On January of this year, I wrote an editorial regarding the City of San Benito’s violation of
“City Charter Article VIII GENERAL PROVISIONS Section 8.01. Conflicts of Interest”.The Section specifically states: ….
“a) Conflicts of Interest. The use of public office for private gain is prohibited. The City Commission shall implement this prohibition by Ordinance.”
After being advised of the violation by the City Attorney in January of 2012, the City has still not enacted an Ordinance addressing a “Conflict of Interest” situation.
As of today, June 14, 2013, The City Commission is still in violation of the City Charter. The City is adamant about enforcing city ordinances, as well they should be, but in my opinion is delaying taking action enacting an “Ethics Ordinance”.
To date, the Ethics Ordinance was on the agenda for discussion at the March 2, 2013 City Commission Workshop at the Rancho Viejo Resort & Country Club and on the March 5, 2013 City Commission Regular Meeting. At the regular meeting, the discussion was tabled because the ordinance needed further review/editing.
After about a year and half (17 months), the City of San Benito is still in violation.
Furthermore, a Home Rule City Charter Amendment approved by the voters in 2012 states in
Article III CITY COMMISSION Section 3.03 Mayor……”The City Commission shall elect from among its members a Mayor Pro Tem in May of each year.”We are now in the middle of June and the City Commission has not elected a new Mayor Pro Tem as prescribed or dictated by the City Charter.
Why adopt a City Charter if you are not going to conform to it?
Why should you care about an ethics ordinance and the compliance to the Home Rule City Charter?
The Charter is the medium through which the citizens of San Benito limit and control the powers and responsibilities of their City government. The City provides many services through responsible use of taxpayer dollars. If the Charter provides the opportunity for “accountable leadership”, the City can improve the quality and quantity of services delivered to the public.
The City Charter is the “Constitution” for the City. Just as the United States Constitution serves as the “supreme law of the land” for our country, the San Benito Charter serves as the basic set of rules for our City government. The San Benito Charter limits City officials in much the same way that the Constitution constrains the officials of the federal government. They are not allowed to pass any law or act in any way the Charter prohibits.
The Charter establishes the boundaries that San Benito’s taxpayers have imposed upon their City government. It is the source of the City’s system of checks and balances, prescribing the relationship between the two branches of government: the Mayor and the City Commission and the interaction of the City Attorney with both. The Mayor’s authority to recommend policies and the Commission’s power to enact policy policy are all established by the Charter as the City’s basic law.
Withal, voters approved Charter Amendment #14 Article VII ELECTIONS Section 7.09. Recall Section “A Petition filed with the City Secretary demanding the question of removing an elective Officer or officers be submitted to the electors, must be signed by a minimum of (35%) or five hundred (500), whichever is greater, of those voters who actually voted in the election when the elective officer was last elected to his or her current office.” This is a topic I will reserve comment for a later date.
The City should conform to the City Charter at all times and not just when it is convenient to quote it as a defense mechanism.
Again, Why adopt a City Charter if you are not going to conform to it?
Ethics is a sine qua non for open government.
Jose F. Rodriguez
San Benito