Oakland Public Ethics Commission Regular Meeting September 17, 2025

The Oakland Public Ethics Commission (PEC) held its regular meeting on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in City Hall Hearing Room 2. Chair Francis Upton IV presided, with Commissioners Tanya Bayeva, Ryan Micik, Vincent Steele, and Karun Tilak present; Commissioner Alea Gage was absent. The Commission addressed several action items, including postponing the Democracy Dollars program for the 2026 election cycle, finding probable cause in a long-standing campaign finance case against OUSD Board member Mike Hutchinson, and approving a case closure plan for two enforcement matters. Commissioners also discussed recruitment for two commission-appointed seats, received enforcement and executive director reports, and heard public comment on various topics.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Gene Hazard (multiple appearances) argued that his complaints regarding ballot Measure A were improperly dismissed by staff, asserting that the City Attorney exceeded authority by altering ballot language. He urged the Commission to override staff dismissals and reiterated claims of charter and election code violations. He also commented on the Democracy Dollars program, questioning its funding priority given the city's fiscal deficit.
• Asada Olibala expressed confusion about ballot summary language for Measure A (transaction and use tax versus sales tax) and questioned the scope of open forum. She urged the Commission to consider fiscal impacts on property owners before supporting any parcel tax for PEC funding.
• Gail Wallace (during approval of minutes) urged the Commission to conduct a fiscal impact study before supporting a parcel tax, noting that many property owners are already burdened by high property taxes.
• Layla Williams asked under whose jurisdiction Mr. Hazard's complaint fell if not the PEC, and received a response from Enforcement Chief Ackerman suggesting the city administrator or courts.
• Unnamed speaker (during subcommittee reports) emphasized the need for cultural competence in commissioner recruitment and expressed frustration over feeling unheard as a Black man.

Discussion Items

• Postponement of Democracy Dollars Program for 2026: Acting Executive Director Suzanne Doran presented the staff recommendation to postpone the program due to the FY 2025-2027 budget not funding vouchers or administration, citing the City Council's extreme fiscal necessity declaration. Commissioners asked about technology build-out timeline (contract with MapLight expected to start summer 2026 for a 2028 launch) and staffing (additional Ethics Analyst II in January 2027). After public comment, the Commission voted to adopt the recommendation.
• In the Matter of Mike Hutchinson (PEC #17-09(a)): Enforcement Chief Tovah Ackerman presented the probable cause report detailing 19 counts of failure to file campaign statements for his 2016 Oakland School Board campaign, despite years of outreach, court orders, and unpaid sanctions. Commissioners discussed the prolonged timeline, resource constraints, and the fact that Hutchinson is a current OUSD board member who has since complied with filing requirements for later campaigns. The Commission voted to find probable cause and refer the matter to an administrative hearing before an outside hearing officer.
• 2025 Case Closure Plan: Enforcement Chief Ackerman presented two cases for closure under the seven-point rubric: (1) Joel Velasquez for Oakland School Board 2022 – recommended closure with a warning letter due to mitigating circumstances (low financial balance, administrative termination by FPPC); (2) Hugo Barron and Wing Loo (PEC #18-18) – recommended closure with no action due to insufficient evidence. Commissioners asked about the FPPC termination and staff workload. The Commission voted to adopt both recommendations.
• Commissioner Recruitment: Ethics Analyst Jelani Killings presented the recruitment plan for two commission-appointed seats (terms starting January 2026, deadline November 2, 2025). To date two applications have been received. Commissioners discussed attendance requirements (live meeting required by Charter), the possibility of Zoom public comment, and outreach strategies. A subcommittee for candidate review was formed: Chair Upton, Commissioner Steele, and Commissioner Tilak.
• Enforcement Program Report: Enforcement Chief Ackerman presented the updated report with a new data-driven format. She noted three recent dismissals, including two complaints against City Attorney Ryan Richardson regarding ballot Measure A, which staff found outside PEC jurisdiction. Commissioners discussed metrics for tracking backlog, the distinction between open complaints (35) and active cases (83), and the need to better reflect informal inquiries. The report also indicated three new administrative hearing cases were discovered during file review.
• Executive Director Report: Acting Director Doran provided updates on staffing (new Executive Director hire pending, vacancies in Investigator and Law Clerk positions), the new office location (250 Frank Ogawa Plaza, renovations expected by early 2027), and Democracy Dollars progress (MapLight contract executed, partnerships with Local Policy Lab, Open Oakland, and Northeastern University). Commissioners asked about mediation statistics (six closed, three open) and priority-setting. Doran noted plans for a program evaluation and ongoing transparency work.
• Reports on Subcommittees: Commissioners reviewed activities of three subcommittees: (1) Revenue Options Ad Hoc – no recent meetings; pending data from Finance and potential interaction with Mayor's charter reform task force; (2) Democracy Dollars Engagement Ad Hoc – not met recently; Local Policy Lab conducting stakeholder interviews; subcommittee to meet after report; (3) Executive Director Recruitment Ad Hoc – concluded; final report and minutes included in packet. The Commission officially closed this subcommittee.

Key Outcomes

• Approved Minutes: May 21, 2025 regular meeting minutes (4-0, Chair Upton abstained) and June 25, 2025 special meeting minutes (5-0).
• Postponed Democracy Dollars: Voted unanimously (5-0) to postpone distribution and use of Democracy Dollars vouchers for the November 2026 election, while continuing infrastructure development for a possible 2028 launch.
• Probable Cause Finding: Voted unanimously (5-0) to find probable cause that Mike Hutchinson and his committee committed 19 violations of the Oakland Campaign Reform Act, and to refer the matter to an administrative hearing.
• Case Closures: Voted unanimously (5-0) to close PEC #24-09.04 (Joel Velasquez) with a warning letter and PEC #18-18 (Barron/Loo) with no action.
• Recruitment Subcommittee Formed: Commissioners Upton, Steele, and Tilak appointed to the Commissioner Recruitment Subcommittee to review applicants and recommend candidates by December 2025.
• Calendar Changes Announced: November 2025 regular meeting canceled; special meetings scheduled for November 19 (executive director update) and December 10 (commissioner interviews and appointments).