ITEM 6-J
City Council Meeting 6-9-92 Santa Monica, California
STAFF REPORT
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Attorney
SUBJECT: Ordinance Amending Article XI of the Santa Monica
Municipal Code Relating to Campaign and Election
Reform
At its meeting on June 2, 1992, the City Council introduced
for first reading an ordinance amending Article XI of the Santa
Monica Municipal Code relating to campaign and election reform.
The ordinance is now presented to the City Council for adoption.
RECOMMENDATION
It is respectfully recommended that the accompanying
ordinance be adopted.
PREPARED BY: Robert M. Myers, City Attorney
Joseph Lawrence, Assistant City Attorney
ORDINANCE NUMBER ____
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SANTA MONICA AMENDING ARTICLE XI
OF THE SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE
RELATING TO CAMPAIGN AND ELECTION REFORM
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 1 of Article XI of the Santa Monica
Municipal Code is amended to read as follows:
SECTION 11200. Title. This Chapter shall be
known as the City of Santa Monica Campaign and
Election Reform Act of 1992.
SECTION 11201. Findings and Purpose. The
City Council of the City of Santa Monica finds and
declares:
(a) Monetary contributions to political
campaigns are a legitimate form of participation in
the American political process, but the financial
strength of certain individuals or organizations
should not permit them to exercise a
disproportionate or controlling influence on the
election of candidates.
(b) The rapidly increasing costs of political
campaigns have forced many candidates to raise
larger and larger percentages of money from interest
groups with a specific financial stake in matters
before City governmental bodies. This has caused
the public perception that votes are being
improperly influenced by monetary contributions.
This perception is undermining the credibility and
integrity of the governmental process.
(c) Officeholders are responding to high
campaign costs by raising ever increasing amounts of
money. This fundraising distracts public
officeholders from important public matters and
encourages contributions which may have the
appearance of a corrupting influence.
(d) High campaign costs have the effect of
discouraging citizens from running for public office
since, without access to large campaign
contributors, newcomers to the political process
cannot wage effective campaigns.
(e) By enacting this Chapter, the City
Council seeks: to ensure that individuals and
interest groups in our society have a fair and equal
opportunity to participate in the elective and
governmental processes; to reduce the influence of
large contributors with a specific financial stake
in matters before City governmental bodies; to limit
overall expenditures in campaigns; to reduce the
excessive fundraising advantage of incumbents and
thus encourage competition for elective office; to
improve the disclosure of contribution sources in
reasonable and effective ways; and to help restore
public trust in governmental and electoral
institutions.
SECTION 11202. Definitions. Unless a word or
phrase is specifically defined in this Chapter, the
definitions set forth in the Fair Political
Practices Act, Government Code Sections 82000 et
seq. shall apply to this Chapter. The following
words or phrases as used in this Chapter shall have
the meanings set forth below.
(a) Candidate. Any individual who has
qualified to be listed on a ballot or who has
solicited write-in votes on his or her behalf for
election to the Santa Monica City Council, Santa
Monica Rent Control Board, or any other elected
office of the City of Santa Monica, or who receives
a contribution or makes an expenditure or gives
consent for any other person to receive a
contribution or to make an expenditure with a view
to bringing about such person's election to such
office, whether or not the specific elective office
for which such person will seek election is known at
the time the contribution is received or the
expenditure is made, and whether or not such person
has announced candidacy or filed a declaration of
candidacy at such time. "Candidate" also includes
any office holder who is subject of a recall
petition.
(b) Committee. Any person or combination of
persons who directly or indirectly receives
contributions or makes expenditures or contributions
for the purpose of influencing or attempting to
influence the action of the voters for or against
the nomination or election of one or more
candidates.
(c) Election. Any general or special
election held to elect or remove a member of the
Santa Monica City Council, the Santa Monica Rent
Control Board, or any other elected office of the
City of Santa Monica.
(d) Organization. Any corporation,
association, partnership, committee, labor
organization, political party, or other similar
legal entity or arrangement, whether organized for
profit or not.
(e) Person. A natural born individual, as
well as any organization.
(f) Small Contributor Political Action
Committee. "Small contributor political action
committee" means any committee which meets all of
the following criteria:
(1) All of the contributions it
receives from any person in a twelve month period
total $50 or less.
(2) It has been in existence at least
six months.
