O’Connell under FPPC investigation following complaints about recusal from votes

Huntington Beach council member Billy O’Connell is under investigation by the Fair Political Practices Commission after complaints were sent in, claiming O’Connell was not transparent in his recusals from certain city council votes.

During the June 20 city council meeting, O’Connell recused himself from a vote regarding live entertainment at the No Ka Oi restaurant in downtown Huntington Beach, referring to “a potential conflict of interest.”

Resident Mark Bixby, who sent in the complaint to the FPPC, said O’Connell was vague about his reasoning and should have been more specific.

“I firmly believe that the people have the right to know why their representatives are unable to perform the job they were elected to do,” Bixby said. “I’ve been bothered for a long time by Billy’s no-reason recusals.”

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In a complaint sent to the FPPC, Bixby claimed O’Connell has given unspecific reasons for recusals from six votes in 2014 and 2015.

Bixby said he was “spurred to act” when O’Connell recused himself from the No Ka Oi item. He said rumors were circulating that O’Connell had an economic interest in the new Legends Sports Bar, which is slated to be located near No Ka Oi.

After receiving backlash from residents regarding his “vague recusal” from that vote, O’Connell confirmed he had a financial interest within 500 feet of Na Ka Oi at the July 5 city council meeting, but did not specify what that interest was.

In a later phone conversation with the Huntington Beach Independent, O’Connell verified that he does have financial ties to Legends.

“For future votes, anything that is less than 500 feet from Legends, I’ll be more than glad to recuse myself,” he said. “I think I did the right thing by recusing myself. If I didn’t recuse myself at all, that would be a huge issue. I’ve always believed in being more than 100% transparent. I’d rather recuse myself in the abundance of caution than not recuse myself.”

In a letter sent to Bixby on July 6, Galena West, from the Chief Enforcement Division of the FPPC, confirmed O’Connell is under investigation.

West also said in the letter that “at this time we have not made any determination about the validity of the allegation(s) you have made or about the culpability, if any, of the person(s) you identify in your complaint.”

Jay Wierenga, an FPPC spokesperson, declined to comment on the case but said, in general, if violations are found, they can each carry an administrative fine or penalty of up to $5,000.

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Brittany Woolsey, brittany.woolsey@latimes.com

Twitter: @BrittanyWoolsey