lightningcloud The proposal by Long Beach City Councilmembers Robert Garcia, Suja Lowenthal and Gary DeLong to cut the number of Council meetings that they and their colleagues would otherwise be expected to attend isn’t about saving taxpayers money. It’s about power.

In the opinion of LBReport.com, their proposal is an abuse of power. We view it as anti-taxpayer, anti-neighborhood and elitist. Fortunately, the measure’s three proponents won’t be able to enact it until the new Council—including Councilmembers James Johnson and Steve Neal—is seated.

If it is ultimately passed, taxpayers tired of a City Hall seemingly run to benefit a few at the expense of many should prepare to take action and use powers that the public has instead of wasting words on those not listening.

The Garcia-Lowenthal-DeLong item would tilt power further away from taxpayers and neighborhoods and more toward development, corporate and other special interests. Those interests, usually armed with paid lobbyists and advocates, use the Council to take actions that in our view are too often contrary to the interests of taxpayers and neighborhoods.

At the same time, Councilmembers would continue to enjoy entitlements that include taxpayer-paid health benefits, taxpayer paid travel, food and lodging for various junkets, taxpayer paid staff to do much of their Council office work and taxpayer paid cars (or a mileage allowance at their option).

Meanwhile, the public wouldn’t regain a major right lost during the O’Neill administration when the Council stealthfully erased part of Long Beach’s Municipal Code that allowed the public to agendize items for Council consideration. Under that procedure, taxpayers (who took the time and trouble to do so) could agendize items on which Councilmembers could actually take action with a recorded vote (even if it was to “receive and file.”)

That was too much for O’Neill, obsessed with silencing “C.A.V.E.” (that is, “Citizens Against Virtually Everything”) people,  whom history has proven right on the Aquarium, the “Pike” and other costly failures some pretend are successes. In our view, restoring the public’s right to agendize items for Council action should be the first order of business, not reducing the public’s rights still further.

We find it significant that Garcia, Lowenthal and DeLong aren’t even bothering to discuss their item in a Council Committee. This shows what they really think of the empty argument that having fewer Council meetings allows more work to be done in Committees.

Finally, this item isn’t about saving money…not when its authors have shown themselves less than frugal. Some examples:

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