Seal Beach : Couple May Change Campaign Finances

Working out of their Marina Hill home, a retired aerospace engineer and his wife have spent the last nine months quietly crafting a series of election reforms that, if approved by the City Council, could change the way campaigns in the city are run and financed.

Their efforts come as the cost of seeking office in Seal Beach continues to rise.

A decade ago, candidates spent about $1,000 each. Today, they spend at least several times that on campaign mailers, placards, buttons and advertisements, said James Goodwin, who along with his wife, Frances, volunteered to research the issue last fall for the City Council.

“What I am concerned about is that when the average guy looks at what he has to spend and see the trend, he won’t want to run for office and spend the time raising funds,” said Goodwin, who plans to present his and his wife’s findings to the City Council over the next few weeks.

Councilman Frank Laszlo, a campaign reform advocate, said he hopes to have new guidelines in place in time for next March’s elections.

After contacting cities across the state and reading up on campaign reform, Goodwin said Seal Beach would probably be best served by voluntary limits on both campaign spending and fund-raising.

Goodwin suggests asking candidates to spend no more than $5,000 during primary elections and no more than $3,000 during runoffs. He also advocates a voluntary campaign contribution limit for donors of $250 per candidate.

Such a system would not only give candidates a more even playing field but would also limit the influence of “big money” interests, such as developers who might seek to influence elections, he said.

Though candidates would not be bound by the reforms, other cities have found the idea effective because candidates who don’t abide by the guidelines often get “bad press,” Goodwin said.

Goodwin attributed the increase in campaign costs to “the psychology” of elections: Unsure of how much their opponents plan to spend, candidates raise as much money as possible to avoid being placed in a financial disadvantage.

Said Laszlo: “I hate to think of someone buying the election. We hope this prevents someone from spending huge sums of money.”