Newport council bars use of public money to support tax measures

The Newport Beach City Council approved a policy Tuesday barring the use of public funds to advocate for local tax hikes.

State and federal laws already prohibit public agencies from spending public funds to support or oppose ballot measures, but they leave some room for the use of public dollars to provide information to voters about tax measures. Mayor Pro Tem Will O’Neill said cities have “essentially driven a Mack truck through this tiny little exception.”

As examples of how “public education” can be more advocacy than information, O’Neill cited the extensive use of political consultants to push a tax increase in Tracy, and the finance director of Stanton reflecting after a sales tax measure that the city should have better “suppressed the opposition.”

O’Neill’s original policy language would have banned publicly funded informational campaigns from taking a position on either side of a tax question on a city or county ballot, but Councilwoman Diane Dixon dialed it back to restrict advocacy only in favor of tax measures.

She also wanted a suggested ban on publicly funded “public education” reworded as a ban on publicly funded “policy consultants” to allow education without the use of outside consultants.

“Overall, I just don’t want to silence or gag ourselves or future councils, keeping us from opposing a proposed tax increase,” she said.

Councilman Jeff Herdman worried about possible unintended consequences of blocking council input on taxes such as for roads or disaster relief or preventing council members from taking a stance without spending public money.

Councilman Kevin Muldoon said O’Neill was “creating a hurdle for the businesses that profit on tax hikes up and down the state with the misuse of public funds essentially to sell the idea to the public.” The policy would be an internal guideline that couldn’t supersede state law or free speech, Muldoon said.

Dixon suggested delaying a vote until the council’s next meeting to allow more public input, but the council eventually voted 6-1, with Herdman dissenting, to approve her version of the policy.

“I would really be interested in hearing more community input on this particular action before I vote,” Herdman said.

hillary.davis@latimes.com

Twitter: @Daily_PilotHD