City Ethics Reforms Could Cut Presents : Government: L.A. elected officials might face the end of free tickets, political action committees and outside income. But the council appears reluctant to give them up.

Ethics reforms proposed by the mayor’s special commission this week would force Los Angeles politicians to give up unofficial fringe benefits that money often cannot buy, such as choice season tickets to Lakers basketball games.

A number of elected officials would also lose free season passes to Dodger baseball games, Disneyland, the Hollywood Bowl, the Greek Theatre, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Playboy Jazz festival, not to mention “fruit-of-the-month” baskets from lobbyist Art Snyder, a former city councilman. These and scores of other gifts worth tens of thousands of dollars are routinely bestowed upon the city’s 18 elected officials. But such pampering and wooing would be prohibited under a code of ethics proposed by Bradley’s special commission Monday.

The proposed sweeping new rules would also eliminate the controversial and lucrative political action committees that some city officials--including Mayor Tom Bradley--use to increase their political clout by spreading money to other politicians, campaigns, community groups and supporters.

However, the proposed rules must be approved by the very elected officials who currently receive political largess that would be prohibited under such a code of ethics. Several council members have said privately and publicly that they see no reason for such a stringent code.

The proposed ethics code, which needs either City Council or voter approval, is designed to eliminate all the “gray areas” created through decades of patchwork attempts at self-regulation by politicians, commission Chairman Geoffrey Cowan said.

The proposed law would ban:

* All gifts--from a $150 handkerchief accepted last year by Councilman Gilbert Lindsay to a $192 microwave oven given to Councilman Richard Alatorre.

* All non-governmental travel--whether a $404 retreat Councilwoman Joy Picus attended with the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce or $489 worth of transportation and meals Bradley received from General Motors Corp.

* All speaking fees, from the $1,000 Gloria Molina received for an address to the Center for California Studies to the $75 Joel Wachs received for participating on a National Endowment for the Arts panel.

* All outside employment, such as Bradley’s $18,000-a-year job as an adviser to Far East National Bank and his $24,000-a-year post as a director of Valley Federal Savings & Loan Assn.

* All political action or “friends of” committees. Councilmen Hal Bernson and Lindsay use these committees to raise and spend tens of thousands of dollars to take supporters to dinner and buy raffle tickets and brownies at community fund-raisers in their district. They also parcel out funds to other politicians and partisan causes, increasing their own visibility and power in the political community.

The City Council appears reluctant to let go of such benefits.

The City Council committee that is attempting to rewrite the city Ethics Code is stopping short of banning gifts or honorariums, but is supporting limits on them. The committee appears to be balking at a ban on outside employment but wants it regulated. The council committee is not considering any legislation that would limit political action committees.

“They will pass (approve) only what they think they have to,” said Michael Josephson, founder of the Joseph and Edna Josephson Institute for the Advancement of Ethics in Marina del Rey.

“Every governmental body does as little as they have to with governmental reform,” he said.

Some attempts have been made.

Several years ago, Anaheim, for instance, outlawed its council members from accepting VIP passes to the city’s best known landmark: Disneyland.

Such passes are still routinely offered to Los Angeles council members.

“We don’t even know why we do it,” Disney Productions spokesman Tom Deegan said. “We’ve just always done it. I guess it’s a courtesy.”

“What do we want in return?” he pondered. “Nothing that I can think of.”

Snyder, a prominent City Hall lobbyist, said he expects nothing for the fruit-of-the month basket that he gives to council members.

“It doesn’t corrupt anyone,” Snyder said. “I don’t think it would corrupt a sixth-grader, let alone a sophisticated elected official.”

Josephson and other advocates of strict ethics laws say that gifts, however humble, are corrupting nonetheless.

“It’s not bribery,” Josephson said. “But they do expect to get goodwill” for their gifts.

Still, gifts are a prominent fixture at City Hall.

Bradley accepted $8,904 in gifts in 1988, the last year for which reports are available. City officials may accept gifts but must report the gift, the value and the source.

Wachs accepted the most of any city official, with a total of $13,443. City Controller Rick Tuttle reported accepting $525 in gifts and City Atty. James K. Hahn accepted just $310 in gifts. Council members Marvin Braude and Nate Holden reported no gifts, trips or outside income.

