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20130411_PacketCITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AGENDA Thursday, April 11, 2013 6:30 p.m. Central Library 500 W. Broadway, Anaheim, CA 92805 Spanish language translation services are available at the meeting upon request. 1. Call meeting to order 2. Flag Salute 3. Approve CAC minutes of the March 14, 2013 and March 28, 2013 meetings. Action: Approve minutes. 4. Public Comments (Individual audience participation is limited to three (3) minutes per speaker) Action: Public comments on any agenda items or subject matter within the jurisdiction of the Citizens Advisory Committee. 5. Receive and file the report on Community Outreach efforts Action: Receive and file community outreach report. 6. Overview, presentation, discussion and possible decisions on the Committee's recommendations Action: Facilitated by Steven Lynn. 7. Committee Communications Action: Closing comments. 8. Adjournment ***** Agenda related writings or documents provided to the Citizens Advisory Committee on Elections and Community Involvement are available for public inspection in the Office of the City Clerk, at www.anaheim.net/CACElections, and in the binder located in the meeting room while the Committee is in session. Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on this agenda (other than writings legally exempt from public disclosure) will be made available for public inspection in the Office of the City Clerk, located at 200 S. Anaheim nd Blvd., 2 Floor, Anaheim, CA 92805, during regular business hours. Any person who requires a disability-related modification or accommodation, including auxiliary aids or services, in order to participate in the public meeting may request such modification, Boulevard, Anaheim, California, or by telephone at (714) 765-5166, no later than 10:00 AM on the day preceding the scheduled meeting. Upon request, this agenda will be made available in appropriate alternative formats to persons with a disability, as required by Section 202 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Spanish language translation services are available at the meeting upon request. Alternate language translation services are available for CAC meetings by calling 714-765-5162 at least 48 hours in advance. POSTING STATEMENT: On April 9, 2013, a true and correct copy of this agenda was posted on the kiosk outside City Hall, 200 S. Anaheim Blvd. Internet Access to agendas and related material is available prior to CAC Meetings at www.anaheim.net/CACElections ΕdŚŝƐƉĂŐĞůĞĨƚŝŶƚĞŶƚŝŽŶĂůůǇďůĂŶŬΕ EKZWKZdηϭ ΕdŚŝƐƉĂŐĞůĞĨƚŝŶƚĞŶƚŝŽŶĂůůǇďůĂŶŬΕ EKZWKZdηϮ Agenda Item No. 3 CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT MINUTES Thursday, March 14, 2013 6:30 p.m. Anaheim Central Library 500 West Broadway, Anaheim, CA 92805 COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: John Woodhead, Ex Officio Member Anthony Armas Bill Dalati, Vice Chair Sandy Day Martin Lopez Keith Olesen Vivian Pham, Chair Vic Real COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT: Larry Larsen STAFF PRESENT: Greg Garcia, Deputy City Manager Robert Tyson, Deputy City Attorney Caroline Morey, Recording Secretary Spanish language translation services are available at the meeting upon request. 1. Call meeting to order. The meeting of the Citizens Advisory Committee on Elections and Community Involvement (CAC) was called to order at 6:34p.m.by Chair Pham. 2. Flag Salute 3. Approve CAC minutes of the February 21, 2013 meeting Action: Approve minutes. Commissioner Real had a question about Brian Chuchua on the February 28 minutes. Commissioner Diaz corrected him that the committee was approving February 21 minutes. Chair Pham requested a motion to approve the minutes for the February 21, 2013 CAC meeting minutes. Page ϭ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Commissioner Lopez motioned to approve. Vice Chair Dalati seconded. Ayes 7 0, Absent 1 (Larsen) Abstention-1 (Olesen due to not being present) The motion passed. 4. Public Comments (Individual audience participation is limited to three (3) minutes per speaker) Action: Public comments on any agenda items or subject matter within the jurisdiction of the Citizens Advisory Committee. William Fitzgerald, spokesperson for Anaheim HOME: Homeowners Maintaining Our Environment. They are a grass roots organization of mostly senior Anaheim residents who have been active in promoting district elections for Anaheim over almost 20 years. They had about 900 members in the mid 1990s. Unfortunately, being an organization of seniors, they have had a high attrition rate in the last 15 years. He is here this evening to address the committee members concerning the opportunity to give a 15 minute detailed presentation to this committee hopefully to be scheduled in the next month or so. As the only active organization in Anaheim advocating district elections for almost 20 years, they have been waiting for months for the invitation from your committee to speak for about 15 minutes. After not receiving such an invitation, they are here tonight requesting that opportunity. In the last ten years, except in 2002 when they were tricked, one of our members representing our organization in the Anaheim City elections, especially when it would appear that the incumbent candidate to be running unopposed. The copy of the news article handed out to you, March 2, 2002 OC Register. It has a picture of 6 of our members, several of whom are now deceased. It also has a listing of the pros/cons of district elections by political science professors from UCI and CalState Fullerton. Also, in that newspaper photo is our present Anaheim HOME President, Steve White of White Realty. Steve is a long time Anaheim resident who grew up in Anaheim and graduated from Anaheim High School. He is a trustee of the North Orange County College District, Fullerton Community College. His parents were Anaheim pioneers. His father, Joe White, founder of White Realty, in the 195 Commission. His mother, Sally White, long time chairman of Relieve Anaheim. Steve would like to make some short comments followed by any questions you may have about district elections. Clara Turner, Policy Analyst with OCCORD, who has spoken to the committee before a couple weeks ago. This week she brought the committee a graph, since the topic of the meeting today is about the cost of administering electoral systems. She thought she would present a little research on a similar tangential topic, which is the cost of running for election in Anaheim. She said that a couple of public commentaries have spoken regarding cost issue. She thinks a few committee members might have brought it up also. The first page of the graph measures the amount of money spent on a campaign by a candidate. Here on the vertical axis, the X axis, it has the dollars spent which represents money raised by a candidate or their personal wealth. On the horizontal axis, the y axis, it shows how many votes they won. She thinks that while you can see that money alone is not the determining factor in the elections, if you have a certain ple who The most important part is when you are considering how to improve electoral participation and involvement, you can see that there is a threshold, where if you can meet a certain amount of money, you become competitive. If you have a significant amount of money to spend spend. If you have a certain amount, while you might not win the election, you would certainly be among t It seems to hover Page Ϯ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 he handout, she took into account the amount of money spent by Political Action Committees, PACs, that is money spent separately from what the candidate is spending, to influence and election either in support or opposition of a candidate. We can see two things from this graph, you can see the amount of money spent on the campaign jumps way up. You can see the amount of money needed to be a viable candidate. Instead of needing $50,000 in 2010, you now need $150,000. Instead of needing $100,000 in 2008, you now need $250,000. When you look at the buying an election, with enough fundraising ability or personal wealth, it looks li in you or help jump up to the spending level that you need to compete when you have independent expenditures and personal expenditures playing a role in your campaign. Finally, there have been a few people speak about capping campaign donations or the amount of money you can spend on a campaign might be a good thing for the city to consider, but the you would probably need to have a legal opinion on whether or not that is possible and how it would work, because as you all have heard in the last few years, there has been a Supreme Court interpretation of federal law that consider campaign donations to be an expression of free speech. Steve White said that he is here just to represent himself, not representing any organization. He is a 50+ year resident of Anaheim. For a long time, at least 25 years he has been an advocate for district elections. He came to the conclusion when he was more active in city affairs that the system itself, the election at large caused city government to be irresponsive to the citizens needs. He felt for a very long time that the only way to make any changes or make the government more accountable and responsive to citizens needs was election by districts, smaller areas. The election at large worked fine when the city was is a huge variety, a huge difference if we were to go to a district system. He believes candidates would actually be able to meet people, knock on doors, and be known. Also, the residents would know which particular councilman was responsible for their area. The minority talking about good governance, accountability of government. He supports districting and hopes the committee will consider the district concept. Duane Roberts, lives at 2276 Colchester Drive, 40 year resident of West Anaheim. The purpose of his speaking tonight is to support the idea of expanding the Anaheim City Co members to 9 members. The current system is an antiquated relic of a bygone era when Anaheim was just a small community of German farm immigrants, not a thriving metropolis of more than 300,000 people of many different racial, ethnic, religious and socio-economic backgrounds. The reason why this st institutional arrangement has continued into the 21 century, a cultural lag, because a compact council size allows big business, wealthy individuals, and well-healed lobbyists to dominate municipal affairs. They are able to push through their agenda with little review and critical evaluation, and they are able to ignore neighborhood needs. An expanded council size either elected by district or by proportional representation would lead to the election of candidates that better reflect the race, ethnic, and socio- economic background of Anaheim. No longer would a handful of tiny millionaires and billionaires call all an expanded council size in combination with other reforms that he mentioned would lead to a body that better represents community interests, not special interests. Thank you for your time. Page ϯ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Eric Altman for OCCORD, Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development. Just a quick addendum to Clara Turners presentation, two minutes ago for those who are in the audience, he thinks the committee members understand this good and well because they have been sitting through these conversations for quite a while. For the audience, the reason why campaign finance comes into play and run citywide than if you have to run in just a district. Just a little more information for folks in the audience who may have come in late in the game. He wanted to share some documents presented to you in a folder since later on there is going to be a presentation about an update about the legislation under the California Voting Rights Act, OCCORD thought you might be interested in seeing some of the parallel universe, from this committee. So we thought you might want to know what is going on. The first s been filed by three community leaders in Anaheim under the California Voting Rights Act in the first document. The next document is the ci third document, is the lawsuit so that this committee can do its work. He directed them to view the first tab on that document w The second tab in that document, is actually quite ironic, the second to last paragraph in the entire filing. It talks about how basically that the city wants to use this committee to force the plaintiffs in the lawsuit to bring forth their evidence that they have on racially polarized voting patterns, which is the have. So, they are telling you that in this room, but in their court filing, they are saying the plaintiffs in this lawsuit should bring forth that information into this committee. contrast. The final document which is the plaintiff which this committee really has been a distraction from the issue of council districts even though, the committee would never have existed were it not for the issue of council districts being brought forward. So we thought the committee might want to review that information. These are lengthy documents, probably good bedtime reading but we thought you might want to have them and have access to them. Both sides were presented. Thank you very much for your time. Public comments closed at 6:50 p.m. 5. Review Ralph M. Brown Act Action: Presentation of the Brown Act Deputy City Manager Greg Garcia, introduced the concept of reviewing the Brown Act at this juncture due to the fact there were a couple new commissioners and it was a good time to reiterate this information so that the committee may be aware of important points on this relevant topic. Deputy City Attorney Robert Tyson reviewed a presentation providing an overview for the committee and the public on the Brown Act as it relates to public meetings and how they are conducted. He discussed possible options that the committee may wish to consider such as subcommittees and how the possible drafts of the final recommendations would be drawn and reviewed by the committee in order to reach a final stage of approval and presentation to the council. Page ϰ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 The presentation is made available during the meeting and online at www.anaheim.net/CACelections Chair Pham asked a question about how the subcommittee work would be conducted. She asked whether you could discuss information with other committee members who are not on the subcommittee. Mr. Tyson recommended that in accordance with the Brown Act, a committee member should not discuss with other members of the committee who are not currently on that subcommittee, until such time that it comes before the entire committee. The purpose of the subcommittee, and any time an ad-hoc subcommittee is used with different agencies, is to bring a recommendation back to the council or the body as a whole. Mr. Garcia communicated that they would be bringing in a facilitator and he would assist in running the meetings and introduce protocol for the subcommittees. Vice Chair Dalati asked if it was possible to violate the Brown Act via email. Mr. Tyson said yes in the age of electronic communications, there are all sorts of possible quandaries being brought about. Members of the committee communicate amongst themselves, but you should exercise caution with email or Twitter, or Facebook amongst fellow committee members because any of to all be taking place at once, committee. So, I would urge you to have your discussions amongst your committee members here at the public meetings. Be open, be frank, say what is on your mind. phase, but you will shortly be in the phase where you all will need to be talking amongst yourselves to see what that final report looks like. It will be important to have those discussions here engaged with the public and engaged amongst yourselves. Chair Pham thanked Mr. Tyson. 