Campaign Finance Reform Panel to Meet

Armed with a list of perceived problems in local elections, a committee charged with reforming campaign finance will begin discussing possible solutions at a meeting Monday.

The Citizens Blue Ribbon Campaign Finance Reform Committee spent its most recent meeting compiling abuses of state and federal campaign laws. Thousand Oaks has no laws governing campaign spending in local elections.

While committee members have not decided what issues to address--or how--they created at a meeting this week a 27-item list of campaign issues troubling Thousand Oaks residents. Among the issues:

* The possibility that special interests--particularly developers--wield too much influence in local politics.

* The difficulty that newcomers--and those who are not wealthy--have in getting their names and messages out to voters.

* The proliferation of negative campaign literature sent in the final days of campaigning.

* The cost of running a campaign.

* The influx of last-minute contributions, which don’t show up on campaign spending documents until after an election.

The 17-member group also formed a smaller subcommittee to draft a brief mission statement for the panel.

The campaign finance reform committee will meet to discuss practical solutions beginning at 4 p.m. Monday in the Oak Room of the Civic Arts Plaza, 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. The meeting will be open to the public.