GIFTS AND OTHER INCOME RECEIVED BY LOS ANGELES ELECTED OFFICIALS

TOM BRADLEY

Gifts Greek Theatre season tickets $250 L.A. Lakers season tickets 1,406 L.A. Kings season tickets 1,806 UCLA football season tickets 303 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 3,564 Academy Awards tickets 750 USC football season pass 340 Suit (Dr. Keun Chul Lyu) 175 Other 310 TOTAL 8,904 Speaking fees Urban Regional Information Assn. 1,000 (speech) Trips Cairns, Australia Port Authority (tour and 255 meals) General Motors conference (air fare and 489 hotel) Republic of South Korea 5,500 (Olympic Games) (est.) Outside employment Valley Federal Savings and Loan 24,000 (director’s fee) (est.) Far East National Bank (consulting fee) 18,000 (returned)

JAMES HAHN

Gifts Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) $160 USC football season tickets 150 TOTAL 310 Trips Community Relations Committee 2,197 Jewish Federation (trip to Israel)

RICK TUTTLE

Gifts UCLA Alumni Assn. Family Resort (Lake Arrowhead) 525

RICHARD ALATORRE

Gifts USC football season tickets $168 L.A. Philharmonic Assn. concert tickets 223 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,134 UCLA football season tickets 224 Greek Theatre concert tickets 246 Wine (Stan Seiden and James Nederlander) 120 Microwave (Jennifer Cheo) 192 Fruit (Goldrich & Kest) 219 Other 267 TOTAL 2,793 Speaking fees California Polytechnic State University 500 Adolph Coors Co. 150 Trips Arthur K. Snyder (location unknown) 240 Taipei--Los Angeles Sister City 2,400 Committee

ERNANI BERNARDI

Gifts Disneyland guest pass $175 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,162 Greek Theatre concert tickets 250 Wine (James Nederlander) 100 Other 70 TOTAL 1,757

HAL BERNSON

Gifts L.A. Dodgers season tickets $1,162 USC football season tickets 250 Wilshire YMCA Booster dinner tickets 400 (Ken Spiker) L.A. Philharmonic Assn. concert tickets 200 Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum 200 theater Wine (James Nederlander and 300 Theodore Stein) Greek Theatre concert tickets 237 Other 513 TOTAL 3,262 Speaking fees City of Salinas seminar (speech) 250 Trips L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce (retreat, Indian Wells) 440

ROBERT FARRELL

Gifts Liquor (Stephan S.J. Chen) 100 Bijon Tie (Rick Allen) 250 Mann Theatre pass 250 Other 50 TOTAL 650 Outside employment Agency Formation Commission 1,000- (member) 10,000

JOHN FERRARO

Gifts Suit (Dr. Keun Chul Lyu) 175 Fruit package each month 400 (Jona Goldrich) Wine (James Nederlander) 100 Hollywood Park Race Track 100 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,162 USC football season tickers 368 Shubert Theatre tickets 100 Tournament of Roses tickets 168 Other 510 TOTAL 3,083 Trips L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce 199 (retreat, Indian Wells) Outside employment Land and Leisure Corp. 250- (director fee) 1,000

JOAN MILKE FLORES

Gifts Pacific Theatres pass 200 Jacket (Art Snyder) 100 Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) 180 Hollywood Bowl concert tickets 250 Greek Theatre concert tickets 205 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,296 Wine (James Nederlander and Stan 200 Seiden) USC football season tickets 320 Cairns Port Authority barbecue and boat 240 trip Wine and Fruit, L.A. Police Protective 105 League Other 257 TOTAL 3,353

RUTH GALLANTER

Gifts L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,162 Hollywood Bowl concert tickets 250 Greek Theatre concert tickets 250 USC football season tickets 368 Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) 225 Other 429 TOTAL 2,684 Speaking fees Cal State University (lecturer) 325 Loyola-Marymount University (speech) 100 Trips L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce 367 (retreat, Indian Wells)