6. Receive and File Community Outreach Efforts Action: Receive and file community outreach report, upon presentation of outreach efforts. Deputy City Manager Greg Garcia introduced Ed Velasquez, outreach coordinator, who provided an ighlight on the flyer provided. Ed Velasquez spoke regarding the outreach update. He said the outreach continues in utility bills, meeting notices/ schedules that are posted at City Hall, public libraries. Facebook notices on City of Anaheim page. Those go out Monday or Tuesday before the meeting. The email press release goes out a few days again all those who sign in at the meeting will receive email updates on the sign in sheet at the back of the room. Those names on the sign in sheet will be added to the email list to receive information about the upcoming meetings. His focus has been talking to community groups. If there are any groups you recommend reaching out to in the next two months, please let him know. He can attend their meeting, pass out flyers and make a brief announcement. Page ϱ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Outreach information made available during the meeting and online at www.anaheim.net/CACelections Commissioner Lopez asked how many emails were registered. Mr. Garcia said that they do not have that number available tonight but they do have a community list of people who have submitted their emails to the City Information Office who receive press releases about these meetings. That list is in the thousands. Commissioner Lopez said that is good to hear. He said that he had a question regarding the Anaheim Public Utility bill where there was an insert. He said it was really tiny, really small. Most people are going to be looking at what the amount of their bill is that they need to pay, rather than the announcement. He feels like it may be getting lost in that bill. Is there any chance that they could do a larger flyer exclusively inviting the community members to the meeting. Mr. Garcia said that was good feedback and they would look at that to see if they could add an additional attachment of make it more visible. They will come back to that and see what they can do. th Commissioner Real said not to be argumentative but he saw the Anaheim Magazine as of February 13, and it was there. He did not see it on the utility bill at his house a couple of weeks ago. He saw a big blooper that they announced in the newspaper yesterday where they announced that the meeting was last Some of the things are not happening the way that you present them here. Mr. Velasquez said that he believed the media advisory that he saw had the correct information, so it Mr. Garcia said they were contacted by the Orange County Register and they admitted they made a mistake and followed up with a retraction. Also, when we got word that there was a mistake, we put some flyers at the doors of this building so that if anyone came last night by mistake they would know the meeting was tonight, March 14. Commissioner Olesen agreed with Mr. Lopez by saying that if you are going to use the utility bills, it If it was separate that would be better. He also asked what the E-subscribers 10,000+ referred to. Mr. Garcia said that is the community email list that I was referring to. Mr. Garcia said yes, you are correct. Commis Vice Chair Dalati said in addition to what Mr. Lopez said, everyone who is registering online to pay their bills, which seems to be the majority of people now in Anaheim these Page ϲ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 opportunity to use their email to communicate with them. That is also a cheap way to communicate with the residents of Anaheim. Is that a possibility also? Mr. Garcia said they can ask that question of their utility department if they can use those emails to send that information without their permission. There may be some privacy issues. People who sign up to pay their bill online may have to give us permission to use their email address. He said we have to be careful to not get in the business of spamming our residents and then they never want to provide their email address for any other avenues again. Mr. Garcia said he will ask the question as to what opportunities there are. Mr. Velasquez also mentioned that upon the suggestion of Committee Member Olesen last time, we did add a column to the sign in sheet to request people let us know how they heard about the meeting so that can be helpful in terms of finding out which outreach methods are more effective than others. Chair Pham requested a motion to receive and file the report on outreach efforts. This was done out of order at 8:41 p.m. as it was unintentionally skipped. Commissioner Armas motioned to receive and file. Commissioner Lopez seconded. Ayes 8 Pham, Real) Noes 0 , Absent 1 (Larsen) The motion passed. 7. Overview and presentation of Election Administration Costs and overview of the City Council size Action: Presentation by Sarah Hill, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Political Science, California State University Fullerton. Chair Pham asked Mr. Garcia to provide the introduction. Speaker Summary: Dr. Hill provided information about the possible costs in changing the election system. In summary, she said that a change to the electoral system does not necessarily change election costs, unless a primary runoff is added which can increase the election cost by more than double. She provided several possible electoral scenarios and outlined pro/cons from each of the systems. Increasing the number of council members will not change the election costs. However it will mean additional operational costs for the city. She also addresses the different type of mayors and the means by which the mayor may be selected through appointment or direct vote including pros/cons of each method. She discussed council magnitude and size and provided a comparative summary of California cities. She summarized the commonalities of large cities and their electoral tendencies. Question and Answer period for Dr. Hill. Page ϳ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Vice Chair Dalati mentioned that she has cost $146,000-$186,000 and specific numbers in her presentation, is this particular study for Anaheim? Dr. Hill said, yes, that would be for Anaheim. Commissioner Real asked a question about cost information and he asked about measures. Dr. Hill said it would be for mayor and city council. She stated that if you added measures, such as a charter change, about $8500 total per measure. That is actually very inexpensive when you divide it out on a per voter basis. There is a slight increase when you add measures, but not much. Commissioner Real said so that the limits are for mayor and council. Dr. Hill said yes mayor and the whole city council that is on the ballot at that time. Vice Chair Dalati said potential to limit geographic fights over resources. He said he has asked that question of city staff and they have answered by saying the resources will be equally divided by they city so what is the fight for? Dr. Hill said what can happen and it might depend upon the city policy. She is not as aware of s city policy, so she is speaking very broadly in terms of what they know about cities that go to districts. This might not even be a possibility in Anaheim. For example, say you had a city with districts and the city decided they wanted to build a new park, some district would be getting the resources of a park, and the council members might fight over whose district gets the park. If Anaheim had a policy where resources are divided evenly, you might be able to avoid that problem. Commissioner Olesen said he had a couple of comments and with as interesting as he finds the prices deciding factor in terms of how we elect representatives The costs he believes are relatively insignificant between the different systems. consideration in the first place. That being said, he is interested in this list of cities that the professor provided. Dr. Hill said when she saw that list she agreed, yes, that it is fascinating. Commissioner Olesen asked however many cities are listed here, he is trying to understand how these cities were chosen because they all seem to be within Orange County except three. Dr. Hill said the staff provided that list to us which I was very grateful for. She is not sure how they selected those cities but she believes that they were looking to comparable cities, with a similar size, and demographic to Anaheim. Mr. Garcia said they wanted to go local but when it came to expanding to larger cities, the selected those that were closest in size to Anaheim. They d or San Francisco or San Jose or some of those larger ones. Commissioner Olesen said that is exactly why I asked. Just to question something that you had mentioned on this list, you said that the larger cities seem to be more district oriented, but the Page ϴ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 information here would not agree. icts. Dr. Hill said they are nominated by ward but elected at large. Commissioner Olesen so they do have an at-large election. Dr. Hill said yes it is at-large. She also said that is another option to be nominated by district or ward and elected at large so that you are ensuring there are candidates representative of the entire city by the time that you go to the general election. She has a list that included cities in other states and if you include population and sort those by size, you do see that large cities do tend to be districts. There n here the same size as Anaheim; they get a lot smaller very quickly. If you look at similar cities in other states you do see that pattern pretty clearly. Commissioner Olesen said that he can only go off of what has been provided to him in his handout. Chair Pham said there was another page in the handout that has the whole list of cities within your handouts. There is a one page that has the complete list. Commissioner Day asked if Dr. Hill had ever tracked a city in her studies that one time was at large and moved to districts, and tracked its progress over time. Dr. Hill replied that she had not done that and that in reading the literature on this she has seen certain cities switches, and you see an increase in diversity when they switched. That is what is commonly seen in the literature. There may be a case study that tracked this over a period of time. I would be very curious to see this as well. Commissioner Day said one of the items that Dr. Hill mentioned in the documents provided was with respect to at-large elections regarding the pros and cons and the potential suppression of minority interests. Ms. Day said that to me, something that would be interesting to see is an at-large to district situation, if you actually witness an increase in voter participation. Dr. Hill said that is a really good question. She did not have an answer but said that this is a big question in political science and it has been studied in the literature. We do know that it tends to increase the diversity of the city council. In terms of turnout, that is an excellent question and Dr. Hill said she does not have an answer. Chair Pham said she also had an answer for Commissioner Day. She requested from staff that Dr. Terry Christensen from San Diego State University present because was a key person in the City of San Jose at the time when they went from at- book on that. Is that correct staff? Mr. Garcia said yes he does. Chair Pham said they requested to have him present but he was unavailable for a few months. Page ϵ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Commissioner Day said she did recall seeing the memo. Chair Pham said that the city staff provided demographics on the city size and geography. Commissioner Day said thank you and asked one last question of Dr. Hill. What if and have you seen this in particular studies, what if in a particular district nobody decides to run, or maybe you only get one p If the only person that runs knows they are going to win, how does important position so that would worry me. Dr. Hill said that the only place she can think of that has an issue like that might be St. Louis. They are rather infamous. They have a huge city councils of somewhere like 30 members, maybe 28. That happens there because you have diluted it so much. It is a problem. definitely a problem for were for example 7 or 9. There are a lot of folks who are interested in city governance and they would Commissioner Day said that in talking about districts there was a couple weeks ago something came up in Los Angeles they were saying that a complaint had been filed because of how the districts had been drawn that they were alienating Asian Americans. She thought that was fascinating and route, you have to be careful to do it correctly or it could be a series of continuous lawsuits. Commissioner Day said she just wondered about it and w Dr. Hill said that yes, drawing districts is a very, very tricky process, potentially. You could get experts to speak on that. There are ways to be thoughtful and intentional and be sure that the lines are drawn well. Itat your plan is thoughtful and intentional. California, as a state, dealt with this when they drew the lines after the 2010 Census. There was a citizens commission that had that joy. They could tell you stories. It was very hard. Most people think that the job they did was a very good one. They can take the public feedback into account and draw lines that make sense for the community. Vice Chair Dalati would it be fair to say that your summary is a reflection of your opinion, like if you sa going to cost you anything. I met some council member from the city of Compton where they went though the same thing that we did, she was totally against districting, but it turned out to be a positive thing. What is your feeling on that? Dr. Hill responded, as a political scientist, she thinks that she has to say that there is not one right answer. Any system can be good or bad in a different context and even within the same city. It used to be that historically cities were districts and that was such a problem that everyone went to at large. Now everyone, a lot of cities are going back to districts. Times do change. A system that is right for a particular city can change as the times change. We have seen these trends happen over a period of a hundred or two hundred years. The cost, is actually simply the information on the cost. We called up and said how much would this cost, so that is just straightforward information for you to have. She Page ϭϬ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 both sides. They need to be listened to. in your experience, amount of money for an individual district versus spending of funds for the city as a whole? Has it been effective? Dr. Hill said that she has not studied Santa Ana. She thinks that is a really good question because they are right next door. She thinks since the change is fairly recent switching from at-large to wards, so s it is a good question to ask to learn from each other. Commissioner Real thanked Dr. Hill for the presentation. On the page for the mayors role in cities, Mr. Real s his other council members. But in the final vote he is just another vote on the council, agreed? Dr. Hill said that this is terminology from the political science literature and the way we use these that the mayor is explicitly given versus a mayor actually does or their personality. classify how cities have set up their structures. Commissioner Real said the second part of his question, say the