A federal raid on Palm Springs City Hall, bribery and perjury charges against a former mayor and the creation of an ethics panel have all led to a tough new conflict-of-interest disclosure plan that the City Council Wednesday will consider adopting.
The new package of ethics regulations would require officials to disclose non-financial conflicts of interest, a standard that the city says exceeds that required by state law.
Recommendations forwarded by the city’s Ethics, Transparency and Government Reform Task Force were incorporated into the proposed ordinance that would set new standards for city officials and applicants for land-use projects.
The recommendations include requiring city officials to declare conflicts of interest in forms filed each year, even in situations that don’t directly benefit a public official financially. An official voting on projects near his or her leased or rented property, or projects proposed by a group that the official is part of — even in an unpaid role — would fall under “Special Fiduciary Interests” and “Special Real Property Interests” that must be reported annually.
Reporting those types of conflicts is not required by the Political Reform Act, which applies to financial conflicts of interest, according to a city staff report.
Other recommendations included in the proposed ordinance include mandating that applicants for new land use entitlements, licenses, permits and other approvals disclose anyone who has an ownership interest in the applicant’s organization with a value of $2,000 or more.
Finally, decisions made by the city’s Planning Commission would not be final until 10 days after notice of their ruling is made to the city council and the ruling is posted on the city’s website.
The city’s report notes that Planning Commission members are not elected by the voters, yet their decisions are often rendered without extensive awareness from the city council or the public.
Violators would be subject to unspecified “administrative citations.”
The recommendations were developed last summer by the city’s ethics task force, a body made up of nearly 50 residents.
The task force was established in 2016, not long after Palm Springs City Hall was raided by federal authorities in an investigation that led to bribery, perjury and other charges filed against former Mayor Steve Pougnet and two local developers.
“The city council would like to thank the task force for their long and hard work developing these recommendations,” Councilman Geoff Kors said. “These new recommendations go above and beyond what is required by state law and will result in Palm Springs being a leader in government ethics and transparency. The Palm Springs City Council is committed to open and transparent government and we hope to lead the way by example in everything we do when it comes to ethics and transparency.”
The ordinance marks the first of two legislative packages resulting from task force recommendations, according to the city.
Upcoming action on other task force recommendations includes implementation of a 24/7 whistleblower hotline to allow for anonymous reporting on officials who commit misconduct or fraud. Complaints can be submitted via telelphone or an online complaint form.
Future legislative action may include requiring the proliferation of land use and other city notices to all city residents and the regulation of lobbying activity and campaign contributions.
–City News Service