ARROYO SECO NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL

 Arroyo Seco NC Community Impact Statement (CIS)
Against the City Clerk's Election Proposals


 Arroyo Seco NC Community Impact Statement (CIS)
Against the City Clerk's Election Proposals

December 18, 2007

The Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council met last night for the first time since the City Clerk issued their proposals as to how they will handle NC elections. The Board strongly disagrees with today's vote to make the City Clerk's method of implementing elections mandatory and submitted the following CIS.

Our issues with this are:

1. The hasty process to approve this, without sufficient notification to the Neighborhood Councils

2. Need an opt-out method for Neighborhood Councils who request it

3. Need Board member terms of only one year and annual elections

4. Nullification of stakeholder-developed Bylaws

As we could not meet to vote on this until yesterday, we note that today's vote was taken in great haste, without time for our comment.

Pat Griffith, Treasurer
patgriffit@earthlink.net

The following is the CIS:
~~~~ ASNC CIS Against the City Clerk's Election Proposals ~~~~

To: City Council
From: Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council

Contact:..Ernie Sanchez, President, eesanchez@sbcglobal.net
              Eliot Sekuler, Election Chair, eliotjain@yahoo.com
              Pat Griffith, Treasurer, patgriffit@earthlink.net

Re: Council File Number: 05-0894-S3 and Council File Number: 05-0894-S5

Council Impact Statement

On Dec. 17, 2007, the Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council Board voted to submit this CIS in opposition to the proposed Recommendation No. 45 of the NCRC Final Report as it has been interpreted by the City Clerk in their report dated Oct. 23, 2007.

http://clkrep.lacity.org/councilfiles/05-0894-S5_rpt_clk_10-23-07.pdf

Specifically, in opposition to:

That the City Council:

1. Authorize and direct the Office of the City Clerk to conduct Neighborhood Council board member elections during the spring months of April, May and June of each even numbered year pursuant to a schedule to be developed by the City Clerk in consultation with the Neighborhood Councils.

2. Request the City Attorney to prepare and submit any necessary Neighborhood Council System Plan and/or implementing ordinance(s) modifications necessary to establish the program.

3. Authorize and direct that the terms of Neighborhood Council board members elected during the period of July 1, 2007 through December 31, 2007 be extended through June 30, 2010.

4. Authorize and direct that those Neighborhood Council board members elections scheduled to be held during the upcoming period of January 1, 2008 through June 30, 2008 be conducted by the Offce of the City Clerk, during the spring months of April, May and June 2008.

Our issues with this are:

The hasty process to approve this, without sufficient notification to the Neighborhood Councils

Need an opt-out method for Neighborhood Councils who request it

Need Board member terms of only one year and annual elections

Nullification of stakeholder-developed Bylaws

Our Neighborhood Council Board has only been able to meet to review this last night, so we object to the speed at which this recommendation is being heard and voted on, without sufficient notification to the Neighborhood Councils.

While we understand that holding Elections is time consuming and difficult for volunteers to conduct, we believe there needs to be a process where a Neighborhood Council can opt out of this and continue to hold elections which meet the needs of the Bylaws and the existing approved City-wide Election Procedures.

Our Bylaws designate terms of one or two years for various representatives, with regional representatives voted on alternate years. We continue to believe we need representatives with a term of one year. Without this shorter commitment, it may prove difficult to recruit Board candidates. Likewise, we have experienced Board members resignations, for personal reasons. Without annual elections, we will end up with a Board-appointed Board, rather than those elected by the stakeholders.

The Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council Bylaws were adopted after a very lengthy process to draft them, then after many public review meetings and votes, involving several hundred stakeholders. Our Bylaws revision process also involves a minimum of votes of 50 stakeholders. We have been well served by both the Bylaws and our stakeholder process to amend them. We note that the City Clerk’s recommendation #2 will negate great portions of our Bylaws, thereby nullifying what has involved a large community decision-making process.