strong mayor like in Los Angeles, but that he is actually very strong, maybe as an individual, himself. He finds that the race that they just had last week, he read that there was an abysmal turnout. Only two elected officials will make it to the primary. Is it possible that could happen here if we were in district mode? The turnout? The problem for L.A. is that they hold their election not consolidated with the primary or the general. It was abysmal, something like 16% which is horrific. They are looking into changing it. In her opinion if you want to increase turnout, it should coincide. If you want good turnout, you make sure that it is at the same time as the general which is what Anaheim already does. Your turnout numbers are actually very good. Local government unfortunately has very low turnout in general. The main thing to do i consolidated. The drop off happens when you have it at an off time. Commissioner Real on this chart, you have three cities that have seven council size, you discount Santa Ana. The other two cities Huntington Beach and Newport Beach: what would you say is their success story? She thinks that is a really good question to ask. Commissioner Real asked about charter versus general law. The charter dictates what the mayor can do. What does the general law do in that respect? Dr. Hill said that under general law there are still rules and guidelines for what the mayor can do. Under both systems, Page ϭϭ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 simply gives the city more freedom to decide for themselves what types of powers they would like to give to the mayor. Both systems outline what the mayor is and is not able to do in his job. The charter just gives you more flexibility in what you would like to give to the mayor. Commissioner Armas, Dr. Hill touched on something interesting, when you said that districting used to be the norm, then they got away from districting because of the corruption. Dr. Hill said yes. Commissioner Armas continued so we got away from districts and went to at- back to a district that has the same corruption problems, unless we address those corruption problems. It wou district. They have problems in L.A. problems in Anaheim where council people we basically running for another office, are they going to move to another district, so that they can get that vote, and they were still serving on the council, which tells me they were ready to jump ship on us for another elected office. think districting would be a cut and dry, move to districting and expect it to solve all our problems. I , unless we address them up front. Dr. Hill said right. There are a few points. One is the nature of politics , right. Very often a council member, whether at-large or district, is often looking on to what the next j-large vs. district Such is life. The reason why districts were, back in the day, a problem and there was corruption, had a lot more to do with party politics. The parties were a lot more corrupt and you had a lot of shenanigans going on with party politics. Parties have been eliminated at the local level in California and that would hopefully avoid a lot of the problems. There are much better rules and regulations as to what is allowable, what politicians are allowed to do or not to do. Much more regulated and parties are really not present in the same way that they once were. They are not present at the local level and been taken care of in other ways. Now, are there still concerns about districts being interested in a local issue and not the city as a whole? Y A lot of the other things have been dealt with in other ways. Dr. Hill said they were the corruption. Commissioner Armas said yes, I understand but ow we have special interest groups that are just as powerful as the parties but they masquerade themselves ly corrupt political issue not an at- special interests trying to maneuve Page ϭϮ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Commissioner Armas said, again, that would be my point, are we creating more problems? How do we address those up front instead of running into them as the process goes and then we alienate more address them. interests. You will get different types of interest when you have at-large versus districts, but they are always there maneuvering and trying to manipulate the system. They work a little differently but they will always be there. With districts there are concerns to keep in mind, one way, perhaps, to think about it, is a hybrid system which might balance some of that. An at-large mayor tries to keep the interest of the whole city in mind which could balance some of that. Those are some things to think about in providing some leverage for what the concerns might be. Vice Chair Dalati had a two part question for the city staff and then for Dr. Hill. Hill, do you think we should study this at this time? Deputy City Manager Greg Garcia responded that the city does not have an official policy on how to divide up funding throughout the city. We have a budget process every single year in which the council receives a report from the city manager. At that time, the council makes a decision on voting for a budget that serves the priorities of the city. Vice Chair Dalati asked so the City Council divides that when they do into their meetings? Mr. Garcia said when the budget is brought forward to the council; they direct city staff to make any changes as appropriate based upon the many priorities that they bring forward. Is there a policy where funds are divided equally among certain parts of the city? No, that is not the case. people doing and what is out there in order to figure out how others have resolved some of these problems. Vice Chair Dalati said that there is already an issue where some people feel that the city spends more on the hills than the downtown areas, or west Anaheim or central Anaheim. That is an issue. Do you think we should make a policy? Dr. Hill said her inclination is to say no because policies like that lock you in and have unintended consequences that can haunt you for years and may create all sorts of problems that you never even thought about. There may be a very valid reason to allocate more resources to one part of the city for whatever reason the council decides together. Strict rules like that could lead to unintended consequences down the road that may create problems for the city. Commissioner Lopez studies have already shown that the distribution of our resources are already taking place and we can see that with the current system. With all due respect to Commissioner Armas, he disagreed with Commissioner Armas comment about corruption being more imminent when we go to district Page ϭϯ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 interest is already playing a big role even with the current system. He wonders who is donating $300,000 in contributions. He wonders if this is coming from big developers who are getting $150 presentation that there is not going to be any additional cost if we go to district elections. He is just wondering what is the cost of all those communities feeling not represented already. Dr. Hill said there is a very symbolic cost and it leads to the questioning of the legitimacy of city government. In general in political science, they tend to think, the special interests are always there these days. Commissioner Real, Dr. Hill, on the multiple district single member, you have the pros and cons, he said on the pros he thinks something is missing relating to Anaheim. We have neighborhood watches that become political, to the extent that in West Anaheim, we have a West Anaheim Neighborhood developing council with a very strong voice at city council meetings. Likewise, we know for a fact if Anaheim Hills would like to succeed from the city. If there is a move to districting what is the cutting up of the pie going to do to Anaheim? Dr. Hill said that is a very good question. She thinks that her question is what is the future of Anaheim if you keep going the way you are? Districts would allow everyone to have a voice and feel included in the process, perhaps. Perhaps. Whereas under the current system, she thinks a large part of the community does not feel like it is a cohesive unit. She thinks that is a consideration to make. districting vs. at-large issue. That is more an issue of what Anaheim Hills decides to do for Anaheim Hills. Commissioner Real said that has been different from the argument you just now stated. The major issue is that the council favors the Downtown Disney business district and that they ignore the rest of the city. Dr. Hill said so, as it is, under the current system, a large part of the population feels like they are not incluwe potentially find a way where everyone feels more included. She thinks that potentially adds cohesion if they have a voice and feel like they are a part of the process instead of some folks feeling entirely left out. When you are able to show up at the table and have a voice, you want to participate because it matters. So, she thinks that is something to consider. Commissioner Armas said to your point, he has they lived in Anaheim. He said that he had to remind them to loop at the police car insignia. They literally did not believe they lived in Anaheim. There is a problem in Anaheim with my curb is that Anaheim Hills is fairly new. We have an older Anaheim, a middle Anaheim and a newer Anahei newer district, an entertainment district, districts that have very few residents such as the what this committee is trying to do figuring out how to remove the barriers regardless of where you Page ϭϰ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 live. It is one city and it is all our money and should be divided equally. Again, there is a budget that is made every year, residents can petition for that money. There is a need to make them aware. There is a need to get things fixed and unfortunately there might not be the money available. Dr. Hill said and certainly in this economy there might not be the money. Commissioner Armas said but they do deserve an answer. Dr. Hill agreed and said the larger question is does everyone deserve to be a part of the process. Many people are going to disagree with the final budget the council decides on no matter what you do What adds legitimacy to what you do is that everyone had the chance to be involved with reaching the final budget. Certainly someone will be unhappy wi into it if they are at least able to be involved in the process. Commissioner Armas said in the last election there was a pretty big gap between the 2 front runners and the rest. If there were two more seats, he thinks that would have been a huge difference in the election. Dr. Hill said keep in mind with more seats you will get more candidates but it does open it up to more people being able to participate in the process. It could balance things out. Commissioner Armas said one last point; some of these seats were won with 21% of the vote. He is having trouble understanding even if we t canvas 20% of the city. other i Dr. Hill said that they could push over that threshold? ught. Dr. Hill said she is going to say something that may be controversial, if you look at the list of the last election for city council and look at who won and then you draw the line to see who was the rest of the field, there were several Latino candidates who were really close to getting there. She thinks that the Latino community may be having difficulty coordinating on a candidate and they may be over several then the vote is more diluted. Districts would, perhaps, help coordinate and, perhaps, allow them to push that candidate looking over the list. As she said that is certainly up for debate. Commissioner Armas said so then we get into a city known as just a surname? Dr. Hill said there is a whole other issue there. Commissioner Armas said so then we offend Caucasians? Page ϭϱ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 -win. Dr. Hill said it goes back to the question does everyone legitimately have a chance to be a part of the process no matter your race or ethnicity, no matter who the majority/minority group is. What enables everybody to have a seat at the table is the question? Commissioner Armas said fair enough. They know how to campaign for city resources, they know how to campaign for city council, they know how to campaign the staff also. How do you protect the rest of the city as far as the resources are concerned. ir street is bad. How do we protect them? Dr. Hill said how do you protect them? She asked that he rephrase. Vice Chair Dalalti asked how do we protect other area residents since you said it would be bad to create a policy but how can we be sure they are fairly treat too? get the money, she thought it would go to the older areas with greater need. It would be unequal just based on maintenance. In the outreach you are doing, you let people know, if you have a problem, this is who you call. You would have a council member in West Anaheim and you would call that person or their office and they would help you. Hopefully there would also be outreach involved. not sure if you have a copy of this document from the Office of the City Clerk dates March 14. The committee had requested this. L quadrants: west, central, south and east. You will see they had # regarding registration, the actual turnout, to the right of that you will see the population. What she did was she divided up. She figured out for us among the population who is actually able to vote due to citizenship, so all she could do is go by age. We know that number may not be accurate but for argumenthis was the best that she could provide given the circumstances. Something we seems to see over and over, something that Ms. Day said she is very passionate about is voter participation and encouraging more of our citizenry to want to participate in the process. So, when we see things like the population of central Anaheim, which is our most heavily populated Latino part of our city with 104,000 plus but only a turnout of 27,000. That is a major factor that needs to be considered, when residents are feeling they are not respect to the outcome. When you look at an area like east Anaheim, where estimated population is about 70,000 and you have a turnout of 30,000, that region is showing up to vote. Ms. Day is a resident of Anaheim Hills and she always calls it Anaheim. She would also caution people to make assumptions about that area. There are wonderful good people there who love the city of Anaheim. She thinks that there is something to be said for the results in that voting is the first step in being represented. Ms. Day wonders how that plays out if they are not showing up to the polls. Dr.Hill said she would need to look at it further, but that this is actually good voter turnout. She said the United States as a whole has rather abysmal voter turnout. She does see differences based on what Ms. Day shared and that may be concerning. For people to be involved adds to the legitimacy of the Page ϭϲ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 process. She always says voting is a two step process. She said that you must first registers. In the south where there is 33% eligible population, that could be because of some other issues there. Working on voter registration is the first step and then the next step is turnout. There are groups in Anaheim that are working really hard at improving turnout. What will going to districts do, knowing that this person cares about the city, districts could be a pretty good motivator to a lot of people. What can happen if for a long time, people feel like council is run by folks from the other part of town, they tend to get discouraged and they are less likely to participate? If