Finance Reform Law May Be Expanded

The Ventura City Council tentatively agreed to pass a requirement that all political action committees--both inside and outside the city--must report all contributions over $25.

The council is expected to formally approve the requirement Nov. 24.

Councilman Steve Bennett, a longtime advocate for campaign finance reform, said the new requirement will make his planned 1998 voter initiative--which would have sought to prohibit all organized groups from giving money to candidates--unnecessary.

Contributions from out-of-town organizations “was a major concern of mine,” Bennett said. “Now that we can trace money with all the PACs, we will not do an initiative.”

In 1995, 81% of Ventura voters approved a campaign finance reform law written by Bennett that forbade organized groups and political action committees from contributing to City Council elections.

But the City Council voted 5 to 2 in June to reverse that provision of the law after City Atty. Bob Boehm warned that such limitations could be considered unconstitutional if found to violate free-speech rights guaranteed by the 1st Amendment.

However, the council let the rest of the law stand, including a provision that city PACs report contributions of more than $25.

Pointing out that voters have shown they care about campaign finance reform, Councilwoman Rosa Lee Measures proposed Monday night that the council make the same rules apply to out-of-town organizations.

“I think it closes the gap and creates a consistency, requiring all PACS to report on their contributions,” Measures said.

Bennett said such a rule is important because out-of-town groups have funneled considerable amounts of money into local elections in the past. He cites developer groups such as the Building and Industry Assn.--which often gave winning candidates contributions of as much as $600--as one example.

“This is significant because now, if they want to play, they will have to report just like everyone else,” he said.