POLITICAL NOTEBOOK : Legislators Not Faring as Well

Party’s Over--In 1988, San Gabriel Valley legislators pocketed $184,000 for speeches and accepted $87,000 worth of gifts. By those standards, they were reduced last year to picking up nickels and dimes.

Operating for the first time under new guidelines that banned speech fees and imposed a $250 ceiling on most gifts, the area’s 15 state lawmakers received slightly more than $30,000 worth of free trips, meals, sports tickets and other items last year--about half the amount reported in 1990.

Still, legislators managed to travel at corporate and foundation expense, taking advantage of a provision that allows the $250 gift ceiling to be exceeded for travel related to a government or public-policy purpose.

Assemblyman Xavier Becerra (D-Monterey Park) went to Israel in October on a trip that cost the Beverly Hills-based American Associates of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev $5,300.

Sen. Art Torres (D-Los Angeles) flew to Japan in October, and his $2,300 air fare was paid by the Kagro Foundation of Los Angeles.

The American Insurance Assn. paid $1,608 in lodging and transportation expenses so that Sen. Frank Hill (R-Whittier), accompanied by his wife, could address a meeting of the association in Washington.

Sen. Bill Leonard (R-Big Bear) spent five days in Hawaii in December at a Pacific trade conference funded by several corporations. And he flew to Portland in January of last year to address a regional management conference for United Parcel Service. Leonard reported payment of $2,629 in expenses for the two trips.

More Travel--Sen. Newton R. Russell (R-Glendale) went to the Philippines in March and to Austria, Hungary and Czechoslovakia in October. But he paid his air fare out of campaign funds.

However, Russell reported a long list of meals, beverages and other expenses paid by the Philippine National Senate, the city of Vienna, private corporations and trade and tourism groups. Russell said both trips involved international trade issues.

Most of the gifts reported by legislators involved free meals and tickets to sports events, the circus and other attractions.

Other gifts ranged from the meager, such as $5.72 worth of tennis balls given by an oil company to Sen. Charles M. Calderon (D-Whittier), to the more substantial, such as $250 worth of medical tests, vitamins and drugs given by a health clinic to Assemblyman Jim Brulte (R-Ontario).

Old Money--The sharp decline in gifts is reflected in the reports filed by Hill and Assemblyman Pat Nolan (R-Glendale). In 1988, Hill received more than $32,000 and Nolan more than $26,000 for speechmaking.

That same year, Sen. Joseph Montoya (D-Whittier) reported $36,550 in speech earnings, but made the mistake of taking $3,000 from an FBI agent posing as a businessman seeking legislative assistance.

Montoya, who took the money without bothering to make a speech, subsequently was convicted of extortion, racketeering and money laundering, and resigned from the Senate.

A ceiling was imposed on speech fees in 1989 and payments were prohibited altogether in 1991. Even before the new rules, some San Gabriel Valley legislators seldom accepted speech fees or gifts.

Assemblyman William H. Lancaster (R-Covina), who is retiring after 20 years in the Assembly, reported no gifts last year. And Assemblywoman Sally Tanner (D-Baldwin Park) accepted $273 worth of gifts. Neither took free trips.

Forum Report--Among the candidate forums planned before the April 14 election:

A forum of candidates for the Rosemead City Council will be held at Rosemead Methodist Church, 9032 Mission Drive, at 11:15 a.m. today.

Several forums are scheduled for candidates for the Monterey Park City Council, all at City Hall, 320 W. Newmark Ave.:

* Monterey Park Democratic Club, 7:30 p.m. Thursday.

* Chinese Professional Society, 5 p.m. Saturday.

* Taiwanese American Citizens League, 2 p.m. March 28.

* Chinese American Political Alliance and other groups, 2 p.m. March 29.

Political Successor--Becerra, who is giving up his 59th Assembly District seat to run for Congress, said he is “inclined to support” attorney Richard Fajardo as his successor, but he will talk to the candidates before making his endorsement official.

Fajardo, former staff attorney for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, is one of four Democrats who have filed for the seat.

The others are Richard Amador, an Alhambra attorney; Robert Gomez, senior deputy county counsel, also of Alhambra, and Diane Martinez, Garvey school board president.

Martinez, daughter of Rep. Matthew G. Martinez (D-Monterey Park), lost to Becerra two years ago. Amador, whose father was a longtime member of the Alhambra school board, worked with Fajardo on the lawsuit that led to a redrawing of county supervisorial districts to give Latinos better representation.

The winner of the Democratic primary June 2 will be heavily favored to win the seat in November because Democrats outnumber Republicans more than 2 to 1 in the district.

Republican contenders are Beth Fujishige, administrative assistant to the city manager in Monterey Park, and Sophie C. Wong, a member of the Alhambra school board. Also on the ballot is Libertarian candidate Kim Goldsworthy, a computer programmer.

1991 Gifts, Travel Expenses Gifts and expenses-paid travel reported by San Gabriel Valley-area legislators during 1991.

Gifts Travel State senators Ruben S. Ayala (D-Chino) $602 $0 Charles M. Calderon (D-Whittier) 1,803 0 Frank Hill (R-Whittier) 1,542 $1,608 Bill Leonard (R-Big Bear) 1,516 $2,629 Don Rogers (R-Bakersfield) 541 0 Newton R. Russell (R-Glendale) 1,475 0 Art Torres (D-Los Angeles) 3,455 0 Assembly members Xavier Becerra (D-Monterey Park) $763 $6,187 Jim Brulte (R-Ontario) 2,068 0 Paul Horcher (R-Diamond Bar) 2,859 0 William H. Lancaster (R-Covina) 0 0 Richard L. Mountjoy (R-Monrovia) 171 0 Pat Nolan (R-Glendale) 557 0 Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles) 1,814 775 Sally Tanner (D-Baldwin Park) 273 0

Source: Financial disclosure statements filed by legislators

with the state Fair Political Practices Commission