someone feels like he/she able to elect someone from your neighborhood that will represent interests that might add buy-in and motivation to the process and encouraging voters. There are some Commissioner Armas, if there was a district it would be population driven. Dr. Hill said yes the districts would need to be equal in population based on census data. They would need to be re-drawn every ten years after census data. Commissioner Armas said so there could be controversy in how the possible districts are drawn? Dr. Hill shook her head yes and said that drawing districts can be very difficult. Commissioner Armas said he pulled up New York where they have about 140,000 people in their districts. If we went off their model, we would have fewer council people in Anaheim. Dr. Hill said that is right. Those would be very big districts for Anaheim. She could potentially see Anaheim with 4-6 districts to provide better access to their council people. Dr. Hill affirmed the idea that there are many possibilities. - -picking, and you have more Hispanics. He sees another argument there. Dr. Hill said as political scientist they hope to come up with the ideal plan but there is no ideal plan help. Commissioner Armas, said forget about city size and tell me how many people you would recommend would be able to help represent the city fairly if there were districts. Dr. Hill considered many options. There are answer. She said having smaller districts means that council may be more fragmented where you get Page ϭϳ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Commissioner Armas said if you take LA County for example, they have a lot of experts, yet are one determining the right answer. Dr. Hill said LA County is run by the board of supervisors made up of 5 people. She said there are pros and cons in any system but the committee should consider what cons are you willing to live with and why. Also considering what add to the legitimacy of city government and represents them while keeping their interests in mind. The people need to feel like they are a part of the process and their voice is heard. Obviously, someone may not be happy but you work toward the overall concerns of the city. Commissioner Day said that some areas have more concentrated population and some areas in the east are very sparsely populated, so that the person in the east may have a very large piece of property they are watching over and someone in central may have a very small area they are watching over, Government much more difficult and so how does that play out? How do you fairly draw districts being mindful of that? Dr. Hill said that is a reality of how we draw districts in the United States. She said that she is originally from Texas and when you draw Congressional districts, you get very small districts in the east and the Houston area where she is from and out in the west there is a large chunk of land that someone gets to serve. n population not land size so they all have different needs. That might be why you would not want to guarantee equal resources because there will be different needs of each district. A more densely populated older area may need more maintenance than a larger less populated. This is common in the American system of districts. Commissioner Armas said we have a huge entertainment district, yet few people live there. Many of those businesses live outside the city or in other districts yet those businesses and entertainment areas bring in a tremendous amount of money for the city as a whole. How do we ensure they are fairly that? Dr. Hi where you might want to think about the at large representation. Because the mayor is concerned about the economy of the entire city, he would be paying attention to the interests of the entertainment industry areas in order to benefit the entire city. If you had hybrid system, you might have other at large seats so that you can give some concern to those areas. That is one approach. The resort area would result itrict would be a voice for them so they would be represented. That is a very important concern to think about. Commissioner Armas said it is a huge concern in our city. Dr. Hill said it is critical for Anaheim. residents are aware of how much they impact the city by the stadium, the pond, the resort, and all the venues that are here. A lot of jobs were created as a result of those areas and businesses. It is a sensitive area. There are people who would rather see the hotels built in Garden Grove and they would block the city from more entertainment. There is a fight there, potentially a huge fight there. Page ϭϴ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Again, those special interests. Garden Grove would love to see Anaheim extend Harbor Boulevard instead of the area growing to the north. The representation of those areas is vital. It is possible we could lose them. Dr. Hill agreed it is something to consider. She said it is important to think about whatever system you recommend; where they would be represented in that system either by the member who represents that district or if you have an at-large mayor or at-large council members would also be a voice for that. Commissioner Real asked if there might be audience questions. Chair Pham wished to open it up. Duane Roberts had three questions. 1. Have you done any research on cities here in the United States that use systems of voting other than winner take all such as cumulative voting and proportional representation. 2. In past Anaheim Council elections, the top two vote getters in 2010 and 2012 earned less than 20% city council election, not only in Anaheim, but elsewhere. As a political scientist, would you agree with me that council members elected with such a low percentage legitimacy? of all ballots cast for their agenda that they pursue when they get on the dais. 3. Would you agree with me under plurality voting schemes, that which exist in Anaheim and other municipalities, that this is a problem widespread, not just unique to Anaheim, that a small but cohesive block of voters, a large minority, not a majority of the electorate or the people who turn out to vote, elect the winning candidates. In fact, a majority of voters actually end up casting their ballots for candidates other than those who win. What impact do you think these wasted votes have on turnout and participation in future elections and how about the legitimacy of city government, especially given that a majority of candidates who voters cast their ballot for never win. Dr. Hill said there was a lot there. She will try. In terms of proportional representation, she has not plurality vs. majority is kind of the key question there at the heart of the matter. Dr. Hill said there is not a definitive answer because like the other issues they have talked about, there is not one that is always 100% correct and works in every situation. She thinks there is not a straightforward answer. She said that Mr. Roberts did touch on the concern that it seems to be more or less one group of voters that tend to be winning the candidate of their choice in a lot of city council elections which is plurality system. Part of the funny numbers is because p being divided out differently. Some of it, is a numbers game that you have going on. We are here because part of the community does not feel like the have a voice in the current system. Under the cumulative voting that is going on with at-large districts, that is the current system, they are not able to elect candidates of their choice on any regular basis. every single time, but is there some sort of regular representation. Under the current system it seems to be a problem. because it might be different under a hybrid or a district system. It could work just fine. So you want Page ϭϵ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 to be careful because these factors operate together and it depends on the larger context that you are them. You have touched on the concern which is part of why we are here and we are talking about how we might change things. David Diaz mentioned there were a lot of numbers being thrown around and you can spin numbers any way you want and then you can have opinions on what those numbers say. The presentations tonight were very good, but a lot of it is opinion. He said that they had a meeting when he was sitting on this board that was out in Anaheim Hills or Anaheim, and probably 15 people walked up to the podium and said with a translator, that they need 8 districts, repeated over and over. Based on a population of 341,000; t if we divide it evenly. Three of the council members on the council presently live here in what we call the flatlands in the central area and west not. If you really work with these people they care about all of the parts of Anaheim. They do so nk a lot of residents know what they do. Mr. Diaz said that there was one candidate who came in third place this year in the election who was not rich, according to the OCCORD numbers. According to OCCORD, you have to be rich to run here. He was not rich by any means. He also had thousands of dollars from a political action committee. He worked the Latino neighborhoods and promised them that he was going to be their representative. He promised he would So, Mr. Diaz said he thinks the point is country. You are involved in the process; Chair Pham thanked Mr. Diaz and asked if there were any other public comments. Ms. Pham thanked Dr. Hill for her presentation and her time. We put you on the spot numerous times so we appreciate it. Chair Pham referred back to item 6 for a vote. Refer to item6 for the vote. 8. Staff Update on Moreno et al. v. City of Anaheim Mr. Garcia informed the committee that Vice Chair Dalati has requested at the last meeting an update on the status of the lawsuit. Deputy City Attorney Robert Tyson will be providing a summary today. briefing. Mr. Tyson recounted that at his last update at the November meeting he described that the City had made a motion to stay the litigation, so that the City could consider the findings and recommendations of this Committee. This motion for a stay was originally set to be heard in December. A companion motion regarding some issues with the pleadings was also said to be heard at the same time. Mr. Tyson said that the court system can be slow. These original motions have yet to be heard. There were a series of continuances on small hearing dates. Most of those continuances originated from the court itself. Those initial motions are still pending and set to be heard March 26. As a result of these continuances, the case has not moved past what they call the early pleading stage. It is very before the merits of that lawsuit will be decided. If a formal stay is issued in the case or any other significant procedural action is taken which might affect the timing of the resolution of the lawsuit, Mr. Tyson will advise the committee as it occurs. Page ϮϬ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Chair Pham asked if there were any questions from the committee. Vice Chair Dalati asked if the cost of the lawsuit is piling up or is it stopped as we speak. Mr. Tyson said he has not monitored the cost of the lawsuit. He is aware one of the committee members has been diligent about providing updates. He does not believe that work on the lawsuit has stopped on either side. These initial motions have not been heard. It certainly has delayed any full run up to a trial. He is speculating based on normal legal practices. Commissioner Armas asked if the committee could extend their time, would it be a little more forgiving as far as their hard set date. As of now what would your recommendation be? Mr. Tyson said Mr. Woodhead would like to answer and he could add to that if needed. Mr. Woodhead said that council adopted a clear resolution to conclude the committee recommendations by May 31. So if more time were needed, they would need to ask the council if they would extend that time. It would take a council action to extend that time. Chair Pham interjected that she was not sure if the rest of the committee members wished to extend that time. She opened the floor for questions. Chair Pham has a question regarding the materials that Eric Altman from OCCORD provided toral systems with regard to districting and other possible systems, is the committee being used, she said the committee used? Mr. Tyson asked Chair Pham to expand her question as he was not sure what she focused on. that correct? Mr. Tyson said that is correct. The city asked the court to stay or dela implement what we call a political solution rather than a court mandated legal solution. Chair Pham said that they are using this as a defense case. So, she said that the committee does not we were just mandated with a broad task? She said that for them to help with the lawsuit, she feels has tried to get presentations for the City of San Jose and such. Even with all the abundance of this information, she does not feel they have any information on districting which is why when she was appointed, she understood that to be one of the major points to consider and that they would decide on t and the city lawsuit is requesting that the city Page Ϯϭ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Mr. Tyson asked Chair Pham permission to speak. The chair granted it. Mr. Tyson stated the city made a request of the court. That request has not been ruled on yet. The case is proceeding slowly; it appears for reasons that had to do with the court itself at this point. So, the t made a decision on any of this. Mr. Tyson said no, when he stated that the motion was still pending and has yet to be heard. That motion has not been argued before the judge. It was briefed. He was provided some of the briefing papers but he has not ruled on that motion. Mr. Tyson said he believes it is the logjam of the court system that is delaying the case at this time. Chair Pham thanked him and ask if there is any chance of city council discussing settlement for this lawsuit. Mr. Tyson said settlement discussions are handled in closed session by city council which is typical with any public agency. The only time a public agency typically discusses with the public would be when they report that they agreed on a settlement. Chair Pham asked if they are considering it. Mr. Tyson said he is not privy to that information and it would be privileged even if he were. Commissioner Day said Madam Chair; she wanted to bring clarity because words are important. Ms. Day that you chose the word that there w oint is that she begs to differ. Ms. Day thinks the staff has done a very good job. She thinks there has been some very good presentations and rather than look at it as delay Ms. Day said she They have been voting a certain way f Day said she thinks it is important to respect the process they are going though which is a wonderful process of studying what is best for the future, the potential changes in our voting system. She is very grateful that the city is engaging its citizens. It is wonderful that everyone is here in the audience, the speakers. She would be horrified if it were done flippantly or without its due process. Chair Pham said, no she understands. The first public comment was about an organization that she from 25 years has been advocating for districting. Ms. Pham said she finds that interesting, because she has never heard of this group in Anaheim. switch and just change electoral systems. What she heard today was that Dr. Hill stated she feels like t being heard and all voices should be heard in a democratic system. Page ϮϮ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Commissioner Armas said he would like to elaborate on that point. He spoke on this last meeting He feels privileged to be here and that the