mails-show-Bell-officials-sought-to-conceal-their-high-pay-116193539.html
By WIRE SERVICES
February 14, 2011

Prosecutors filed court papers Monday citing e-mails in which Bell’s former assistant city manager wrote that “we have crafted our agreements carefully so we do not draw attention to our pay” and another saying “we will all get fat together.”

In the court filing, Deputy District Attorneys Sean Hassett and Juliet Schmidt argued there is “substantial evidence” that former City Manager Robert Rizzo and former Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia “intentionally concealed their actions that were designed to grant themselves exorbitant pay.”

The filing documents e-mails sent in 2009 by Spaccia to Randy Adams as the city was preparing to hire him as its police chief.

“The word pay period is used and not defined in order to protect you from someone taking the time to add up your salary,” Spaccia wrote in one e-mail cited in the prosecution’s filing.

The prosecutors said Adams wrote in a separate e-mail, “I am looking forward to seeing you and taking all of Bell’s money?! Okay ... just a share of it,” and that Spaccia responded, “LOL ... well you can take your share of the pie ... just like us. We will all get fat together.”

“Bob has an expression he likes to use on occasion ... pigs get fat ... hogs get slaughtered!!! So as long as we’re not hogs ... all is well,” the document quotes Spaccia as e-mailing.

Rizzo, 57, and Spaccia, 52, are awaiting a hearing — which could begin this week — to determine if there is enough evidence to require them to stand trial on felony charges alleging they misappropriated public funds.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Henry G. Hall is expected to first determine if six current and former Bell City Council members should proceed to trial on similar charges.

Last week, the only current City Council member not criminally charged as a result of the public corruption probe testified that Rizzo virtually ruled the small blue-collar city in southeast Los Angeles County.

“Everything had to go through” Rizzo, Lorenzo Velez testified last Tuesday during the preliminary hearing for Mayor Oscar Hernandez, 63; Vice Mayor Teresa Jacobo, 53; Councilman George Mirabal, 61, and former councilmen Luis Artiga, who turns 50 on Tuesday; George Cole, 61; and Victor Bello, 52.

After finishing the preliminary hearing for the six defendants, Hall is expected to hear evidence against Rizzo and Spaccia, as well as additional charges against Hernandez and Artiga.

Rizzo is also charged with conflict of interest and misappropriation of records in a separate case that is expected to be heard last and to take about a day.

The eight were arrested Sept. 21 on allegations that they bilked taxpayers out of roughly $5.5 million through hefty salaries, benefits and illicit loans of public money.

Rizzo and other top city officials stepped down last July after the salary scandal broke.

The City Council members, who were earning almost $100,000 a year, significantly slashed their pay, but most balked at calls for their resignations. Artiga announced last October that he was leaving his post, saying “it’s in the best interest for the city of Bell that I resign.”

Lawyers for the six current and former Bell City Council members said their clients rejected plea deals that would have brought them two-year prison terms in exchange for admitting guilt and paying back all the money they allegedly looted from the city treasury.



Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

January 20, 2011

Brief report on the Lakewood city council candidate forum Jan 19, 2011

Update: Please see our Transparency Pledge for Candidates and our Candidate Review

Supposedly there were more than 100 people in attendance last night (not including organizers, staff and other gadflies). I don't know. Barely over 100 maybe. Lots of questions not asked. The questions were being cherry picked for a "mix of softball and hardball" questions and there was a preference for questions that were not multi faceted or hard hitting. The last question was "Who inspires you" I guess they could have also asked what the candidates favorite color was! There were at least 5 people that I heard complaining that their questions were not asked (they all seemed like good pointed questions albeit likely difficult to answer...but that's what we all came for right?)

A number of candidates talked abut experience (as is talked about in national elections) but as it has been said time and time before experience does not often matter as much in these small part time offices. What generally maters more is general "organizational competence" and intelligence, thinking outside the box, being independent and a self starter and not being a sheep and following what the other council members do just because "thats the way it has always been done" Our feeling is that existing council members prefer that candidates serve a long time on the city's commissions (before they run for office) so they can get to know them and see if they will be a "team player" once on the council.

