Gift limits divide

The City Council appeared split on campaign contribution limits at a study session this week, with three members ready to abolish limits altogether, three asking to keep the existing $300 limit, and one saying he was uncertain.

The council met Tuesday to discuss a broad overhaul of city campaign rules ahead of a future vote on the package. Council members generally agreed on the changes, which they said would simplify rules to prevent misunderstandings and bring them more in line with state campaign law.

But the major disagreement remaining was the actual limit to contribute to candidates. A committee of city staff, council members and interested residents offered them two choices: $410, the cost of a thousand stamps, or $3,000, the limit for state representatives. But opinions polarized along bolder positions: Leave the limit at $300, or get rid of it completely.

Council members Jill Hardy, Keith Bohr, and Mayor Debbie Cook said they preferred to keep individual contribution limits at $300, though some said they were open to a small raise.

“The single thing most important to our constituents is the dollar amount,” Cook said. “That’s how they’re going to measure us. They’re going to look at us, if we try to raise it too much, as being greedy.”

Members Don Hansen, Joe Carchio and Cathy Green said they preferred no limit, though Green said it was simply to be consistent with state law, which doesn’t restrict contributions in local races. Hansen said that while open to compromise, he preferred no limit because independent groups like political action committees and unions could spend an unlimited amount on ads already.

“The part you’re leaving out is the third-party independent money that has completely taken over the process in my opinion,” he said, adding that there’s plenty of money available to candidates that way, but it can’t be directly tied to the campaign.

Councilman Gil Coerper went back and forth, apparently still considering a position.

Cook told city staff to prepare an ordinance with all four options: $300, $410, $3,000, and no limit. The council will vote on it later.

The rule changes would strike numerous rules that overlapped state law. It would also remove a so-called “hit piece rule” that requires last-minute campaign mailers be filed with the city clerk; City Atty. Jennifer McGrath called it unenforceable and not very effective. The changes would also take McGrath out of the business of investigating campaign violations, instead turning evidence over to Orange County prosecutors.

McGrath noted that an elected city attorney wasn’t normally charged with investigating campaign law, adding that consultants wouldn’t even bid when a third party was needed to investigate her finances.

“Twice we have requested outside counsel to investigate campaign violations,” she said. “In both occasions all of the law firms declined to even submit a proposal.”

Residents who had worked on the committee praised its findings and said their concerns had been answered, but they warned against raising contribution limits too much.

Committee member and local activist Mark Bixby expressed disappointment at another provision of the reforms — while electronic versions of campaign contribution filings would be posted online, the addresses of contributors wouldn’t. Citing safety reasons, Cook and several other members said people should have to go to City Hall for the full information. But Bixby, who already requests and posts such forms on the Internet, said citizens shouldn’t have to jump through extra hoops to see if a lot of contributions came from a single address.

“I would be concerned from a purest public record point of view,” he said. “The public has the right to see that information.”