council adopted this committee. We are here to look at this alleged violation. This lawsuit is really becoming trying because ian allegation really care about us to much, but he has his protocol to do, would be the one to decide how we are going to vote in our city that was set up through a delay, a delay of what, getting facts, a delay of getting more information? A delay of what? Chair Pham said just a delay of spending more money. Commissioner Armas said at this point do you think that you could make an intelligent decision based Chair Pham acknowledged that there has been a lot of information. session where they are taking time to take this seriously. A lot of the residents are here too. It is a heated issue. So how could they rely on a judge and that would be the only alternative that they would way. gimmick. It is the responsible thing for our council to do. Chair Pham said thank you for those comments. Vice Chair Dalati asked if it was true that the judge excused himself from the case. Mr. Tyson said, yes, that was one of the delays. The judge assigned to the case and they are just assigned by random number suddenly recused himself at one of the hearing dates. Vice Chair Dalati asked if the defense in the case was primarily the city attorney or outside counsel. Mr. Tyson said that it is primarily outside counsel. Vice Chair Dalati said every time he has hired an attorney he looks at his options of winning or losing ser. Any directions from our outside counsel? It will save you a lot of money. Whatever discussions went on between outside counsel and city council are privileged. Again, he is not privy to them and even if he were they would still be privileged. Chair Pham asked was there any reason given for the judge to recuse himself. provide a reason. Sometimes judges give reasons but if he did, Mr. Tyson is not aware of them. Page Ϯϯ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Commissioner agreed with Chair Pham on her comments about delaying the lawsuit. He said he understand that they are blaming the court system for delaying until December. There have been great presentations for which they are grateful. Most of the comments he has heard both from the public and from experts such as Dr. Hill today that the city is long overdue for district elections. A city this large, they are long overdue. How many more issues, how much unrest like the stuff that happened last year are we going to go through? He understands and he is grateful to be here and have an opportunity to have a say as a citizen and resident. At the end of the day, regardless of what our recommendation is, if a judge still decides something else the city continues to be violating the California Voting Rights Act? Is that a comment or a question asked an off screen commissioner. Mr. Lopez asked if Mr. Tyson had an answer. Mr. Tyson said he thinks that if the city council through this process puts something on the ballot that was rejected by the voters, thus by default leaving the status quo, he thinks the lawsuit would simply proceed at that point. So the question as to whether the city was in violation of the Voting Rights Act standard would proceed at that point. Vice Chair Dalati said he did not hear. So are we or are we not in violation of the Voting Rights Act? Mr. Tyson said that is an issue that has not been decided in the courts yet. The case would proceed to try to decide that in that situation. Chair Pham her closing comments before she has to leave since 2.5 hours have passed since the meeting began. 9. Committee Communications Action: Closing comments. like. It is a bit disturbing that they keep coming back to this lawsuit. Yes it does exist and is in the court system now. Yes, they may be there perhaps as a result of that. Her opinion is that if council could make whatever decision they wanted to they could go ahead and proceed with this lawsuit and have no board or commission, no advisory no conversation about the changes that are going to impact our city. Yet, they have an opportunity to do that. She feels passionate about this. To think that they are being used in a way that is a politically motivated manner; these things happen. As Dr. Hill pointed out there is corruption with every political party, entity within the entire country in the world. No one is perfect. No one is without some sort of opinion, disdain or process, do they allow that to dictate what they are doing here. Do they allow those implications to dictate what their outcome might be as a committee? Do we sit here and have an open and intelligent dialogue about the issues in our city and do we have the abili giving yes and no answers or defining what we need to do because just as Dr. Hill said there is no definite solution to Page Ϯϰ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 and information from that and s stick to the facts, please. Thank you. Chair Pham said you did speak very eloquently and your passion is coming through. Have a good night. Commissioner Olesen said that tiresome is likely a generous and kind word when referring to hearing about this lawsuit. My understanding that the way this committee is supposed to function is outside and apart from that. The committee should be doing this whether there is a lawsuit or not. If the idea is to improve or validate the way we elect our officials; it should be done without the threat of a lawsuit. or It should be done regardless of the best way for this city to function in elecThe other comments he had on what was handed out regarding the independent expenditures sheet that was , independent expenditures are the greatest evil that has ever afflicted our political system ever. He found it interesting that 2012 was left off because they were due sometime before now. If 2012 were included in this, it would be a vastly different picture because this makes it appear the most independent expenditures gets elected. This was not the case in 2012. As the committee looks at and considers all this information, it is important to look at what is not there as well as what is there in your final analysis of the process. Commissioner Day thanked the chair. Ms. Day said one thing she had been thinking about and is very passionate about as a part of their mandate as a commission, is regarding voter registration. She thinks a large problem that has brought us here not just in Anaheim, but nationally there is an apathy. Something she would love to see at a future meeting if they could have voter registration forms available, so that for those who come to the meeting, they can take it home and encourage people to issue here is that we have a majority in Anaheim who behaves like a minority because they choose not to participate. She thinks that engaging all citizenry to be involved and Dr. Hill has complemented she knows that there is so much more that they can do as a committee and a community. Her desire is particularly to seek out talent in areas, particularly in the west side. When she looked at the numbers that were provided by the city clerk, she really sees that west area is in large need of scouting for talent and engaging in voting. In central Anaheim, they talked about the numbers. They do have two council members representing that area. She will be very excited when they get into the ad hoc committees, she is looking forward to all the ideas and wonderful and exciting ways that they could reach out to Anaheim and being innovative, inspiring and engaging so that people will want to be involved. We are here at the library tonight. They have forms here at the library so that people can register to vote and pick them up on their way home tonight. Encourage someone. Pass them out. That would be a great positive step toward reaching our goal as a commissioner. Perhaps, when we are at a location that may not have the registration forms, possibly we could bring them and that will encourage people to do likewise. Commissioner Armas feels privileged that the city of Anaheim has given them this opportunity. We seem to be in an age where there is a great deal of corruption in government and he feels that this is a Page Ϯϱ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 great opportunity. He feels like they have gotten pretty much everything they have asked for relying on the recommendation of an outside committee. They could have made this decision on their own. We are privileged to live in Anaheim. They as a committee have a chance right now to do some really neat things and give some really good recommendations if we get the biases out of our heads. Some if we do our homework. If you look at Look at our government when they tell us how we want to think or act. We see where that goes. He thinks they have a pretty neat job at hand and hopefully we will all do our jobs without any prejudice. Commissioner Lopez agreed with his fellow committee members that he is grateful to be there and again be part of voter engagement turnout, voter registration rallies. He is willing to go beyond this committee to do his fair share to do that. However, Dr. Hill said that one of the reasons why people come out to vote is because they feel that their Why did the city council members to increase voter participation and registration and everything we know we can do to increase that. Again, we were formed to decide whether the city needs to go to district elections. That is the biggest point. They need to make a decision whether through the courts or here. his before? Commissioner Real said he would like to thank Clara Turner from OCCORD for making this chart. Unfortunately it may result in fewer people going to the polls. Their job here is to advise the council when all is said and done on many issues not only districts. Encouraging voter registrations, engage two evils that we have to live with whether we like it or not. One thing for certain is that if people do not get to the polls, they will not be able to elect their candidate the winner. very respectfully disagrees. He agrees on one thing. They should take this as positive as they can. If there is need for change they should change it. Why he disagrees, this is the land of the law and the law rules. If all of us decider there is no need for districting then the courts find that the city is in violation of the voters rights act. Then they have to do what the court says. The law is crucial and very important. Frankly, he thinks Chair Pham said at the last few meetings she probably sounded like the ungrateful spoiled child, not being thankful for anything. She knows city staff has done a lot of work on this and she thanked them for putting up with the committee. She is going to reiterate what she said earlier. She joined this committee because districting was a huge part of the reason why this commission was formed. It may because of timing. They have had two presentations on voter turnout. They have yet to have one presentation strictly solely on districting. They do have a memo about the City of San Jose. She requested that all committee members please read it. She would like to make it an agenda item for the next meeting to discuss it. They do have similar issues while their population size is different. It was e is so diverse. Perhaps having the committee Anaheim HOME who would like to have 15 minutes, could we give them 15 minutes? Mr. Garcia asked if that was a formal request. Page Ϯϲ of Ϯϳ Agenda Item No. 3 Chair Pham said yes. Mr. Garcia reminded them that they did hear from Modesto who was at-large and moved to districts with a very similar process to ours and size. You can review that online. Chair Pham thanked Dr. Hill for the presentation and responding to all the lengthy questions. She is glad to be a part of a lively discussion where they can agree to disagree and she is looking forward to the next meeting. 10. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned by Chair Pham at 9:16 p.m. ***** Respectfully Submitted, Caroline Morey Recording Secretary Page Ϯϳ of Ϯϳ CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT MINUTES Thursday, March 28, 2013 6:30 p.m. Downtown Community Center 250 East Center St., Anaheim, CA 92805 COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: John Woodhead, Ex Officio Member Anthony Armas Bill Dalati, Vice Chair Amanda Edinger Sandy Day Martin Lopez Keith Olesen Vivian Pham, Chair Vic Real COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT: Larry Larsen STAFF PRESENT: Greg Garcia, Deputy City Manager Robert Tyson, Deputy City Attorney Caroline Morey, Recording Secretary Spanish language translation services are available at the meeting upon request. 1. Call meeting to order. The meeting of the Citizens Advisory Committee on Elections and Community Involvement (CAC) was called to order at 6:32p.m.by Chair Pham. 2. Flag Salute 3. Approve CAC minutes of the February 28, 2013 meeting Action: Approve minutes. Chair Pham requested a motion to approve the minutes for the February 28, 2013 CAC meeting minutes. Commissioner Armas motioned to approve. WĂŐĞϭŽĨϭϵ Vice Chair Dalati seconded. Ayes 9 (Armas, Dalati, Day, Edinger, Olesen, Pham, Real) Noes 0, Absent 1 (Larsen) The motion passed. 4. Public Comments (Individual audience participation is limited to three (3) minutes per speaker) Action: Public comments on any agenda items or subject matter within the jurisdiction of the Citizens Advisory Committee. Benny Diaz, Director of LULAC California, who lives in Garden Grove said that the community is watching Anaheim during this process. Mr. Diaz strongly supports district elections. He said that LULAC filed over 300 cases regarding redistricting and they have won every one of them. He encourages the committee to consider the possibility of recommending in this very important process the idea of redistricting. Mr. Diaz said he believes that every member of the community should be able to participate by electing a representative of someone who looks like them as a part of this beautiful tapestry. Going against it should be seriously considered. With or without the lawsuit the committee should consider districting. LULAC has representation since 1929 in every state and they are watching you and your Clara Turner, Policy Analyst with OCCORD, provided a map to the committee and staff showing where the mayor and council members have lived between 2002-2012 within the city. The smaller houses represent council; the larger represent the mayors. Over the last 10 years there have not been many representatives in West Anaheim and very few in South Anaheim. This could be problematic if council does not keep in mind all areas. This could be problematic over time. The council should be aware of all concerns in the community. In an at large system, they should prioritize the areas where there is the most need, and that would be the majority of the neighborhoods who elect them. This results in a situations where the minority does not she is knocking the council members because if she were trying to get elected and stay elected, she would also prioritize the her. The data was from fair political practices and also from the census. If you have any questions, let her know. Commissioner Real mentioned that he believed that the zip codes shown in the west were listed incorrectly or backwards. Ms. Turner indicated there was an error and said she was sorry about that. She said that 01 and 04 were switched. Ron Bengochea, is lifetime Anaheim resident, said he appreciates the efforts and work of the committee. He has missed the last couple of meetings. He is aware there are new committee members and wanted to state that his position is against districting in Anaheim. He thinks everyone in Anaheim can be represented. He said that we heard a presenter mention 1 council member to 58,000. Mr. Bengochea