(3) It contributes to at least five
candidates within a three (3) year period.
(4) It is not a candidate controlled
committee.
(5) It receives contributions from more
than 100 persons.
SECTION 11203. Limitations on Contributions
from Persons.
(a) No person shall make to any candidate for
office or to the controlled committee of such a
candidate or to any committee which supports or
opposes such candidate, a contribution or
contributions totaling more than Two Hundred Fifty
Dollars ($250.00) for each election in which the
candidate was on, is on, or is likely to be on the
ballot or in which the candidate sought or seeks
write-in votes.
(b) No candidate for office or the controlled
committee of such a candidate or any committee which
supports or opposes such candidate shall accept from
any person a contribution or contributions totaling
more than Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00) for
each election.
SECTION 11204. Return of Contributions. A
contribution shall not be considered to be received
if it is not negotiated, deposited, or utilized in
any way, and in addition if it is returned to the
donor within ten (10) days of receipt.
SECTION 11205. Aggregation of Payments.
(a) All contributions made by a person or
small contributor political action committee whose
contributions or expenditure activity is financed,
directed, or controlled by any corporation,
partnership, committee, labor organization,
association, political party or any other person or
committee, including any parent, subsidiary, branch,
division, department or local unit of the
corporation, labor organization, partnership,
committee, association political party or any other
person, or by any group of such persons, shall be
considered to be made by the person, organization,
or entity financing, directing or controlling the
contribution as well as the person, small
contributor or political action committee making the
contribution.
(b) Two or more entities shall be regarded as
the same person or small contributor political
action committee when any of the following apply:
(1) The entities share the majority of
members of their boards of directors.
(2) The entities share two or more
officers.
(3) The entities are owned or
controlled by the same majority shareholder or
shareholders.
(4) The entities are in a parent -
subsidiary relationship.
(c) An individual and any general partnership
in which the individual is a partner, or an
individual and any corporation in which the
individual owns a controlling interest, shall be
regarded as the same person.
(d) No committee which supports or opposes a
candidate for office shall have as officers,
individuals who serve as officers on any other
committee which supports or opposes the same
candidate. No such committee shall act in concert
with, or solicit or make contributions on behalf of,
any other committee. This subdivision shall not
apply to treasurers of committees if these
treasurers do not participate in or control in any
way a decision on whether the candidate or
candidates receive contributions.
SECTION 11206. Loans.
(a) A loan shall be considered a contribution
from the maker as well as the guarantor, if any, of
the loan and shall be subject to the contribution
limitations of this Chapter.
(b) Every loan to a candidate or committee
shall be by written agreement and shall be filed
with the candidate's or committee's campaign
statement on which the loan is first reported.
(c) A loan made to a candidate or committee
by a commercial lending institution in the regular
course of business on the same terms available to
members of the public shall not be subject to the
contribution limitations of this Chapter.
(d) Extensions of credit, other than loans
pursuant to subdivision (c) of this Section, for a
period of more than thirty (30) days are subject to
the contribution limitations of this Chapter.
SECTION 11207. Family Contributions.
(a) Contributions by a husband and wife shall
be treated as separate contributions and shall not
be aggregated under this Chapter.
(b) Contributions by minors shall be treated
as contributions by their parents or guardian and
attributed equally to each parent or guardian.
SECTION 11208. Filing of Statements. Each
candidate and each committee supporting or opposing
a candidate or candidates or any ballot measure and
each member of the Santa Monica City Council, Santa
Monica Rent Control Board, or any other elected
office of the City of Santa Monica, shall file with
the City Clerk each statement required under Chapter
4 of Title 9 of the Government Code (Political
Reform Act of 1974).
SECTION 11209. Printed Literature. All
literature that is printed by or on behalf of any
person, candidate or committee including, but not
limited to, small cards and billboards, shall be
identified with the name and address of the
candidate or committee, or chairperson and
secretary, or at least two officers of the political
group or organization on whose behalf or order the
same is printed. If the literature is printed on
behalf of any person or group of persons who are not
also a candidate or committee, the person or group
of persons shall be identified. Such identification
of said persons shall be printed legibly and shall
be appropriate to the size and type of the
literature, but in no event shall such printing be
less than in six (6) point type. Compliance with
Government Code Sections 84305 et seq. shall be
deemed compliance with this Section.
SECTION 11210. Candidate's Statement of
Qualifications.