All the candidates were pro-LASD, green initiatives, attracting more business etc. Again this stuff is all easy. Who is against trees? Thanks to LAAG forcing the issue most seemed to be in favor of transparency but talk is cheap on that subject. We see no evidence in the track records of some candidates that they are true promoters of /believers in transparency.  LAAG plans on getting all the candidates to sign or agree to a "transparency pledge" before the election. (this includes Mr. Von Nostran) More on that later. I think the city of Bell debacle taught us that lack of transparency and voter complacency/ignorance is a deadly mix. I think we all know from national elections that even IF you get a pledge in writing the candidates still flip flop and weasel out of their commitments. But its better than vague and aloof statements made at a meeting.

The entire program was taped by the Chamber of Commerce staff and we have an email in to them (and all the candidates) asking that the entire video be placed on the web for all to see at their leisure. City representatives stated that they did not want it posted on the city website as it was a political matter. We are waiting for the Chamber's response. Surely they cant be in need of funds.

Once we get back all the candidates questionnaires we will post them online. We hope to have them soon. We then plan on posting a transparency pledge and once the candidates have had time to support that or not we will then make our recommendations for who should fill the two council seats March 8, 2011.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

January 4, 2011

Open Government Proposals..Finally

Its sad but apparently Long Beach has once again beaten Lakewood to the starting line. This time on "open government" or "transparency" proposals. We proposed state legislation on this two years ago as it affects local government but quite frankly Sacramento has too much on its plate now and is looking to offload more of its burden on to local government but that's another column. We felt the best way to get Lakewood to do something on transparency was to mandate it from the state level. But now perhaps they will be shamed into doing something not to be one upped by Long Beach (something they hate). LAAG knew the city council would never act on their own as transparency is not in the city councils interest. Its better to just put "fluff" on the website so Lakewood residents don't go sniffing around too much.

For some time we have linked (see our "web page links" on the right side of this page) to various open government websites like http://www.sunshineweek.org, http://public.resource.org, the Urban Governance Toolkit and the Sunshine review local government transparency checklist on our site and have requested that the city implement open government type initiatives through our postings on this site and emails. None of these initiatives cost anything but staff time, and from what we have seen the city staff in Lakewood has plenty of idle time on their hands and is quite frankly overpaid for it. Thanks to the city of Bell debacle, the California state auditors office posted its site regarding local government salaries, but not before LAAG had to request the info from the city via a public records request. More and more cities realize that transparency is badly needed at the local level.

Lakewood however does not and does not feel there is a problem. They feel if you need to know something you can ask but quite frankly your questions will be responded to with a polite "Thank you we will look into it" and then the door will be closed in your face and your request will be "lost" especially if you seek something that could put the city or its leaders in a bad light. If you are lucky enough to have the emails of city council members (also well hidden from view) you can ask them about certain issues, but most pawn you off to a "staff person" and the question is never really adequately responded to. The main reason is that if you don't have the time and expertise to to a California Public Records act request and the time to pour over the records, you likely will get no where. But most importantly if it is responded to at all, it is hidden from public view so that other Lakewood voters that have the same question and don't know where or how to get the answer are left in the dark.

Our city leaders of course feel there is no problem as they live "inside the bubble" not outside of it. Most are long time government insiders and know how to shield information from voters in a completely legal fashion. Its not hard. They have the city attorney to help them (who costs us hundreds of thousands per year). We have explained time and time again that its not so much that anything illegal or untoward is going on at city hall but secrecy and opaqueness breeds distrust. Its the "appearance of impropriety", or the potential for it the secrecy breeds, not actual impropriety, that's the problem. But like with Bell no one was the wiser until one of the thieves spilled the beans on the others. (we all know there is no honor among thieves). There really is no downside to openness and transparency at the local level.

For a further look at the Long Beach initiatives click here and here. They are a good "start" (if Long Beach does not "kick the can down the road" and delay their passing, implementation and funding) Both should be combined and could use a lot more fleshing out, detail and refinements. We would be glad to lend our expertise to the City of Lakewood in the endeavor should anyone care to listen over there in the bubble.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

September 14, 2010

Getting out while the getting is good... Howard Chambers finally calls it quits

You have to hand it to Howard for great timing. 34 years as city manager must be a state or national record. He has stress? Well no doubt that has increased since the City of Bell debacle, not to mention being "outed" here, here, and here. Oh well he can join his other retired Lakewood Calpers pals and live carefree with lifetime medical and pension benefits that will no doubt cost us taxpayers millions. (the "Lakewood Six" currently costing us taxpayers $771,322.56 Annually) Much like our other noblemen in the state legislature. And for what you ask? Oh I am sure every blade of grass in Lakewood will be dedicated to Howard tonight. I expect some sort of freeway or building to be named after him shortly. Perhaps a new "self promotion shrine" we can pay for. lol indeed.