chooses to look at it the other way where he as one resident has one resident has five council member representing him. He is able to communicate with them at any given time. There is email and he can go to council meetings. He thinks everyone has an equal share of representation. He stated that residents are able to come any time to speak at a city council meeting to the city council members. He said that the WĂŐĞϮŽĨϭϵ option of emails in the electronic age provided access to council directly. He stated that these lawsuits are spending money out of the general fund. While we are a big city, a lot of the money is not in the general fund. These monies that are being used for the lawsuits are taking money away from parks and recreation and other city services. There is not an infinite amount of money to cover these lawsuits. So he somewhat agrees with Mr. Benny Diaz representative, but he does not want someone telling him how to vote. This is a democratic process. If there had been districting in the last election, he would not have been able to vote for the candidate of his choosing. This country is based on everyone having a right to vote. If we spend money on a special election of doing district, the district over in the 92802 would still have muscle where Disney is located. represented. What are they representation but Mr. Bengochea said out on. Is it some of the services? Everybody has a right to them. They can come to a microphone at City Council. Now there is a process in place, if there is an issue with language. City Council has addressed concerns and is making changes adding Spanish interpreters. They are trying to work with the public, but if they keep spending money that is going out. That indirectly affects the residents who live here in Anaheim including services. When they want to be heard, people will be heard. They have an avenue to come and share their concerns. Mariana Rivera spoke that she is a resident of the Guinida Community and is a leader there. She addressed many problems and concerns regarding violence in her neighborhood, trying to get speed bumps in her neighborhood for 10 years, needing a community center or park, concerns regarding gang problems with the youth and drugs and the resulting graffiti. She said that there was blood on the streets. She asked that the committee and community look into their hearts to help. She said staff has promised things but not delivered. She invited the committee, council and staff to visit her neighborhood to see the problems for themselves which is located near Paul Revere School. She supports districts. Several committee members expressed understanding and compassion regarding the urgent nature of Ms. . The committee members asked questions to better understand her concerns and provided suggestions regarding helping Ms. Rivera. The committee asked Ms. Rivera if she had considered becoming a commissioner to help improve things. She indicated she had not been given that opportunity. Vice Chair Dalati and Commissioner Armas requested staff speak with her. Commissioner Armas clarified that districting may not fix these problems and it may take 3-4 years if there is a change with districts. The committee and staff provided a response. Mr. Garcia indicated that a park was being built in her neighborhood and that staff would be contacting Ms. Rivera to discuss her concerns. Commissioner Armas recommended several departments team up in order to get things done and be present. The slumlord excuse is a cop out and these residents deserve better. Commissioner Armas said he was not familiar with that area and asked for clarification if it was single family or mixed. Mr. Garcia said it was mixed multi-family and single family. Commissioner Olesen addressed the fact that these neighborhoods such as where Ms. Rivera lived are the result of years of neglect from absentee landlords. The even greater issue is that the apartments are offered at market rate yet overcrowding is a prevalent issue in these poorly maintained buildings. People are forced to live in these circumstances and the area is the bain of code enforcement because there is an mely manner. WĂŐĞϯŽĨϭϵ Mr. Garcia indicated that there was an issue with speed bumps and that has been remedied. There are many challenged on Guinida Lane . They need the community to continue to be involved so that they can divert the resources to address those concerns. The Neighborhood Councils are a good option for those seeking to give input, also at council meetings. Mr. Garcia asked that Ms. Rivera stay after and speak with staff to address any other concerns that she may still have and indicated that they would handle them accordingly. Chair Pham said the committee may be losing focus and requested they moved back to the agenda. The committee agreed there was much to be done and these are important issues. Eric Altman from OCCORD. Many have asked OCCO normally the Platinum Triangle or hotels that are primary concerns. He said that it is for people like Ms. 0 not have the ability to fund. What committee member Olesen said about neglect is true. What he heard Mariana say and countless people who have come to this committee is that they have to fight to get basic rights. Latino voters in Anaheim feel that if they had a representative who lived in their neighborhood and s. Chair Pham said she would like to see San Jose added to the agenda or at the least try to get permission to Allene Novain, resident and owns business in Anaheim. She appreciates the work the committee is doing and said the Committee members arent aware of what is going on in the neighborhoods. If you would go to Guinida, Ponderosa, Anna Drive and West Anaheim neighborhoods, you would see what is going on. If you looked in those neighborhoods, you would understand whether districting is good or bad. involved and not aware. Mr. Novain said he was making the point because many people her did not seem aware of what is going on in Ponderosa and Guinida. Commissioner Armas said as many of us, we work, have families and we go home at the end of the night. So we may not be aware but as volunteers here, they are doing their best and they welcome the input but they are not involved in the city from a staff perspective. Commissioner Real said people to come from all over the city. Mr. Real said they have put announcements out for weeks and WĂŐĞϰŽĨϭϵ months now. If people come and represent themselves, they will be heard. Look behind you, not many people are here. Ms. Rivera has been here and to other meetings because she cares. If people care, they Vice Chair Dalati said on his behalf he was appalled and angry going on living here in Anaheim, in the land of the greatest country in the world and they are living in fear. They are scared for their life. Living in America, this is something that needs to be addressed. Mr. Dalati said he is going to do his part to see that they get to the bottom of this. Commissioner Pham asked if there were any other public comments. German Santos said he did not know if you have seen any of his commentary at city council lived for 30 years in Anaheim. The main problem is a public servant integrity problem in the politicians and in the law enforcement. What he saw last night in Orange County, Garden Grove and the police department caused problems Hispanic men are treated with malice and discriminated against. Mr. Santos said he is Hispanic. He seems to feel there is discrimination. He has spoke with his representatives on Anaheim City Council, Garden Grove City Council and Congressional representatives, but there is basically no help to be found. He had been arrested and stated he had many issues dealing with police in Central Anaheim, Garden Grove, Anaheim Hills problems for Hispanic men with malice of forethought. He said shuffling the chairs of Titanic could cause a huge reawakening. He has spoken to council many times and has no help to be found. There is rioting because there is no help. Commissioner Olesen asked Mr. Santos if he had had any personal incidences with the police department. Mr. Santos said that it was a long story that started when he was an engineer and police were tracking him to Colombia Law Enforcement. Law enforcement is creating the problem. He is a Hispanic man going back and forth working as an engineer for a company on Katella and Dale going back and forth to Colombia for work but was treated like a gang member. They worked on police tracking projects. When tells storyisten and that is why riots happen. They thought that they could turn someone in that context wrapped up in a story and treat him like a gang member. He has a very serious complaint be here much longer. Things are going to get worse. The problem that you have is ten times worse than the problems of the Catholic Church. Ross Romero, 41 years old and has been a resident of Anaheim for 20 years, real estate agent in Anaheim ening lawsuits. By the same token he would be remiss Modesto, Merced for district and ward elections. Those set precedent carried through the state without challenge. 44 board or districts have had to change manner or elections due to those sort of lawsuits from 3-4 years ago. He would challenge the committee to read those cities stories to understand the law in this state. One speaker said everyone has the right, free will, but what this issue might not be so geo-political, or economic realities of what happens in a city like this. A large group of voters get shut out. Anaheim Hills has far greater representation than other parts of the city. The big issue is fairness that the practices and patterns going on have served to exclude and deny access to what would have been historically under-represented groups. There is a growing Chicano/Latino community in North Orange County and Anaheim. Ms. Rivera did a good job expressing her concerns. If you drive north of Lincoln, look at those roads, see that their neighborhoods near Olive, Sycamore, Sabine. Anaheim Hills and Disney have newer paved roads. WĂŐĞϱŽĨϭϵ Potential CVRA violation, still that we have to spend money to defend the lawsuit. It is potentially a fund to defend a suit that may be un-defendable. No name given, a lady who spoke and said it was her first meeting. She said she attended her first Anaheim City Council meeting last Tuesday, so she met her representatives for the first time. The last time she voted a ballot, it was like Russian roulette. She lives off Lincoln and half of the neighborhood feels she has to get in before nighttime as well as having a vision problem. autiful but seem/feel safe. In the horrible, and not fair to fight for basic services. She supports district elections. She said what is going on in the rest of Anaheim. Walter Santes, 6 year resident of both the East and West sides of Anaheim. Where he lives with his two small children who he brought with him, both areas have been under a gang injunction. He understands that there is violence and there are gangs. He has worked in violence reduction the last 3-4 years. Nothing stops violence like a job and resources. You could have all the suppression you want. When you invite the individuals who have caused the violence to the table; he recommends inviting perpetrators of violence to the table. Bring them to have resources like food and a job. Often times these folks are released from you see that box, have you ever had a penalty, you get put in the no pile. If Anaheim would support programs to help those who have been incarcerated and help people who have been through violence and problems like this, it would be a lot more helpful than trying to suppress and arming gang units with all sorts of military type weapons. That is the same thing that Criticized Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa did in Ramona Gardens. When they sent people in there with assault rifles, all it did was result in more y $158 million dollars to the hotels and yet there are places, on the West side on Brookhurst and Crescent where there have been empty pools for 20 years. a matter of not just representation with districts but people like his children you need to listen to them, too. Even if they are not ready or able to vote. Many people not able to vote in his neighborhood because they are undocumented. Just because you are not able to vote does not mean your neighborhood does not matter. He thinks that needs to be taken into consideration especially with people of color or who are undocumented because they make up an important part of the economic structure. Thank you. Public comments closed at 7:31 p.m. 5. Receive and File Community Outreach Efforts Action: Receive and file community outreach report, upon presentation of outreach efforts. Deputy City Manager Greg Garcia introduced Ed Velasquez, outreach coordinator, who provided an ighlight on the flyer provided. Ed Velasquez spoke regarding the outreach update. He said the outreach continues in utility bills, cable channel, meeting notices/ schedules that are posted at City Hall, public libraries. The meetings are also broadcast on local cable channel ACTV. Mr. Velasquez said he will be attending another round of WĂŐĞϲŽĨϭϵ Neighborhood Council Meetings to invite people to the CAC meetings. He provided a reminder about the sign-up sheet in the back of the room. will receive email updates on the sign in sheet at the back of the room. Those names on the sign in sheet will be added to the email list to receive information about the upcoming meetings and what will be discussed. At the last meeting, Commissioner Day asked for Voter Registration Forms to be made available at the meetings and we have taken her request into account. The forms are located at the resource table at the th back of the room. Thank you for that. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday April 4 at Katella. (RESCHEDULED to April 11 at 6:30 per agenda item no. 8) Mr. Velasquez recommended people take one with them. Commissioner Armas asked about contacting churches. Mr. Velasquez said they have done outreach through the Anaheim Religious Community Council to connect with churches, temples, and religious organizations within the city. Mr. Velasquez said that the city initially did outreach to the churches and faith based organizations but we might be able to do another round of that. The partnered with the Anaheim Religious Community Council in January to initially get the word out but could be contacted again. High School. Mr. Velasquez said they have been in touch with the district PTA councils and the junior high. They have been reaching out. Mr. Real said that when they began the recovery in West Anaheim, they had a lot of success reaching out Anaheim. At one time there was a drive-by shooting in his neighborhood. They were able to take care of Vice Chair Dalati asked what the criteria is for you outreach . Mr. Velasquez said that any community groups where they are primarily Anaheim residents. They need to be an active group with Anaheim Residents where they would let him come and speak and make a brief announcement, primarily that are already engaged. reach out to people who are not engaged or many not be already participating because they are shying away or maybe who feel neglected. Is it in the plan to reach out to people who maybe are not as engaged? Is that in the works. Mr. Velasquez said the utility bill inserts are still being sent out and that has been in the works. WĂŐĞϳŽĨϭϵ Outreach information made available during the meeting and online at www.anaheim.net/CACelections Chair Pham requested a motion to receive and file the report on outreach efforts. Commissioner motioned to receive and file. Commissioner Armas seconded. Ayes 9 (Armas, Dalati, Day, Edinger, Pham, Real) Noes 0 , Absent 1 (Larsen) The motion passed. 