HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001-02-20; City Council; 16076; Amend Disqualification for Conflict of InterestCITY OF CARLSBAD - AGENDA BILL 13
AB# lW7b TITLE- -* DEPT. HD.
MTG. d-.20 -cr,/ AMENDING THE DISQUALIFICATION FOR CI1”y AI-I-Y.
DEPT. CA CONFLICT OF INTEREST PROVISIONS OF C,MMGR
CHAPTER 1.14 OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE .
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
introduce Ordinance No. Ns-s 7.3 amending the disqualification for conflict of interest
provisions of Chapter 1.14.
ITEM EXPLANATION:
Public officials throughout the state of California are guided by the provisions of the Political
Reform Act of 1974 in situations where there could be a disqualifying financial interest. The
Political Reform Act of 1974 was adopted by the people as an initiative measure in order to,
among other things, require the disqualification of public officials when it is reasonably
foreseeable that they will have a financial interest in the outcome of the decision. The basic
rule adopted by the California electors in 1974 has remained unchanged:
“No public official at any level of state or local government shall make, participate in making
or in any way attempt to use his official position to influence a governmental decision in
which he knows or has reason to know he has a financial interest.” (Govt. Code §87100).
The Political Reform Act of 1974 can be amended by two-thirds of the state legislature and
has been done so numerous times provided such amendments further the purposes of the
Act (Govt. Code 5810112). The most important purposes have been declared as follows:
l Local government officials should serve the needs and respond to the wishes of all
citizens equally, without regard to their wealth.
l Public officials, whether elected or appointed, should perform their duties in an
impartial manner, free from bias caused by their own financial interests or the financial
interests of persons who have supported them.
The Political Reform Act is administered by the state Fair Political Practices Commission that
consists of five members who are appointed by the governor, attorney general, secretary of
state and the state controller. The Commission has the primary responsibility for the
impartial and effective administration of the Act and may adopt rules and regulations to carry
out the purposes and provisions of the Act. The Commission has recently completed an
overhaul of its regulations, which became effective February 1, 2001. One of those rules,
which is one of many in a comprehensive scheme, setting forth the indirect disqualification
rules for public officials who own real property, will require a change in our local ordinance.
The former rule had been codified in Carlsbad Municipal Code section 1.14.030, which
required the public official to apply a combination of distance and financial effects. That rule
has now been amended to eliminate the financial effect in favor of the distance test.
Agenda Bill No. ib, 0 7 b
Page 2
Ordinarily, when an official’s real property is indirectly involved in a decision (i.e. the official’s
property is not the subject of the application), if it is located further than 500’ it will normally
not be disqualifying. If it is located within 500’ the public official would normally be
disqualified. Those normal rules can be overcome on a case-by-case basis where it can be
shown with reasonable certainty that the public official’s economic interest is or is not directly
effected. The public official, guided by the Fair Political Practices Commission’s advice in
those situations, would make the determination.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There will be no significant fiscal impact associated with this decision except for the
expenditure of incidental staff time to prepare and update maps.
Adoption of this ordinance is not a “project” within the meaning of CEQA since it will not have
a direct physical change in the environment and is statutorily exempt under Public Resources
Code section 21083 and CEQA guidelines section 15260.
EXHIBITS:
1. Ordinance No. 1\) 5-5 7s
2. Strikeout version
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ORDINANCE NO. w-575
2 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA TO AMEND SECTION
3 1.14.030 OF THE CARLSBAD MUNICIPAL CODE TO
COMPLY WITH AMENDMENTS TO THE POLITICAL 4 REFORM ACT.
5 The City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California does
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ordain as follows:
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8 SECTION I: That section 1.14.030 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code is
9 amended to read as follows:
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“1 s 14.030 Conflict of interest--Disqualifications.
(a) The regulations adopted by the Fair Political Practices Commission
provide that a public official may not participate in a governmental decision when the
official has an interest in real property which is located within a five-hundred-foot radius
of the boundaries or proposed boundaries of a property which is the subject of a
decision before the official unless that decision will have no financial effect upon an
official’s interest.
(b) This section imposes a stricter standard for all public officials and
designated employees in the city who shall not’ participate in a decision when those
public officials or designated employees have an interest in real property located
within a six-hundred-foot radius of the boundaries of the property which is the subject
of a decision unless that decision will have no financial effect upon that interest. Except
as modified by this section, all public officials and designated employees in the city shall
comply in all other respects and with all other provisions of the material financial effect
rules in the Commission’s regulations.”
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EFFECTIVE DATE: This ordinance shall be effective thirty days after its
adoption, and the City Clerk shall certify the adoption of this ordinance and cause it to
21 be published at least once in a newspaper of general circulation in the City of Carlsbad
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23 within fifteen days after its adoption.
24 INTRODUCED AND FIRST READ at a regular meeting of the Carlsbad
25 City Council on the 20th day Of February ,2001, and thereafter
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Ordinance No. NS-575 I page 1 of 2
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PASSED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the
City of Carlsbad on the day of I 2001, by the following vote, to
wit:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGAL .ITY
RONALD R. BALL, City Attorney
CLAUDE A. LEWIS, Mayor
All-EST:
LORRAINE M. WOOD, City Clerk
(SEAL)
Ordinance No. ~~5-575 , page 2 of 2