COSTA MESA : Conflict-of-Interest Issue to Be Studied

The City Council agreed this week to consider adopting a stricter conflict-of-interest ordinance that would have prevented Councilman Orville Amburgey from voting in favor of his son’s development project last March.

Amburgey and Councilman Ed Glasgow, who voted against exploring a new ordinance, urged council members to allow voters to decide the issue. Costa Mesa resident Robert Blanchard has proposed a ballot initiative that would tighten the city’s definition of conflict of interest.

“I think there would be overwhelming support for this,” said Mayor Peter F. Buffa before he voted in favor of having the city draft its own ordinance. “It is something we have not addressed in the past.”

Amburgey came under fire when he refused to abstain from a vote that allowed his son, Ron, to develop an eight-unit housing project on Valley Road. Amburgey said that because his son is not a dependent, he would not have a direct financial interest in the matter. State and city officials confirmed that his vote did not violate conflict-of-interest laws.

The proposed ballot initiative would make it unlawful for an official to vote on projects in which relatives, whether dependent or not, have at least a 10% interest.

Blanchard did not attend Monday’s meeting and was not available for comment.

Amburgey, who is up for reelection in November, said it would have been politically savvy to abstain from voting on his son’s project.

“I am not a politician that does things that are politically expedient,” Amburgey said, adding that he believes that he did what was best for the community.

Amburgey also believes that the city could be held liable if someone was denied city approval of a project because he could not get enough votes because of the proposed conflict-of-interest rule.

The city attorney will draft the proposal and present it to the council at its June 18 meeting.

Councilwoman Sandra L. Genis, who brought the conflict-of-interest issue to the council, also initiated a proposal to have the city look into adopting campaign limitations similar to those that govern the County Board of Supervisors. Those limitations prevent an official from voting for a contributor’s project if he or she has donated more than $250 toward the official’s campaign over a four-year period.

“I think that same provision would do well at the council level,” Genis said.