Strict Conflict-of-Interest Laws Proposed by Ferraro

Responding to disclosures in a series of Times articles, Los Angeles City Council President John Ferraro on Tuesday proposed strict conflict-of-interest laws that would require former city officials to wait two years before lobbying their old agencies.

Also prompted by The Times’ articles, Ferraro said he wants the city attorney’s office to investigate whether former Deputy Mayor Tom Houston devoted nearly all his working hours during his last six months at City Hall to searching for a job in private industry.

The Times reported that Houston is the most active of several former aides of Mayor Tom Bradley who have earned lucrative fees by representing clients at City Hall. After his resignation last June as the mayor’s chief of staff, Houston made several appearances before the mayor on behalf of his clients.

The appearances by Houston did not violate any laws because Los Angeles does not have a statute as effective as the federal Ethics in Government Act, which prohibits ex-government officials from lobbying their former colleagues on any issue for a period of one year. Ferraro is suggesting that the city adopt a two-year ban on lobbying by former officials.

Ferraro said such lobbying activities “lower the level of confidence of citizens by raising questions about pressures being put on elected officials in their decision-making process.”

Regarding Houston’s time spent looking for a job, Ferraro said, “If this is truly the case, it raises a serious question of whether his ($85,301-per-year) salary during that time was being paid for performing work for the benefit of the city, or primarily for the personal benefit of Mr. Houston.”

Both of Ferraro’s motions are scheduled to be considered by the full City Council next week.