Council gives South El Monte mayor a curfew

Politicians are criticized for many things. Putting in too many hours at the office is not usually one of them.

But in South El Monte, a city of about 20,000 residents east of Los Angeles, the City Council has lodged just such a complaint against its most powerful elected official. Council members say Mayor Blanca Figueroa spends too much time at her City Hall office. So on Tuesday, they gave her a curfew.

The City Council, on which the mayor sits, voted 4 to 1 to prohibit its members and city staff from working in City Hall after 11 p.m. City officials, including City Manager Anthony Ybarra, admit that the ruling was primarily directed against Figueroa, who often works late into the night. “It’s a matter of security, safety and liability,” he said.

Figueroa, who has been mayor since 1997, is incensed.

“In my opinion, it is an unfair policy,” she said. “My job is 24/7.” The mayor said she needs the evening office hours to do her job properly. She said she spends most of her days in meetings, so it is at night that she catches up on e-mails and paperwork. She does not have a fax machine or a copier at home, she said.

Figueroa said her workload has increased in the last six to eight months. She blames the worsening economy. “I have more work to do now than ever,” she said. “If I let it go by, it piles up.”

If her round-the-clock schedule makes her a workaholic, she says, so be it.

“Do I have a private life? No. Even on Thanksgiving I was here,” she said proudly. “I’m mentally exhausted, but it is my service to serve the city.”

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kate.linthicum@latimes.com