6. Presentation from Anaheim HOME Home Owners Maintaining their Environment Mr. Garcia announced that they are joined tonight by one of the speakers during public comment from last week, by the request of the Chair, to come back and provide a presentation for 15 minutes to give a brief overview of their organization and their work with regard to districting. Mr. Garcia asked Anaheim HOME to come forward and make their presentation. He said the presentation would be followed by a question and answer period. Speaker Summary: Mr. Fitzgerald thanked the committee for the opportunity to give the presentation. He said their presenter who was their PowerPoint specialistand was going to church with his family. He was not available to attend tonight so they did not have a formal PowerPoint presentation. The reason this presentation has been limited to 15 minutes is because some of the material is somewhat boring and any longer, some of you might be going to sleep. He introduced himself as Dennis Fitzgerald, voice of Anaheim HOME, Home Owners Maintaining their Environment. The organization has been active for almost 25 years in Anaheim since 1987 and has been promoting district elections in Anaheim in order to stop special interest money from influencing city government. He addressed concerns regarding special interest in Anaheim and how district elections might impact them. He is not authorized by Anaheim HOME board of directors to tell you what to do or what to decide, only to present to you information that may assist your committee. You have been provided a five page Mickey Mouse handout and a list of Disney SOAR Directors. The handout has not been approved by the Anaheim HOME board of directors because several parts were found to be objectionable. He introduced the people involved in Anaheim HOME, their accomplishments and losses. The focus of the group Anaheim HOME is beauty, honor and country and non-materialistic. Many of their members are former Veterans. Mr. Fitzgerald said the Taormina family was a strong special interest 20 years ago, now Disney is. They director of Anaheim HOME who was not present today recommended 7 independent council districts and 7 seats, keeping with an odd number. They believe the mayor should be one of the elected council members so that they get along and have better ch opinion is to stop special interest such as Disney, trains, and street cars, and Autry Way in Anaheim. Their directors recommended an odd number of districts and at least 7 districts due to the limitations WĂŐĞϴŽĨϭϵ of the 7 seats currently on the council with the mayor being one of the 7 elected council by his peers to increase likelihood of them working together cohesively. Question and Answer period for Mr. Fitzgerald. Vice Chair Dalati had a questions Mr. Garcia said he was welcome to finish. Mr. Fitzgerald said he had two paragraphs. Chair Pham asked if it was two lines or paragraphs. He said it was two lines. Then continued on two read two paragraphs. He said they had much more information regarding district elections available, if you wish to have another 15 minute presentation on districting. Hopefully their Power Point presenter will be available then. Commissioner Armas asked where he came up with the 7 district conclusion. It seems to be an one seems to have the formula for why that number is mentioned. Commissioner Armas asked if experiment Mr. Fitzgerald said no he could not answer that question. Everything would be his own opinion since he was not authorized to speak for the board of directors. He could get back to the committee on that. Commissioner Armas said that he has heard 5 different speakers yet no one has the answer. puzzle. Mr. Fitzgerald said no but that 5 page handout which was objectionable to the board may be useful in putting that puzzle together. He said that often they get 13 opinions out of the 12 directors of the group. Commissioner Armas said on the East Coast where districting began goes based on population. There 5,000 residents per district. If we went by their formula, there would be 4 council districts. Mr. Fitzgerald said that was not related to his presentation. WĂŐĞϵŽĨϭϵ and very entertaining story that you told. Whcomments that are not factual. Mr. Fitzgerald said it was well documented if you go to the LA Times. uch of what Mr. Fitzgerald said was wrong. You presented at the last meeting that you would have facts and figures. Where are those facts and fi worked on for the last 20- facts and figures. She did not see any. m in 15 minutes but given two hours he could present that. Mr. Fitzgerald said if you wanted to give him another 15 minute presentation, that he would provided it then. There is speculation and facts but she di Commissioner Real asked about 12 board members, 92802 area lost due to attrition. If the group has spent years studying districting, Commissioner Real asked if they considered at-large. Commissioner Real asked if those members from Anaheim. Mr. Fitzgerald said mostly from Anaheim and surrounding mostly 92802. They have had representatives speak at council meetings such as Curtis Striker. Jeff Hirsch spoke at every meeting. His position at City Council Meetings. Dalati indicated he has been involved in city for years and Disneyland gives $90 million to Anaheim from Disney. Mr. Fitzgerald said that Walt Disney himself was an exceptional person but when he died it got bad. There are over 25,000 workers getting paid $10-11 per hour. How can they live? It requires a government subsidy. They get subsidized housing. Chair Pham thanked him for the presentation and said that she had hoped her would provide better documentation for his studies in Anaheim to show what was going on. WĂŐĞϭϬŽĨϭϵ 7. City of San Jose memo outlining the history of their electoral system. Action: Discussion. The committee discussed the memo and read the information provided. Chair Pham thanked Mr. Garcia for the outline and wanted to share some thoughts on this item. Chair Pham indicated there are similarities between San Jose and Anaheim in regard to civil unrest, issues with the police, minority leaders didnt feel represented, and similar demographics, San Jose formed a similar committee and put it to a vote. Chair Pham read some quotes from Mr. Christensens book. Following reading Mr. Christensens quotes, the item was opened for discussion. Vice Chair Dalati mentions Amanda Edinger and wished to welcome her. Mr. Garcia made the formal introduction that she would be filling the last vacancy on the committee. The commissioners extended a warm welcome to her. Commissioner Day had emailed reporter Scott Herehold who was a staff writer for the San Jose Mercury News during the time of the change to districting to ask some questions about the impact of the changes and what the city looks like 30 years later. Mr. Herehold respects Dr. Christensen and shared information about what he observed. She read a letter her sent to her regarding the request for information on their transition to districting. Commissioner Day asked that the committee consider this is a decision that will impact long term to our children and grandchildren. She hopes to consider the possible long term results and is grateful for the many speakers they have had while this committee has convened. The question remains, She also cited some issues that a Long Beach resident had with regard to districting and not being fairly represented because of how the boundaries were drawn. to consider what this would look like if they did opt to move to districting, long term to 20, 30 , 50, 100 years from now and consider deficiencies. She understands they have been informed by many experts that there is no perfect system. She also cautioned the other committee members that she heard be careful what you wish for. Commissioner Day hopes that they Come together as a body and study the cities who have adopted districting so that they can learn a lot from them. Chair Pham said depth research like what was done in San Jose which is why she forced this item on the agenda. Ms. ists books, and newspaper journalist regarding the reason why districts came about. There was civil unrest. There was a police shooting at a traffic stop that created civil unrest. The minority leaders felt they did not have a voice. From hearing public comments, she repeatedly has heard that their voice is not being heard. She takes that with heavy concern. She said the committee listened to Mariana for 15 minutes but what about the hundreds of thousands of other residents that feel the same way. She takes it very seriously too. With the last presentation Dr. Hill provided information that cities like Anaheim tend to move toward. WĂŐĞϭϭŽĨϭϵ are represented. She said right now there are a majority of citizens who are saying they do not feel represented. That is a concern. Commissioner Armas said he would like to see more on districting too. He said there have been several experts but not one has given them a solution or a plan. They all could not provide a conclusive recommendation when questions about specific recommendations. They provide neutral answers. There needs to be some fact checking on the information that is given to the committee. e and some of it seems to be wrong. There are two sides to every story. Mr. Armas said the first person we heard, would be considered an expert because he has lived it for 36 years. He probably has been fact checked quite a few times. Chair Pham said she would like to get that name. Commissioner Day said it was Scott Herehold and spelled it out for the committee. He has been covering San Jose for 36 years. Commissioner Armas asked if Mr. Herehold was still active. Commissioner Day said yes, he writes for them today. If you look up San Jose Mercury News, he has been covering news and you can see him online. Commissioner Armas asked if there is a way he could come down. Mr. Garcia said if that is what the committee would like. Mr. Garcia said we are running out of time. committee would like more information, if this gentleman is someone they would like to hear more from. Commissioner Armas said he personally would like to hear someone with an opinion. Someone who has lived it and reported on it. There have been many speakers and no solution. If he were given 15 minutes maybe he could enlighten us. 10 years. Chair Pham concurred. Chair Pham also brought up the point that a writer versus a professor; that anecdotal evidence is not the same as peer reviewed evidence. This has been researched time and again. Dr. Christensen lives in San Diego where they do have districts. Commissioner Lopez would like to add to that journalism versus actual facts is questionable. He said similarities they had a committee, went through a review board similar to us and at the end they recommended districts for a reason. They likely had extensive public representation as we have had. Mr. Lopez said he felt it was important that the committee really listened to people in Anaheim. Some people say WĂŐĞϭϮŽĨϭϵ representing me. In regard to Long Beach situation, he understands the challenge the person had in Long Beach with regard to where the person lived. There are five council members in Anaheim. We what they recommend. He said that many at large systems have been forced by the courts to shift to Chair Pham said if they are going down that route with hearing Scott Herehold, she thinks they should have whole panels of San Jose long term residents who have experienced it so there are are choosing that options, past politicians, residents would be important to be included. Commissioner Day said that many politicians were actually students of Dr. Christensen so Ms. Day said she is not sure if that would work out. She thinks it would be interesting to reach out to Dr. Christensen because he helped develop the election system in San Jose, if he had to do it all over again, what might he do differently. What might he have added or deleted. Chair Pham asked Mr. Garcia is Dr. Christensen had an opinion when he spoke with him or if they just reviewed the facts. Mr. Garcia said they went through the facts of his story and they went through the history. Once he them to a few other people to get some good information. They can definitely reach out again and ask the question that Commissioner Day posed. Vice Chair Dalati mentioned the City of Compton also went through a similar process and switched to districts. Could staff or committee reach out to them for additional information? Mr. Garcia invited the City of Compton to City Council when they did a workshop on this topic. Mr. Garcia was not certain of the date but it is all on video online and as homework, we could have the committee members watch that first and get an understanding. The representative from Compton explained the entire history of how the situation came about, how the lawsuit came about, and the details. Mr. Garcia encouraged the committee to watch that video, if you as a committee have any additional questions we could provide those to them to get additional information. Chair Pham requested sending the committee the link to the video. Vice Chair Dalati asked if that could also be shared with the public. Mr. Garcia said yes they could provide that link. He also said in addition to Compton, Menifee went through this and had speakers on both sides of the districting debate. They discuss the CVRA, and aspects of it all as well as the practical aspect of moving from one system to the other. Chair Pham requested a 5 minute break. 