EDITOR’S NOTE: When all five members of the LA County Board of Supervisors went to Washington, D.C., on May 5 and 6 to lobby the local Congressional Delegation it posted a “PUBLIC SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS.” Government watchdog Leslie Dutton of the Full Disclosure Network was curious and hired reporter Janet Levy and a camera crew to cover their “special meeting” agenda, much to the amazement of the supervisors who expected to meet as as full board far from home and public scrutiny and the requirements of the Brown Act, the state’s open meeting law. Levy was turned away when she tried to cover many of the meetings, which were then marked canceled. The board later posted this report of the results of its meetings but did not post transcripts of the meetings as they do routinely. Here is the first part of the Full Disclosure Network’s report on what happened.
By Leslie Dutton, Full Disclsoure Network
Washington DC The public and the press was
barred from attending five of the ten official public meetings called by
the L A Board of Supervisors on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. on May
5th and 6th 2010, Traveling with the Board was the County’s Chief
Executive Officer, the County Counsel and at least a dozen of the
highest ranking administrators all of who were on hand to discuss agenda items such as the Obama Health Care Plan,
Funding for needy families and criminal alien assistance programs. But
when the Full Disclosure reporter and camera crew showed up all hell
broke loose.
County Supervisors had ten meetings scheduled in the Senate and
Congressional offices and the White House for the two day event. Full
Disclosure’s Reporter Janet Levy and the three-man
camera crew were prohibited from entering the public noticed meetings by
county staff and were told that it was the members of Congress who
objected to having the public and camera crew in the meetings. However
as Federal officials they are not subject to the California Brown Act
that prohibits a majority (three or more) of the County Supervisors from
meeting in private under the “Open Meeting Law”.
Full Disclosure showed up to the Capitol Hill offices of Senators
Diane Feinstein, Barbara Boxer, Congress Members Henry Waxman, Judy
Chu, Jane Harman, Maxine Waters, Linda Sanchez and Xavier Becerra they
were met with county staff objections, restrictions and outright cancellations and were completely barred from the
White House meeting. They were told that two Supervisors would be
meeting “privately” with the Congress Members. However in the case of
the White House, they apparently all in attendance but the public was
barred. Watch this ten minute video of what happened.
The two-half hour Full Disclosure Programs covering these meetings
will be shown on community cable channels throughout California and in
major cities across the United States, including Washington D.C.and on
the world wide Internet. DVD copies of the two-part series covering
the meetings and events can be ordered from the Full Disclosure website
here.
It was reporting in various media including the L A Times last year, that when reporters covering legislative bodies were pared to the bone, they closed the entire Media Room which had covered the Board of Supes in the past, leaving their actions almost totally under the radar – along with them, the County DA and Sheriff. (The BOS are nominally their “bosses” but since the DA has dossiers on them, and the Sheriff has also like him been sued for being vindictive and retaliatory, you really think they’re messing with them?)
You notice that the handful of reporters that cover local government, virtually always just hang out at City Hall, and focus on the low-lying fruit of the Council and Mayor.
So the local pols look like big fools by comparison which isn’t totally fair (I said totally) – ever scrutinize some of those Supes? They ALL speak slowly and pompously as though that reflects a deeper gravitas, but it does not. Just self-importance that makes the Council look very open and downright accessible by comparison.
While the BOS has BILLIONS to spend, and boy do they – PLUS, each of them has many millions in discretionary funds, while the city officials have less than a Million Bucks each and get hell for it. (INCLUDING from you.) Look at Zev’s fancy new website, and the $750,000 decor job Ridley-Thomas planned, as an examples – and Molina, the Republicans Knabe and Antonovich, are no better. They sit on virtual thrones, above the audience, like the rules they are.
Not that the local “clowncil” doesn’t deserve scrutiny, but the BOS gets away with murder, figuratively speaking.
Where is the DA? Oh, yeah, he does not enforce the public integrity laws. Please go back to your televisions. Sorry for the interruption of your programming.
Why should Angelenos support the LACK of LEADERSHIP Los Angeles City Council and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Mayor’s decision to increase DWP rates, including trash fees, parking meter fees, traffic citation fees, etc, and continue to provide less service to their constituents.’ This does not include LA County, State and Federal increases.
The individuals who complain the most are the same people who continue to vote for the LACK of LEADERSHIP, including the career politicians like Villaraigosa, Alarcon, Cardenas, Koretz, Wesson, Krekorian, politicians into office.
Let’s start the NO vote campaign against Lt. Gov. Candidate Janice Hahn on Tuesday, June 8, 2010 or STOP complaining.
7 days left for June 8 and counting!
folks, it’s quite simple. if you don’t know what they’re doing, you can’t interfere. you can’t ask questions. you can’t stop their funding decisions. their developer buddies get rich and they get re-elected.
so much prettier when it’s under the radar. oh, by the way – the politicians who are savvy about this methodology are worming their way from the state legislature into LA city council as we speak. it’s not just the county supervisors practicing this kind of non-transparent decision-making.
Zev should be ashamed of himself.
Zev has no shame. He has been playing games with the electorate since his Council days. The fact that he removes his glasses anytime he is photographed speaks volumes. It is all about image and empty rhetoric to an LA audience that is transitory, fickle and mostly uninterested in politics.
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