(a) Each candidate for Santa Monica City
Council, Santa Monica Rent Control Board, or other
elected office of the City of Santa Monica, may
prepare a statement of qualification on an
appropriate form provided by the City Clerk. Such
statement may include the name, age, and occupation
of the candidate and a brief description of no more
than two hundred (200) words of the candidate's
education and qualifications expressed by the
candidate. Such statement shall be filed in the
office of the City Clerk when the candidate's
nomination papers are returned for filing. It may
be withdrawn but not changed during the period of
filing nomination papers and until 5:00 p.m. of the
next working day after the close of the nomination
period.
(b) The City Clerk shall send to each voter
together with a sample ballot, a voter's pamphlet
which contains the written statements of each
candidate's qualifications that is prepared pursuant
to this Section. The statement of each candidate
shall be printed in type of uniform size and
darkness and with uniform spacing. The City Clerk
shall provide for and certify a Spanish translation
to those candidates who wish to have one.
(c) The costs of printing, handling, and
translating of any statement submitted pursuant to
this Section shall be paid by the City.
(d) The City Clerk may reject any statement
which contains any obscene, libelous or defamatory
matter, which violates the constitutional or civil
rights of any person, or which is prohibited by
state or federal law from being circulated through
the mail.
(e) Nothing in this Section shall be deemed
to make any such statement or the authors thereof
free or exempt from any civil or criminal action or
penalty because of any false or libelous statements
offered for printing or contained in the voter's
pamphlet.
SECTION 11211. Distribution of Newsletter
Prohibited During Campaign. No newsletter or
similar matter shall be circulated by mass mailing
or similar method by the Santa Monica City Council,
Santa Monica Rent Control Board, or their
administrative officers as follows:
(a) Within eighty-eight (88) days prior to
any municipal election to approve or disapprove any
ballot measure.
(b) Within eighty-eight (88) days prior to an
election to select any member of its governing body.
(c) After any member of its governing body
has filed a nomination petition pursuant to
Municipal Code Section 11000.
SECTION 11212. Ballot Order. In any election
for any City office, the order in which a
candidate's name or ballot measure shall appear on
the ballot shall be randomly determined by the City
Clerk.
SECTION 11213. Format for Petitions for
Recall, Initiative, Referendum, or Amendment of the
City Charter. Any petition for recall, initiative,
referendum, or amendment of the City Charter must
substantially comply with the applicable format
contained in this Section or alternatively, with the
applicable sections of the California Elections Code
governing the same matters. In addition, the
proponent(s) of any such petition must comply with
all other applicable sections of the California
Elections Code including, but not limited to, any
requirements relating to the filing of a notice of
intent to circulate petition, summary and title
prepared by the City Attorney, any publication or
posting obligations, any time limitation for
securing signatures, and any filing requirements.
(a) Sample Initiative Petition Format. The
form for an initiative petition shall be
substantially in the form set forth in Exhibit A.
(b) Sample Charter Amendment Petition
Format. The form for a petition to amend the City
Charter shall be substantially in the form set forth
in Exhibit B.
(c) Sample Referendum Petition Format. The
form for a referendum petition shall be
substantially in the form set forth in Exhibit C.
(d) Sample Recall Petition Format. The
following form for a recall petition shall be
substantially in the form set forth in Exhibit D.
SECTION 11214. Acceptance of Petition. Prior
to circulating a petition, any person may request a
determination from the City Clerk that the petition
form is in substantial compliance with the form
required by Section 11213. The City Clerk shall
have seven (7) days from receipt of a petition for
initiative, referendum or amendment of the City
Charter to determine whether the petition is in
substantial compliance with the format permitted by
this Chapter. If, within this time period, the City
Clerk fails to reject the petition for noncompliance
with the acceptable format, the petition shall be
conclusively presumed to be in compliance with the
proper format and shall not be rejected for failing
to be in the form required by law. Recall petitions
shall be reviewed in accordance with the procedures
set forth in Elections Code Section 27031.5.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal
Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of
this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no
further, are hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary
to affect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause,
or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid
or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of any competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby
declares that it would have passed this Ordinance, and each and
every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether
any portion of the Ordinance would be subsequently declared
invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall
attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall
cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper
within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become
effective after 30 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
__________________________________
ROBERT M. MYERS
City Attorney