All we can hope is that the city council resets the clock on these outlandish City Manager salaries and they are more in line with (or have a rational relationship to) other cities with similar populations and total employee counts. But knowing the city council I doubt that. Again the hiring situation works much the same as it did in Bell and on corporate boards. "You pay me well and I will reward you later...some how.." So the game goes on and no one is watching the till. Oh and as for potential candidates to fill Howard's spot I hear there are some dudes from Bell looking for a sweet job....

So LAAG says "c'est la vie! Howard". And I am sure you will keep us residents posted on what you're up to just like you have for the last 38 years. Yeah right. Oh and we have to take Howard at his word that he is in fact retiring for good and will not change his mind, like Donald Waldie did last year, and not going to "run" some other city (for a "bigger" salary increase and nifty "pension spike") and then do a "double dip" on his pension. Time will tell.

http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_16068235
City Manager Howard Chambers will end 38-year Lakewood career
By Phillip Zonkel, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/13/2010 08:57:06 PM PDT

LAKEWOOD - The man who has been a fixture at Lakewood City Hall for 38 years - helping balance budgets and maintain parks - is leaving.

Howard Chambers, city manager for 34 of those years, will publicly announce his retirement at tonight's City Council meeting.

Chambers said his doctor has told him for the past year to manage his stress better. The primary stress culprit is his job, Chambers said.

"Life in the public sector is extremely stressful," [LAAG: "you betcha, ever since Bell corruption story broke]
said Chambers, 65, from his Brea residence. "My body used to metabolize stress like a protein shake. Now it kicks my butt. I wish I could turn back the clock 20 years."

The council will soon begin the process of selecting Chambers' successor, said city spokesman Bill Grady.

The two-hour round trip commute between Brea and Lakewood also was a deciding factor in his retirement, Chambers said. [LAAG: I guess living in the city was out of the question in a city you manage]

Chambers is widely considered the California city manager with the longest tenure in the same city. Before becoming city manager, Chambers, from 1972 to 1976, was the executive assistant to the city manager.

Between 1969 and 1972, Chambers was Rosemead's assistant city manager.

"Howard's entire career reflects an abiding commitment to all of us who live and work here," said Lakewood Mayor Joseph Esquivel. "He truly loves Lakewood and the results can be seen in every neighborhood." [LAAG: please be specific]

Donald Waldie, the assistant to the city manager, was hired by Chambers in December 1977, and said Chambers' management style was supportive and collaborative.

"Howard offered a vision for Lakewood, one where everyone worked together to make a safe, family-orientated city, and shared it with senior managers and city work forces," Waldie said. "That vision made it easy to see the way."

Chambers' ties to Lakewood are lifelong. He grew up near Mayfair Park and worked at the YMCA.

A park director encouraged him to become a recreation leader, a path that led him to become a park director and a fixture at city hall.

After befriending the city administrator at the time, Chambers showed an interest in public administration and began taking classes at Cal State Long Beach.

After earning his degree, Chambers interned at Lakewood for two years, handling youth services. He then went to work with Rosemead as an assistant city manager.

In 1972, Chambers returned to Lakewood, securing the post of executive assistant.

Under Chambers' leadership, Lakewood developed the Civic Center, the Weingart Senior Center, the renovations of the John Sanford Todd Community Center and Mayfair Park, The Centre at Sycamore Plaza, Rynerson Park and the expansion and modernization of the Lakewood Sheriff's Station. [LAAG: thats it?]

Chambers said he takes pride in presenting balanced budgets, managing to keep park programs going and maintaining streets and other infrastructure in times of recession.

Chambers' pride and enthusiasm for the work makes it more difficult to retire.

"You don't know how much I'm going to miss it," he said.

phillip.zonkel@presstelegram.com, 562-499-1258
Want to go?

What: Lakewood City Council meeting.

Where: City Council chambers at The Centre at Sycamore Plaza, 5000 Clark Ave.