8. recommendation process WĂŐĞϭϯŽĨϭϵ Action: Presentation by Steven Lynn, Facilitator Chair Pham asked staff, Mr. Garcia, to introduce the facilitator, Mr. Steven Lynn. Mr. Garcia asked for quiet and for the public to take conversations outside. As the committee nears the end of the process, it is important that the committee make some decisions. It is a difficult decision. Everyone recognized that. They want to provide a process that is fair and moves the decision along. Staff determined that bringing a facilitator that is neutral with no opinion on the topic. He does have experience in working with these type of groups and has advice on how the committee should move forward in the process of accomplishing the committees recommendations. In talking to numerous experts and previous speakers, they were fortunate to find Mr. Steven Lynn. To provide a brief bio, Mr. Lynn was the Chair of the Arizona State Independent Redistricting Commission from 2001-2011 in that capacity, Mr. Lynn was a presiding officer of that commission and conducted more than 100 meetings and hearing. In addition to his service on the committee, he worked in the community processes for most of his career as a Social Service Planning administrator, and has served as a consultant to municipalities to over 50 municipalities in California, Nevada, Arizona and Puerto Rico. Mr. Garcia would like to address the committee to discuss his process which includes possibly conclusion of the presentation. Mr. Lynn thanked the committee for their time and commitment as volunteers working on behalf of the community. What they have done is quite admirable. He stated that touching on a discussion point from earlier that one of your jobs is to separate opinion from fact. Mr. Lynn discussed some facts end of May. So as much as you will deliberate the ideas in front of you, you have the responsibility as committee members to go back to the council with a set of recommendations regarding your charge. That recommendation is the sum total of your thinking on this topic. However, it is not the final word. The final word will be a vote of the mayor and council and possibly a referral to the people of Anaheim to possibly vote. Your job is to provide the best recommendations based on information presented to you and your own opinions. As outlined in the presentation handout, Mr. Lynn continues by discussing the process, establishing rules and reviewing the possible timeline. You may not arrive the designated deadline. The recommendations should address all the 5 areas in the original mandate. Mr. Lynn went through the handout discussing his recommendation to include all committee (See handout for details.) Presentation handout made available during the meeting and online at www.anaheim.net/CACelections The time line included the following which Mr. Lynn presented: Cancellation of the April 4. Meeting on April 11 & 18 to embark on step two as outlined tonight. April 25 meeting would also be cancelled. WĂŐĞϭϰŽĨϭϵ th Reviewing a final draft of recommendations on May 9. This would still allow some time in May should there be the need for the committee to meet again st before the final recommendations were due, yet still conclude work by May 31. There was discussion about the process. Questions were asked by the committee. thrd Commissioner Armas asked if they would meet on the 16 and 23 of May. Mr. Garcia clarified that if the committee reviews the draft and finds it acceptable, they may be able th to approve it on May 9 and that would conclude their meetings. Chair Pham asked that the committee take a vote and Vice Chair Dalati motioned to accept the the Commissioner Armas seconded the motion. Commissioner Day said given how tight this schedule is, she did not think it was a good idea to bring in additional speakers at this time. Chair Pham agreed with Commissioner Day. Mr. Lynn replied that you are asking an opinion question about the process so he would respond. Given that the decisions the committee has in front of them to make in front of them, that the committee could listen to speakers on both sides of the issue between now and year end, however, that would not conclude the charge of the committee. His point does not preclude any one of the committee from doing any and all of the homework they would like to do to ensure that when you discuss issues, you come fully prepared to participate in the discussion, to offer points of view and supportive information. Whether you need to schedule additional presentations, is to your comfort rocess dictates at some point that they need more information, that you feel something germane is missing. You could always bring it in at that point before you come to a final decision. He believes you will find that most everyone on this panel has a fairly good idea of what they would like to do and see in that report. Once that is out there. They will determine if there is a consensus, or a majority, or whether or not they need more information. It will evolve. His suggestion would be that he would not recommend scheduling anyone because it will lead to point and counter point in discussion. Vice Chair Dalati said he felt he was ready to tackle this. Commissioner Armas agreed. Commissioner Lopez asked if a member was absent, how would that be handled and they needed to vote. Would they be able to vote. would be that unless someone could declare they had a problem with these meetings, it is extraordinarily important that all members of the committee be present. It is extremely important in hinking to come to a conclusion when determine A or B. He would recommend everyone be here rather than making an exception outside of the bounds of the rules that were just said. That is his opinion. WĂŐĞϭϱŽĨϭϵ Mr. Tyson, requested the floor. He stated that as a part of California open meetings laws, a member must be present in order to vote. They could not vote if they were absent. A proxy vote is not possible under laws. It would be important for all members to be present. There are a series of meetings. If you miss one, it does not prevent you from voting at the next meeting when you are there. Commissioner Real stated he had a conflict May 9 date because he will be in Washington, D.C. and Mr. Tyson said that if they had a quorum of 6 members present, they could continue to hold the meeting and do business. Mr. Tyson said, while it may be extremely burdensome, if the committee was open to the option of access by phone, and if it is noticed in advance and if the place where they are listening from is also open to the public, that might be an option for a member to call in. There are some other rules you have to follow to do that. th Chair Pham said that if they were making their decisions in April, the May 9 meeting would primarily be reviewing the draft. th Mr. Lynn suggested that by the 9 of May most of this should be settled, so that you could go to Washington with a clear conscience. Chair Pham said she was pretty sure that Mr. Larsen would be present for the upcoming meetings since he was not here this evening. Chair Pham asked if any members had any concerns with any of the aforementioned dates set in April. All agreed. Vice Chair Dalati affirmed he still held the same motion. Commissioner Armas again seconded. Ayes 9 (Armas, Dalati, Day, Edinger, Olesen, Pham, Real) Noes 0, Absent 1 (Larsen) The motion passed. Mr. Lynn said that he was looking forward to working with the committee. He said he felt they were already on the right track in that even in their decision makings they were having fun and heard th laughter. He looks forward to helping facilitate the process on April 11 when they will get to work. Chair Pham thanked Mr. Lynn and stated they look forward to his help. 9. Committee Communications Action: Closing comments. Chair Pham opened the closing comments by asking the committee members to be mindful in the process of making this time well spent. She ask each committee member with 2 months to conclude, how do they want to spend their time, how will ensure their time is well spent? She asked that they be mindful of how they want to be remembered because they will be in history books and what they accomplished in Anaheim. Has anything you heard surprised you? How do they want to fulfill their mission? WĂŐĞϭϲŽĨϭϵ Vice Chair Dalati said the Mr. Tyson told them that they could not get together outside of the public meeting over for dinner. The committee laughed and said they could do that just not to talk issue but to have Italian food. He said maybe after the process is complete. He emphasized the importance of remembering that as a committee, they are not to each other people who love, and care about Anaheim, and want to make it a better place. He respects each member of the committee and thanked each person trying to please anyone here but said he will vote his conscience. He hoped they would listen to their heart to make a better Anaheim. Hearing the disturbing presentation from Ms. Rivera earlier; here is someone council do something to help resolve these urgent issues. by city staff. These issues need immediate attention by council and city staff. Some of this might be included in their report. Mr. Dalati reiterated if there are no conflicts from city staff, he said that he would like to include what they heard as a part of their report to see that it is addressed in order to present solutions. He would like to include them in the report. Commissioner Armas said he thanked the City Council for giving us this great opportunity. There are great people here both on the committee and as a part of the city staff. There are many different views. How they got here is somewhat irrelevant. It is an important thing to discuss this and hear elings and see where people are at. He thinks there is a great overlay representing each part of the city. Mr. Armas said he believes they can do something very productive and maybe trendsetting as lots of people are watching us and threatening lawsuits. They need to each think about what they are doing and formulate their own perspectives and be open to everyone else. It is important to be able to take a little criticism and not get offended by it. He thanked staff for the opportunity, for providing everything they need and looking forward to working with Mr. Lynn. Commissioner Real thanked the audience despite the fact many are gone. He would like to continue to see more participate. He thinks with the facilitator they will come to a decision fast. Commissioner Olesen said that he heard a couple things that he found quite disturbing. Mr. Lynn mentioned that he thought everyone here had an opinion. When Mr. Olesen made that comment himself, he was chastised by the audience. That was exactly the point Mr. Olesen was trying to make. volunteered to do this (serve on the committee). The other things Mr. Olesen said that really bothered ll who said it was the individual who said everyone had a right to be represented by someone who looked like them, find someone who looked like him he would be in trouble. Commissioner Olesen all that being said he echoed what many others said. something. 99% of people who get invol e the independent expenditures were omitted from this last election which would completely skew that last graph and make it 180 degrees from what was presented did. Similarly with the graph today, he would get a very different picture as well. Facts are great things depending upon how you interpret them and present them. As far as the whole idea of academics not having an opinion, Mr. Olesen said WĂŐĞϭϳŽĨϭϵ that having spent far more time in that world than he cares to admit to, that is the beauty of academia, reality is not an issue. None of it matters; because Thank you all. He has enjoyed being the committee is going to do what going to do. Commissioner Edinger said thank you for welcoming me. She said she has a good deal of reading to do in order to catch up. She thinks that the committee is representative of the city itself, and hopefully they will come to a consensus or outline in the report at least a starting point for them to make improvements to the process. The others welcomed her. She thanked them. Commissioner Day thanked everyone for coming out including staff and Mr. Lynn. She looks forward to the next meeting As a reminder, many people may not be able to make the meetings, but important to hear from everyone. They want to hear from every citizen. The committee does read your emails. As a reminder, you are welcome to send the committee emails to provide feedback or to get that feedback. She encourage residents to provide feedback so that they can take it into consideration. The public can also email staff and the email will get to them. She also wished everyone a Happy Easter. Commissioner Lopez said he wanted to recognize and thank the public for coming, particularly, Mariana for coming and for her courage. left at the end of the meeting. He wanted to praise those who took the time to stay for the entire meeting. You are also investing important time because you care about your community. This is important to you. We are listening to you and based on all of your comments, Mr. Lopez said he is hat democracy is about. He is happy to be a part of this group and have worked with most of you for a few weeks now, and he is looking forward to the next step. to her that people think about what they are going to say before they say it. Just because someone comes up and says something; that does not make it truth. It does cause her personally to get a bit excited. That being said, she especially wanted to thank Mariana for pouring her heart out today. Commissi people in her community. She knows and understands She values everyone who has come out to these meetings. Being able to potentially change our history and represent the city and all of her fellow citizen is something she does not take lightly. She considers it a huge honor and wants to thank everyone for their part. Chair Pham said that the committee has gone through a long process, lots of presentations. Ms. Pham countless hours of meetings, phone calls with experts trying to schedule people to present, she understands that it has been difficult, so thank you so much for all your efforts. She is excited and looking forward to the next step where they actually make decisions for recommendations that they put on paper. She wants the committee to be remembered -changing growth. The city is going to keep growing keep changing t do anything about it, there is going to be more unrest. Chair Pham said that she wants to see Mariana and her community feels that for their fellow citizens, she questioned why they are here. Ms. Pham said she looked forward to WĂŐĞϭϴŽĨϭϵ the next meeting where Mr. Lynn begins facilitating to assist them as they make hard decisions. Look th forward to seeing everyone on April 11. 10. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned by Chair Pham at 9:36 p.m. ***** Respectfully Submitted, Caroline Morey Recording Secretary WĂŐĞϭϵŽĨϭϵ ΕdŚŝƐƉĂŐĞůĞĨƚŝŶƚĞŶƚŝŽŶĂůůǇďůĂŶŬΕ EKZWKZdηϰ Agenda Item No. 5 Memorandum TO: CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT MEMBERS DATE: APRIL 11, 2013 SUBJECT: COMMUNITY OUTREACH REPORT ____________________________________________________________________________ ACTION: Receive and file this report relating to community outreach efforts for the meetings of the Citizens Advisory Committee on Elections and Community Involvement (CAC). DISCUSSION: A responsibility of this committee, as outlined in Resolution No. 2012- engage community groups that can assist the City with encoTo ensure that all members of the public are fully informed about future meetings and discussions, the City has pursued a number of efforts as well as partnering with a Community Outreach consultant to further enhance public awareness. To date, the following community outreach efforts have been launched and will continue to be carried out for each CAC meeting: Placement of large banners at various locations surrounding each meeting location. Information slide on Anaheim local access channel, ACTV Channel 3. Flyer translated into four languages and placed throughout City Hall public counters, Anaheim West Tower, and all city libraries. Attendance at local community group meetings to share meeting date/location and purpose. Attendance at district neighborhood council meetings to share meeting date/location and purpose. Coordinate presentations at local PTA groups. Public Utilities quarterly newsletter, distributed to approximately 150,000 customers, both residential and businesses. Utility bill print message distributed to all utility customer (150,000 customers in December 2012). Anaheim magazine, Winter (February 2013) and Fall (November 2012 edition. Half-page advertisement to build awareness and inclusion on master calendar (distribution of 116,000). Press Releases distributed to more than 3,000 contacts as well as over 10,000 e- subscribers. Partnership with local media to highlight upcoming meetings/press releases in regular publications. Outreach to media, including bi-lingual media. Facebook and Twitter. Nextdoor.com- free, private social media for neighborhoods. the homepage of anaheim.net. Continual partnership with community partners to further communicate CAC efforts and meeting, including the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce and the Anaheim/Orange County Visitors and Convention Bureau, who will forward meeting information to their members and partners, and various community groups, including but not limited to the Anaheim Religious Community Council and Neighborhood Councils. In addition to pre-meeting outreach, a webpage has been dedicated to the CAC to provide access to recorded meetings, agendas and all CAC related materials and press releases www.anaheim.net/CACelections. Residents may also view all CAC meetings on ACTV, 7 days a week (M/W/F/SU at 7p.m. and T/TH/SA at 12 p.m.). ΕdŚŝƐƉĂŐĞůĞĨƚŝŶƚĞŶƚŝŽŶĂůůǇďůĂŶŬΕ EKZWKZdηϲ ΕdŚŝƐƉĂŐĞůĞĨƚŝŶƚĞŶƚŝŽŶĂůůǇďůĂŶŬΕ EKZWKZdηϳ