Hermosa Ready to Limit Campaign Contributions

As campaigning begins for the November municipal elections, the Hermosa Beach City Council has tentatively decided to limit campaign contributions to no more than $249 from a single source.

The proposed ordinance, which received unanimous council support when it was introduced last week, also would prohibit the city seal from being used on campaign literature and would require that candidates file an affidavit stating that any claimed or implied endorsement was made with the person’s written consent.

“I know there’s been a mounting demand for campaign reform,” Councilwoman June Williams said when she proposed the ordinance, “and I thought we could start in Hermosa Beach by limiting the donations from any one individual in an attempt to prevent special-interest influence. I think this benefits the candidate, too, by eliminating even the perception of bias.”

In an interview, she said: “Some people, when they give you a contribution, they think they bought you. I haven’t experienced this, I’ve just seen it.” She said she knows some council members have had problems with contributors who later expected favors, but she declined to be specific.

If the ordinance is adopted Tuesday, Hermosa Beach will have the South Bay’s most stringent contribution limit. Gardena and Los Angeles, the only other cities in the South Bay that restrict contributions, have a $500 limit.

City Clerk Kathleen Midstokke, who drafted the ordinance and is seeking reelection in November, said the $249 limit set in the Hermosa Beach ordinance was chosen to eliminate any potential conflicts of interest.

The proposed ordinance would apply the same restrictions to campaign contributions that state law applies to gifts. Under state law, it would be a conflict of interest for a public official to vote on any issue involving a donor of a gift valued at $250 or more.

In past Hermosa Beach campaigns, financial contributions have been as high as $750 from a single source, Midstokke said.

The Hermosa Beach ordinance is based on a similar but more extensive proposal by several Redondo Beach officials, Midstokke said. Redondo Beach Mayor Barbara J. Doerr and her political allies circulated petitions last October to place an initiative on the ballot but failed to get enough signatures.

Doerr had tried unsuccessfully the previous year to persuade the City Council to pass a similar ordinance.

Violation of the proposed Hermosa Beach ordinance by either a candidate or a contributor would be a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine up to $1,000, six months in jail or both. Falsifying an affidavit would be perjury--a felony--which is punishable by imprisonment up to three years.

Midstokke said that she is happy the Hermosa Beach City Council acted so quickly on the proposed ordinance, which passed 4 to 0 on introduction.

Welcomed Statement

“I think it’s a good time to make a statement--early in the campaign,” said Mayor John Cioffi, whose council term expires in November. Cioffi said he has not decided whether he will seek a second term.

Councilman Tony DeBellis, who is running for reelection, abstained from voting last week, saying that he felt it would be a conflict of interest. DeBellis said he supports the ordinance, but his campaign committee has already accepted contributions larger than $249.

City Atty. James Lough said that even if the ordinance passes Tuesday, candidates can accept contributions larger than $249 until Aug. 27, when the law would take effect.

The ordinance would not prohibit candidates from spending as much of their own money on their campaigns as they want, but it would prohibit them from getting a bank loan for more than $249 for use in the campaign, he said.

City Council members said they want the proposed law to apply to school board candidates, but Lough said he doesn’t know if the council can enforce the restrictions on candidates other than those running for city offices.