When: 7:30 p.m., today

Watch: Broadcast live on CityTV 31 and at www.lakewoodcity.org.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

September 3, 2010

State Controller's revised Local Government Compensation Report (LGCR) due Oct. 2010

On the heels of LAAG's PRA (public information request) to the city of Lakewood regarding salaries of all top Lakewood city employees in each city department, the State Controller's office just released its Local Government Compensation Report (LGCR) for Calendar Year 2009. This report is intended to collect salary, compensation, and benefit information for all elected, appointed, and employed personnel but not independent contractors. It includes staff for all dependent special districts, redevelopment agencies, or other component units that are supported by city or county staff or any staff for which the city or county issues a W-2. This report is required to be submitted to the State Controller on or before October 1, 2010. It will be quite enlightening to see all the cities in the state comply and how user friendly the State Controllers web site is in detailing all the results so that cities can be compared head to head by taxpayers. This is a step in the right direction with more to come. LAAG will stay on top of these developments. Thank you City of Bell for making all this possible.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

July 29, 2010

The Real lessons from the City of Bell Debacle

We Don't disagree with the points raised by the LA Times editorial of 7/23 below however there is a broader message: Never trust local politicians (or any for that matter) and always keep your ear to the ground. As Ronald Regan famously said" "Trust but verify" (see more quotes like this on our LAAG quote page) We completely applaud the more recent (7/29) LA times post below and for years have tried to get Sacramento to force local governments to open up their records. The biggest problem with local [city/county] government is that there really are no watchdogs or effective media scrutiny like there is at the state and federal level. No one thinks any fraud or corruption can happen at sleepy little cities yet this is the easiest place to pull it off as no one is even looking. Hell they don't even know where to look or if they did that the city would post anything on line answering their inquiries. Public records requests are useless as the law has no teeth and too many exceptions. All you get is a bureaucratic run around and no one bothers. The scary part is that no one looked at was how it was precisely that the LA Times was able to break this story. It was insider info apparently from the police. Great. Took a city feud to get the info out. See if you can find any mention of the Bell issues on the Lakewood website. Nope not one. See any salaries posted of ANY current city official or elected official? Nope. (a search for "salaries" or "pensions" on the Lakewood website did not pull up one document) Good luck on that. Can Lakewood become the next Bell? Sure. Why not? All cities have the potential to become Bell. Its just takes voters asleep at the switch and the right combination of insiders to get the guts to try to pull it off. Bell had that deadly combination. This website was created out of a frustration with the lack of transparency and action by local government. Nothing has changed. It wont until voters demand it change.

We applaud this latest column from Terry Francke (Voice of OC's open government consultant and general counsel for Californians Aware) as it once again just echoes LAAG's foregoing comments and emphasizes the problems with the current system (and weaknesses in the Brown Act) that allows any city to become Bell with the right [wrong] people in charge.

This ethics outline might be a good thing for the city council to post up in council chambers just to make sure they don't "forget" what they are supposed to do. And LAAG reminds "public servants" all the time, its not that anything "unethical" is actually going on, its that secrecy gives rise to "an appearance of impropriety". Taxpayers have a right to be suspicious, especially now with bell and all the other public pension debacles (back room shady deals) coming to light.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/07/schwarzenegger-city-salaries-should-be-placed-online-to-avoid-another-bell-scandal.html
Schwarzenegger: City salaries should be placed online to avoid another Bell scandal
July 29, 2010 | 11:29 am

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Thursday that if local governments have “nothing to hide” then they should post the salaries of top officials online, citing the growing scandal in Bell as an example of the need for disclosure.

City managers from across California are gathering in Sacramento today to discuss damage control.

The Legislature is also considering several responses to the high salaries in Bell, up to nearly $800,000 for former City Manager Robert Rizzo.

“The people should start asking themselves what are their city officials, what are their county officials getting paid,” Schwarzenegger told a group of business leaders at round-table discussion in San Diego.

Schwarzenegger said outrage over the scandal in Bell has the public calling cities and counties demanding to know what officials are being paid.

But local governments, he said, should go one step further and “put your information on a website so people don’t even have to call.”

-- Shane Goldmacher in Sacramento

latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-bell-20100724,0,1549953.story
latimes.com
Editorial
The lessons of Bell
There's a lesson for all citizens in how the outrageous salaries for Bell city officials came about.

4:06 PM PDT, July 23, 2010
Advertisement

Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo has announced his resignation from his $787,637 a year job, as have police Chief Randy Adams ($457,000) and Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia ($376,288), and we wish all three a not-so-fond farewell. Even if they performed their work brilliantly, and even if they believed in their hearts that no one earning less could properly serve their problem-wracked city, their pay was shocking, and so utterly out of step with their counterparts in neighboring municipalities and their own struggling residents as to be inherently exploitive.

