Rhetoric Aside, Lobbyists at Center of Council Race

Early in his run for Los Angeles City Council, Tom Hayden vowed he would not be dependent on City Hall lobbyists for campaign money.

But one of his first fund-raisers was sponsored by Rose and Kindel, a prominent lobbying firm.

Jack Weiss, one of Hayden’s strongest opponents in the 5th District race, has also decried the influence of special interests at City Hall but has received a number of contributions from lobbyists, including Arnie Berghoff, who hosted a campaign fund-raiser for Weiss.

Berghoff is the longtime chief City Hall lobbyist for Browning Ferris Industries, which operates the controversial Sunshine Canyon Landfill.

Three other candidates in the 5th District race--Robyn Ritter Simon, Ken Gerston and Steve Saltzman--have hired top lobbyists as their political consultants.

Despite the rhetoric from candidates, lobbyists are playing a major role in the election to determine who fills the seat being vacated by Councilman Mike Feuer, who is running for city attorney.

“It just puts the lobbyists in a position of being real puppeteers,” said Valley Village accountant Victor Viereck, a candidate who has not accepted lobbyists’ help. “It’s part of the corruption of government.”

The prominent role of lobbyists in the 5th District race has emerged as an issue at recent candidate forums. It is in sharp contrast to Feuer’s own campaigns for the seat, in which he did not accept contributions from lobbyists.

Hayden, a former state senator who enjoys huge name recognition, began his campaign by decrying lobbyists’ role in city government.

“I talked to a top downtown lobbyist the other day about fund-raising, and he said it can’t succeed without the lobbyists because ‘we control the flow of money,’ ” Hayden wrote in a Nov. 29 fund-raising letter. “We have to prove that special interests don’t control the flow.”

But on Dec. 13 came invitations for a Hayden fund-raiser sponsored by Rose and Kindel, a firm that works at City Hall on behalf of some of the top local corporations, from Walt Disney Co. to United Airlines.

Hayden has received contributions from other registered City Hall lobbyists as well.

He did not return calls seeking comment, but his chief political consultant said there was nothing inconsistent about Hayden’s allowing a lobbying firm to host a fund-raiser for him.

“He doesn’t have a problem with having lobbyists helping his campaign,” said Parke Skelton. “I don’t think that is a hard rule.”

Skelton said Hayden has received relatively little money from lobbyists and special interests compared with his total fund-raising, but added, “If he feels there is a direct conflict, he will turn down a check.”

Despite that, Weiss said Hayden’s actions have not been consistent with his early letter vowing independence from lobbyists and indicating that he would use matching funds. “It certainly means, for the purposes of this election, Tom Hayden can’t claim the mantle of reform,” Weiss said.

Weiss, who is the leading fund-raiser in the race, has sparred recently at public forums with Hayden and other candidates about his own acceptance of lobbyist money.

At one face-off in Studio City, Hayden challenged Weiss to return a $500 contribution he received from Planning Associates Inc., a registered lobbyist for a company that wants to build a housing project for seniors on part of the Studio City Golf and Tennis Complex, which is within the district.

Weiss countered by saying he is opposed to the housing project.

At a forum last week, candidate Jill Barad criticized Weiss for accepting fund-raising help from Berghoff, lobbyist for dump operator Browning Ferris.

Weiss has also received contributions from the other lobbying firm that has been representing the trash disposal company at City Hall, the law firm of Weston, Benshoof, Rochefort, Rubalcava and MacCuish, and two of its attorneys, Steve Weston and Dominick Rubalcava.

Weiss told the audience at last week’s forum that he will not be soft on Sunshine Canyon just because of the help from Berghoff, Weston and others. “We absolutely have to hold their feet to the fire,” he said. “I will have a low threshold for violations.”

Saltzman, a Westside businessman, is one of several candidates who have hired lobbyists to run their campaigns. In his case, he turned his campaign over to political consultant Rick Taylor, whose clients as a lobbyist include American Golf Corp., City Cab and House of Blues Concerts Inc., which is vying for the lucrative city contract to run the Greek Theatre.

“I pay my campaign manager. He doesn’t pay me,” Saltzman said. “I don’t owe him anything.”

Simon’s political consultant, Harvey Englander, also is a lobbyist, and Gerston hired lobbyist Steven Afriat to run his campaign.

Afriat and Taylor both have represented Mayfield Development, builder of the Sunset Millennium hotel and office development in West Hollywood.

Gerston, who deferred comment to Afriat, has received contributions from Afriat clients, including Regency Outdoor Advertising and the head of City Cab. Afriat said he keeps his lobbying and political consultant duties separate.

Candidate Nate Bernstein has received one donation from a lobbyist.