When it comes to politics in small towns, the concern that there aren’t enough interested or qualified people to run for City Council is a real one. And if the pool is small and there are tough decisions to be made on the horizon, can term limits be altered so those already on the Council or with experience can stick around?
These are questions that the City of La Palma finds itself facing. These questions, and the notion of changing the term limits, struck a nerve in the community and provoked an unusually large crowd to attend last week’s City Council Meeting to make their voices heard.
As it stands now, in La Palma, a City Council Member may serve a maximum of two consecutive terms, totaling eight years. They are permitted to run for Council again after that, but only after taking at least four years off.
However at Council meetings in recent months, there has been an off-and-on discussion to consider changing that. Councilman Gerard Goedhart and others have spoken about the value of keeping those with experience on the Council, so they can continue to draw upon their working knowledge of city dealings to see issues all the way through.
There have been discussions about the steep learning curve involved with being a new City Councilmember, and about how a city with a population of only 16,000 faces unique challenges in consistently getting enough quality candidates to run for Council.
According to City Manager Laurie Murray, the city received numerous emails opposed to the proposal, and every single resident that spoke at the meeting was opposed as well.
One factor being discussed is the cost to the city.
Having the term limits voted on by residents will cost money no matter what. But making it a ballot item in the March 2020 primary election would come with a price tag of $49,000, which is significantly more than what the city would pay if the item were to go on the ballot for the general election next November.
Some of the residents accused the Council of being secretive, self-serving and trying to rush this past the voters in March, where not as many voters typically turn out as at the general election.
A resident named Wendy spoke about the cost, saying there are “too many other needs” for the city to be spending $49,000 to put this on the ballot. She said that money would be better spent on children’s programs, parks and law enforcement. She said that this initiative is not one generated by the voters and “seems kind of self-serving.” She was applauded.
Many of the speakers fixated on the insinuation that there aren’t enough qualified or interested people in La Palma to run for Council, and were upset. Resident Sharon Nix said she disagrees, as did Linda De Carvalho, who said she has a Master’s degree and is a past president of the Norwalk Chamber of Commerce, and that there are many like her in the city with substantive resumes. She said the city needs to “get us excited about the possibility of running.”
Resident Robert Carruth similarly said there is “no shortage of community interest.”
In 1982, La Palma voters voted to limit Council Members to two consecutive terms, effectively creating the policy that is in place today.
This was reaffirmed in 1996, with the passage of Measure O, which reinstated term limits after they had been unenforced for four years.
A number of former council members were either present to speak on the matter last week, or submitted letters that they had others read for them.
A Mr. Herman, who served on the Council from 1986-1994, and then again from 2002-2010, said any decision made by the city needs to “represent the will of the constituents,” and doing away with the current term limits would not. He said, “Continuity in the City Council is not all that important,” and that regular interjections of new people and new ideas are needed.
Former Mayor Keith Nelson also spoke, saying this would be “disrespectful” to past councils, who all served their terms and then moved along, and that the current and future councils need to do the same. He said past councils have dealt with issues just as difficult as the ones facing the current council and coming down the pipeline, and that history has shown that new people can be swapped in in the midst of challenges. He insinuated that it was arrogant of the current Council to think that they are especially equipped and need to be the ones to stay on and walk the city through the foreseeable future.
Resident Jerry Lomeli expressed frustration over the lack of communication from the city on this matter. He said he walked some of the city over Labor Day weekend, and most of the residents he talked to said they had not heard that this was something the city was considering, and most thought it was unnecessary. Lomeli said he could not find anything about the matter on the city’s website, so didn’t know how people would go about learning more about it.
Resident Robert Carruth pointed out that if the term limits were changed, people would be able to serve on City Council for 24 out of every 26 years. In addition to sharing his own thoughts, he read a letter from former Councilman Steve Hwangbo, in which Hwangbo suggested that La Palma adopt the model that Cypress and Stanton have, which is that an individual can serve on Council for two terms (eight years), and then they are permanently termed out.
And lastly Lisa Walker, the wife of former Mayor Paul Walker, spoke, not necessarily against the notion, but suggesting that it be put on the November ballot for next year’s general election.
Some of the residents criticized Councilman Nitesh Patel and Mayor Pro Tem Peter Kim for abstaining from voting on this when they had the chance at the last Council meeting.
Patel spoke up about this, saying the only reason he had not voted was because he had not yet made a decision and wanted to get residents’ feedback.
Kim said at this point he does not support altering the policy, and wanted to table it permanently.
Councilman Goedhart and Councilwoman Michele Steggell had some stronger words for the residents who had spoken. Goedhart, who had been perhaps the main proponent for wanting to change the term limits and give experienced council members the chance to stay onboard, clarified that he himself is not planning on running again, so his motives are not self-serving. He said people ought not read too much into it.
He said that making a ballot measure for the March election is not necessary, but didn’t rule out supporting it in the general election. And regarding communication with the public, he said, “We’ll make sure everybody knows” if it’s going to be up for vote in the future.
Steggell said, “We are transparent…If you have something to say, give me a call; I’ve heard people say a lot of things tonight, but I haven’t heard my phone ring.”
Mayor Marshall Goodman got the final word, and thanked the residents for coming out and being engaged in their city. He encouraged them to continue to do so, and clarified that no one on the Council is suggesting that there aren’t qualified people in the city that could run. He said he regularly talks to many that are, but that they give excuses for not wanting to take the step, be it because they feel they are too busy, or have children, or don’t want to get involved in politics. He said he himself joined a city committee and then the Council not necessarily because he wanted to, but because someone encouraged him to and he saw the need.
In the end, he proposed that this matter be tabled indefinitely. That motion passed unanimously.
The La Palma City Council will next meet on September 17.