SHERMAN OAKS : Hayden to Speak at Town Hall Meeting

State Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica) will appear at a town hall meeting tonight in Sherman Oaks to discuss campaign finance reform and other issues that affect local communities.

“It will be a chance for the senator to meet with people and answer their questions,” said Sandy Brown, Hayden’s deputy chief of staff. “A lot of politicians have town hall meetings as a way to get into the community.”

Hayden will talk about the importance of changing the current campaign finance system. Last year, he said, special-interest lobbyists spent $250 million trying to sway the hearts and minds of state legislators.

“It’s time for citizens in this community to take back government from the special interests in Sacramento and elsewhere,” Hayden said in an invitation to the meeting, which is open to the public.

Other topics that will be covered are the possible breakup of the Los Angeles Unified School District, hospital quake safety and campaign finance reform in regard to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

In February, Hayden introduced a bill that would, in the event of an LAUSD breakup, require the resulting smaller school districts to be socio-economically diverse and geographically compact. In addition, the resources of the former LAUSD would have to be fairly distributed among the new districts.

The town hall meeting will be held 7 to 9 p.m. at Dixie Canyon Avenue Elementary School, 4220 Dixie Canyon Ave.