GILBERT LINDSAY

Gifts L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,162 Greek Theatre concert tickets 234 Hollywood Bowl concert tickets 249 Patrick Media Group 280 (type of tickets unknown) Westin Bonaventure hotel parking pass 200 Allied Park Royal parking pass 200 Handkerchief and tie (Rick Allen) 150 Wine (Howard Yeung) 100 Other 215 TOTAL 2,790

GLORIA MOLINA

Gifts USC football season tickets 360 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 1,134 Photo mural (St. Vincent Medical 200 Center) Los Angeles Beautiful benefit concert 200 Latin Business Assn. dinner tickets 100 Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) 180 Circus tickets (Norm Emerson) 300 Other 265 TOTAL 2,739 Speaking fees Claremont Colleges (panel member) 500 Center for California Studies, Cal State Sacramento Trips National Assn. of Latino Elected 338 Officials (San Antonio, Tex.) Mexican American Legal Defense and 418 Education Fund (San Antonio, Tex.) L.A Area Chamber of Commerce 307 (retreat, Indian Wells) American Leadership Exchange 8,000 Program (Japan)

JOY PICUS

Gifts USC football/basketball season tickets 600 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 985 Mann Theatre pass 100 L.A. Raiders season tickets 1,100 Disneyland VIP pass 100 L.A. Philharmonic concert tickets 250 Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) 100 Pantages Theater tickets 160 Wine (James Nederlander and Stan 150 Seiden) Other 120 TOTAL 2,665 Trips L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce 404 (retreat, Indian Wells)

JOEL WACHS

Gifts Giorgio Armani dinner and fashion show 100 ticket L.A. Dodgers tickets 984 Greek Theatre tickets 250 Memorial Coliseum football tickets 100 Hollywood Bowl season tickets 250 Memorial Coliseum (Van Halen concert) 100 Painting by Gary Stephan 3,000 L.A. Raiders tickets 1,120 UCLA football season tickets 496 USC football season tickets 368 L.A. Clippers season tickets 1,344 Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) 100 Jean St. Pierre drawing 600 Photograph by Laurie Simmons 500 Photograph by Timothy-Greenfield 500 Sanders Photograph by Richard Leslie Schulman 500 Wine (Nederlander Co.) 100 Easton’s Gym membership 185 Other 2,846 TOTAL 13,443 Speaking fees National Endowment for the Arts (panel 75 participant) Trips National Endowment for the Arts (New 653 York) State of Nevada Arts Council (Las 252 Vegas)

MICHAEL WOO

Gifts Centennial Inaugural Ball tickets 250 (Peter Mullin) Woman Warrior Awards Banquet tickets 120 (Southern Calif. Gas Co.) L.A. Dodgers season tickets 378 Philharmonic International Night Ball 200 (Carl Maston) Coro Foundation dinner tickets 500 (David Abel) Dinner at Michael’s restaurant 120 (Earl and Eunice Chesler) Central City Assn. luncheon tickets 150 (Bank of America) Circus tickets (Norm Emerson) 210 Hollywood Bowl concert tickets 223 Dinner at Rex’s restaurant 150 (Earl and Eunice Chesler) L.A. Philharmonic concert tickets 103 Yad Vashem dinner tickets 600 Asian Business Assn. banquet tickets 350 (Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Johnson) Fruit package each month (Art Snyder) 180 Wine (James Nederlander) 150 Gift basket (Nathan Shapell) 100 Entertainment and meals in Chicago 291 (Alexander Haagen) Other 181 TOTAL 4,256 Trips L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce 178 (retreat, Indian Wells) Community Relations Committee 4,284 Jewish Federation (trip to Israel with spouse) Coordination Council for North American 2,200 Affairs (trip to Taiwan with spouse)

ZEV YAROSLAVSKY

Gifts USC football season tickets 184 UCLA football season tickets 375 L.A. Raiders season tickets 1,120 L.A. Dodgers season tickets 984 Hollywood Bowl season tickets 250 Greek Theatre season tickets 250 L.A. Clippers season tickets 1,152 Playboy Festival 150 TOTAL 4,465

NOTE: Council members Marvin Braude and Nate Holden reported no gifts, trips or outside income.

Source: 1988 statements of economic interest

Compiled by Times Researcher Cecilia Rasmussen