The public became aware of the disproportionate salaries earlier this month in reports by Times staff writers Jeff Gottlieb and Ruben Vives. Now Bell residents are angry and want to know why most members of their part-time City Council, which approved the contracts for the three, get an outrageous $100,000 a year when nearby council members get 10% of that, or even less. Prosecutors already are delving into that question, and they will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges.

It would be comforting to be able to conclude that the problems in Bell — or in nearby cities such as Maywood, South Gate, Lynwood, Vernon and Compton, which have all been plagued by exploitation, mismanagement and corruption — originated with a handful of municipal officials who forgot their moral and fiduciary duties to the people they were supposed to serve. Or, perhaps, that the people of those cities brought these problems on themselves by electing such leaders, or by staying away from the polls and allowing themselves to be suckered.

Although there's certainly some truth to both of those explanations, the full reality is far more complex and troubling. Bell and its neighboring communities were built on factory industries and on waves of immigrants from the American Midwest who built their cities' civic institutions. They stayed, and many of their children stayed, but their grandchildren left when the factories closed. Their places are being taken by new waves of immigrants, mostly from Mexico, who are still in the process of rebuilding community and civic institutions — but without the wealth that industry once pumped into middle-class pockets and city treasuries. Unlike the earlier waves of immigrants, many of the newest generation lack U.S. citizenship and can't vote. Those who came here illegally live and work in fear of the law and tend to keep their heads low rather than fight exploitation at the hands of those who win power.

But it's not even that simple. In 2005, soon after the governor signed a bill to cap salaries of city council members in general law cities such as Bell, public officials there called a special election to ask voters to make Bell a charter city. Only 336 voters said "yes," but it was enough. Ballot measures, drafted for purposes not immediately clear in their wording, are unfortunately not phenomena limited to small cities. That's a lesson, in this election year, for every California voter.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ click here to receive LAAG posts by email

December 13, 2007

Public Disclosure...well sort of

Well I am glad to see at least another City Council member agrees with LAAG. The city of Lakewood for the most part tries to comply with the letter of the law but surely does not comply with the spirit of the law. It is so many things. They tout their "internet friendly" service desk yet results are no where a swift as the speed at which your request gets to them. They spend hundreds of thousands of tax dollars on consultants and IT infrastructure but the taxpayers never see the results. We have brought this to the city's attention numerous times and we are ignored. The implication of the city's silence is that they like things just the way they are. Don't let taxpayers really know what is going on as it creates too much work, just like with fireworks and RV's. Keep as many issues hidden in plain view as possible so no pesky voters show up at the meetings and get themselves on cable TV (of course no one can really watch the streamed meetings as they are played at odd hours and worst of all are not archived; again another example of complying with the letter and not the spirit of the public disclosure laws.)

You can find out all you want on the Lakewood website about dance class schedules but Heaven forbid they post on their home page a meeting announcement that they think the public may want to attend. (well unless city council members think they can attract lots of voters who agree with their position).

This Costco hearing is a prime example. Read the excerpt below from the PT. Now we dont care if you agree with the Costco or not. Thats not the point. The point is the city tries to do things under the cover of night as much as possible. Skolnick tells the Press Telegram that Lakewood did not "intend" to hide this from Long Beach (what about Lakewood voters?!). I never saw one announcement from Lakewood via its silly email newsletter about the 12/12/08 hearing (plenty of notices about firehouse cookbooks on sale though) If Lakewood knew there "had been a lot of press on the project" (of course not about the specifics or time and date of the meeting) then why didnt the city step up and post the notice on the front page of the website? Would that have killed them? No but they knew it would bring too many people out of the woodwork and Heaven forbid we dont want that.

Now of course it is somewhat the pot calling the kettle black here with Long Beach. We all know that all these border cities fight like Shiites and Sunni's when it comes to attracting new tax revenue (lets not get into incentives). And quite frankly Long Beach has egg on its face with respect to hiding its own City Council meeting agenda items from the public. (LB Report uses the oft used phrase "mushroom treatment"...keep 'em in the dark and fed manure.)

The point is the same. City's need to use the Internet to inform the voters more. But until the voters clamor for it or Sacramento legislates it you wont see any up to date meaningful disclosures of the nasty things that happen (or could happen) at city council meetings for a long time.


