A Worthy Reform Effort

Money plays many roles in politics, some good and some bad. Perhaps most dangerous--even worse than when a desire for private gain results in bad public policy--is money’s ability to undermine confidence in the whole process.

Although meaningful campaign finance reform on the national level remains elusive, two Ventura County cities have passed ordinances restricting fund-raising in local campaigns. Ventura and Thousand Oaks have placed limits on the size of contributions a candidate may accept and have increased requirements for disclosure.

Now Simi Valley is considering similar steps. The Simi Valley City Council recently voted to draft a campaign finance ordinance that would limit individual and corporate contributions to $1,000, among other restrictions. The ordinance also includes a time period in which politicians could solicit contributions and a voluntary spending cap of $35,000.

State election laws prohibit cities from limiting the amount of money an individual can spend on his or her campaign but allow them to create incentives to stay within $35,000 for local campaigns. One possibility is to reduce the contribution limit to $500 for candidates who exceed the voluntary cap.

Councilman Paul Miller initiated the action in an effort to eliminate the perception of undue influence by developers. Miller himself has accepted thousands of dollars from builders in the past but told The Times that he will refuse such contributions when he runs for reelection.

“I think the general public does have a concern about the amount of money developers give to council members, and they feel we may be voting for these projects because of the donations we accept,” Miller told The Times. “There are some people in this community who think the council is in the pocket of developers.”

He had initially hoped to cap donations at $250. The city of Ventura has a $200 contribution cap if candidates spend $20,000 or less, and $100 if they exceed the voluntary cap. In Thousand Oaks, candidates can receive no more than $250 from any individual or business.

The ordinance also may include stepped-up contribution disclosure guidelines proposed by Councilman Glen Becerra. Those include requiring that any contributions of more than $250 made within weeks of the election be reported to the city clerk within 48 hours and possibly be posted on the city’s Web site.

Mayor Bill Davis and Councilwoman Barbra Williamson have questioned why stricter rules are needed. We think campaign finance reform is a good idea. There’s no question that money has enormous power to influence thinking and actions of elected officials--consciously or unconsciously. Even if it didn’t, the public’s faith in the electoral process and democratic government is priceless.