BELL GARDENS : Drive to Recall 2 on Council Hits Snag

A procedural error has snagged a recall drive against two City Council members.

City Clerk Ron L. Hart last week rejected a petition to hold a special election to recall Mayor Maria S. Chacon and Councilman Ramiro Morales because recall proponents failed to publish an announcement about the recall drive in the local newspaper, as prescribed by state law.

Recall campaign manager Laird Halverson said the mistake will cost the campaign only 12 days. Recall organizers have already refiled their petition with the city and plan to publish the proper announcement in the newspaper.

“Our momentum is still there,” Halverson said.

If the city clerk approves the petition to hold a special election, recall organizers will begin their drive to collect the required 1,583 signatures. A special election could be scheduled as soon as January.

Recall proponents say Chacon and Morales did not fulfill campaign promises--allegations that the council members deny.

The recall campaign picked up steam after the city laid off 13 employees last month in an effort to close a $4-million budget deficit.

The city clerk initially approved the 20 signatures of residents required to initiate a recall campaign, but later invalidated the petition after the city’s election attorney said state law requires public notification of a recall drive in a newspaper.

The recall committee, led by former City Council candidate Hugo Escalera, had instead posted the notice at City Hall, the Police Department, the city library and Ford Park.

“The recall process is a technical minefield,” Hart said. “It is not my job to tell people how to walk across a minefield. It’s up to the proponents of the recall to file properly.”

The city clerk said he had suggested that recall organizers consult an attorney.

Halverson said a legal adviser to the committee had mistakenly believed that publishing the recall announcement was optional.

Chacon’s and Morales’ terms end in March, 1999. If there is a recall election, as many as six critics of the current administration have said they will run for office, including former Mayor Rosa Hernandez, who has won the support of recall organizers.

In a statement after the city rejected the recall petition, Chacon stood behind her one-year record as mayor.