English-Only Initiative Plan Held Invalid
A proposed initiative to declare English the official language in Monterey Park has been ruled invalid by the city attorney because it lacks the proper legal wording of an ordinance.
City Atty. Richard Morillo said Tuesday that the initiative cannot qualify for the municipal election ballot in April, because it contains the reasons for adopting the ordinance but not the ordinance itself.
“There’s nothing there,” he said. “We can’t guess at what it’s supposed to say.”
Frank J. Arcuri, who led the petition drive, said the measure is a simple declaration, and he accused Morillo of “twisting the initiative” to find an excuse to keep it off the ballot.
He said the full text is embodied in the petition statement that the measure is “for the purpose of adopting a city ordinance to establish English as the official language of Monterey Park.”
Arcuri said the initiative was designed to express concern over the use of Chinese characters in business signs and to encourage immigrants to learn and use English.
Initiative opponents claim that declaring English the official language would insult immigrants, infringe on free speech and encourage racism.
The city’s Asian population has grown sharply in the past decade and now represents an estimated 40% of the city’s population of 58,000.
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