Oakland Public Ethics Commission Regular Meeting – March 13, 2024

The Oakland Public Ethics Commission (PEC) held its regular meeting on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. in Hearing Room 1 of City Hall. The Commission addressed a range of items including approval of prior minutes, reports on disclosure and enforcement activities, a proposed settlement agreement for a campaign finance violation, the biannual City Council salary adjustment, a comprehensive set of proposed charter amendments, and subcommittee updates. The meeting also included a closed session for the Executive Director’s performance evaluation and subsequent open session actions on compensation.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Gene Hazard spoke during Open Forum about outstanding public records requests to the PEC and raised concerns regarding the Children’s Initiative (Oakland Promise) and a prior audit. He also commented on the Council salary adjustment item, cautioning that a pending lawsuit (Case No. 23-CV-039291) challenges the legality of Measure X, which governs the salary adjustment process. He urged the Commission to wait for the court’s decision before acting.
• During the enforcement report discussion, Mr. Hazard gave additional testimony regarding a formal complaint he filed about Measure X (the 2022 ballot measure), alleging a violation of the state single-subject rule.
• One member of the public spoke during the settlement agreement item, expressing interest in the Measure AA campaign and indicating he would make further public records requests.

Discussion Items

• Disclosure & Engagement Report: Program Manager Suzanne Doran reported on compliance with campaign finance and lobbyist disclosure requirements. Since the last meeting, staff reviewed 65 campaign statements, issued amendment requests to six filers, assessed $440 in late fees, and referred three non-filers for enforcement. In 2023, Oakland committees reported over $765,680 in contributions; 40% of contributions over $100 came from Oakland addresses. Forty-eight lobbyists registered for 2024, and 68 quarterly activity reports were filed. The top lobbyist client by contacts was Earthjustice (206 contacts). Staff also provided ethics training to over 120 new City employees and conducted a Government Ethics Training for Form 700 filers.
• Enforcement Program Report: Enforcement Chief Simon Russell reported on staffing additions, including a permanent investigator (Treva Hadden), a temporary investigator (Alex Van Buskirk), and two part-time law clerks (Graham Willard and Chris Nardi). The Enforcement Unit currently has 86 open cases, with 50 on hold (58% of the total). Since January, 15 new complaints were received; three streamlined settlements for low-level violations were executed. Chief Russell also detailed a new Records Retention Schedule addressing “unused evidence” gathered during investigations.
• Proposed Settlement – Susan Montauk (PEC No. 19-01.2): Chief Russell presented a settlement agreement involving a 2018 campaign committee (“The Oakland Fund for Measure AA”) that failed to disclose it was candidate-controlled. The respondent, Susan Montauk, a board member, agreed to a $500 penalty (reduced from a $1,000 baseline due to cooperation and mitigating factors). The Commission approved the settlement by a unanimous 5-0 vote.
• Council Salary Adjustment: Executive Director Nicolas Heidorn explained that under Measure X, the Commission must adjust councilmember salaries every two years based on CPI, up to a maximum of 5% per year. The two-year CPI increase was 7.6%, triggering a mandatory minimum increase of 5%, raising annual salary from $103,621.82 to $108,802.91. The Commission voted 5-0 to adopt staff’s recommendation of a 5% increase, noting discretion could allow up to 7.5% but the default was appropriate.
• Charter Review Recommendations: The Charter Review Subcommittee (Commissioners Micik, Hill, Tilak) presented 10 proposed amendments to strengthen PEC staffing, independence, and mission alignment. Key proposals included: (1) direct appointment of Executive Director by the Commission; (2) minimum staffing of two additional enforcement staff; (3) proportional budgeting for Measure W (Democracy Dollars); (4) clear legal capacity for the PEC, including requiring the Enforcement Chief be an attorney; (5) enhanced commissioner qualifications and post-service restrictions; (6) vacancy-filling authority transferred to the PEC after 120 days; (7) ballot referral power by supermajority vote; (8) updated mission language emphasizing inclusive democracy; and (9) discretion to waive salary increases during fiscal hardship. The Commission voted 5-0 to direct staff to draft charter amendment language.
• Subcommittee Reports:
  • Transparency & Public Records Subcommittee: Chair Upton reported the subcommittee has concluded its work, having facilitated OPD and OFD presentations, and launched a research partnership with UC Berkeley Goldman School students. A termination statement was provided.
  • Public Outreach Subcommittee: Chair Steele reported on a March 7 meeting focused on outreach materials, an elevator pitch, a revamped PowerPoint, and an outreach calendar. Commissioners committed to staffing events. Discussion included coordinating commissioner pairings for speaking engagements.
  • Charter Review Subcommittee: Already addressed above.
• Executive Director Performance and Compensation: In closed session, the Commission evaluated Executive Director Heidorn’s performance as above satisfactory. In open session, the Commission approved a 5% salary increase (to $191,213.76) plus five additional days of management leave (motion passed 5-0). Subsequently, following discussion of retention and comparison with other department heads, the Commission approved an additional 5% retention bonus for a total 10% increase (motion passed 5-0).

Key Outcomes

• Approved minutes of the January 17, 2024, regular meeting (5-0).
• Approved settlement in the matter of Susan Montauk, imposing a $500 penalty (5-0).
• Adopted resolution for a 5% salary increase for City Councilmembers, effective July 2024, raising annual salary to $108,802.91 (5-0).
• Directed staff to draft charter amendment language based on the Charter Review Subcommittee’s ten proposals, with consideration of commissioner input (5-0).
• Awarded Executive Director a 5% salary increase, five additional management leave days, and an additional 5% retention bonus (total 10% increase) for the 2024-2025 fiscal year (5-0 on each motion).
• Noted the termination of the Transparency and Public Records Subcommittee; new transparency-related work to be addressed by a future subcommittee.
• Noted the public outreach subcommittee’s plan to finalize outreach materials and schedule speaking engagements.