From the Press Telegram article 12-13-07
http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_7705914

Long Beach's 5th District City Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske said she felt the study was insufficient and that Long Beach was not given adequate notice about the meeting or the project that affects her constituents within Lakewood Village. "Lakewood wasn't a good neighbor," she said. It was not Lakewood's intent "to hide this from Long Beach," said City Attorney Steven Skolnik, adding that city managers from both cities spoke about the Costco months ago and that there had been a lot of press on the project.

For more coverage as to why Lakewood wanted to bury the notice of the meeting read LB Report

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




December 11, 2007

Agenda item for 12/11/07 city council meeting

Very cryptic item on the agenda for the 12/11/07 city council meeting:

"CLOSED SESSION: Utility Users Tax CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL ANTICIPATED LITIGATION Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code §54956.9(b) in one case "

Here is the agenda link: http://www.lakewoodcity.org/council_n_coms/city_council_agenda.asp

If anyone has any information on this please pass it along to us. Does this mean that the city is proposing a new or additional city utility users tax?

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




July 28, 2007

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™




March 17, 2007

Open Government

LAAG is pretty much fed up with Lakewood City Hall refusing to provide timely agendas at least 72 hours before the city council meetings. The law only requires that they post the agendas at city hall not on the website. How convenient for busy voters who work for a living. Just go down to city hall after work and look at the agenda. Same with city council meetings. Make sure they are not archived on the city's website so you cant just go see them when you want or skip ahead to the parts you are interested in. The best way to "slip" things past sleeping voters is to just not alert them to issues and do only the bare minimum as required by law (ie don't post stuff on the website or send out an email or you could end up with some angry voters at your meeting and they don't want that!)

As for the agendas this was brought to the city's attention as noted below but still the problem has not been fixed. For example as of 1/15/07 the current agenda posted on the website was 12/12/06. As of 3/17/07 the "most current" agenda posted on the site is dated 2/27/07. This is a big deal as the agenda is the only way busy residents can see what is going on and if they need to go to a meeting. That is the purpose of agendas.

LAAG has asked the Sheriff's department on 4 separate occasions for the last two months for crime statistics. No response at all. Neither the City nor the Sheriff's department want to back up their vague and grandiose statements about crime "reduction"

LAAG is working to resolve these and many other lack of transparency issues.

December 11, 2006

minutes/agendas

Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2006 10:52:01 -0800
To: TSRR@msn.com (Todd Rogers, City Council), DHayward@lakewoodcity.org (Denise Hayward, City Clerk), BBrammer@lakewoodcity.org (Bob Brammer city webmaster)
From: "www.LAAG.us | Lakewood Accountability Action Group"
Subject: minutes/agendas


As of 12/11 the last meeting minutes are 10/24. The last agenda is 11/14? [http://www.lakewoodcity.org/news/displaynews.asp?NewsID=49] Whats up? Not posting this stuff timely is like not having it up at all. There should be an on line archive as well on line that is searchable by date or keyword [http://www.lakewoodcity.org/search/default.asp] and a date on the website as to the time period when one can expect agendas an minutes to be posted (i.e. "Agendas are posted 3 working days before the meeting" and "minutes are posted no later than 10 working days after the meeting"). When this material is delayed time limits and other issues pass without people knowing about them. For as much as Lakewood touts eGovernment I still dont see much transparency.



Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2006 11:48:16 -0800
To: "Denise Hayward" ,"Bob Brammer" ,
From: "www.LAAG.us | Lakewood Accountability Action Group"
Subject: Re: minutes/agendas
Cc: "Howard Chambers"

At 11:18 AM 12/11/2006, Denise Hayward wrote:
My apologies to you and others who depend on the website for agenda information. I was distracted last week with the closing of the nomination period for our March election and posted the agenda everywhere except on the website. I have just finished copying it there, so it is now available. Sorry for the inconvenience.

As a note, the minutes on the website are always the most recently approved set and currently, that was from the end of October. The City Council is scheduled to approve the November 14th minutes at their meeting on December 12. They will be up on the website later this week.

Denise Hayward, City Clerk

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks. Which brings me to my next point about searchability and archiving that I brought up. I'd like Bob to address that.

Also, as we have discussed I see no reason why all "public hearing or comment" materials, resolutions and proposed ordinances cannot be put up on the site as soon as they are proposed. All this stuff is in electronic format already and I am sure Civica software has push button posting for stuff like that. Also hosting is cheap. many of these hosts like godaddy.com are offering gigabites of storage for pennies a day. These materials would have to be archived, be searchable and have some page on the site where one could browse them by subject or date proposed or passed. Right now there is no one location for this info.