three terms of office as member of the City Council

“City Government Responsibility, Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act” 1
The proposed amendments to the City Charter and
Municipal Code read as follows:

“City Government Responsibility, Lobbying and
Ethics Reform Act”

[New language added to the Charter or the
Municipal Code is shown in boldface type; deleted
language is shown in strikeout type.]

Section 1. Subsection (c) of Section 470 of the
Charter of the City of Los Angeles is hereby
amended by adding a new subdivision (11) thereto
to read as follows: “No City official or candidate
for elected City office, or committee acting on
behalf of the candidate, shall solicit or accept
any contribution to his or her campaign for City
office, or to one of his or her controlled
committees, from any person required to be
registered by ordinance as a lobbyist or
lobbying firm registered to lobby the City office
for which the candidate is seeking election, or
the City office, department, bureau or agency of
the official. No person required to be registered
by ordinance as a lobbyist or lobbying firm shall
make any contribution to any City official or
candidate for his or her campaign for City office,
or to one of his or her controlled committees, if
the lobbyist or lobbying firm is required to be
registered by ordinance to lobby the City office
for which the candidate is seeking election, or
the City office, department, bureau or agency of
the official.”

Section 2. Subsection (d) of Section 501 of the
Charter of the City of Los Angeles is hereby
amended to read as follows:
“Qualifications. (1) No person shall be appointed to
a Charter created commission who is not a
registered voter of the City. This requirement shall
also apply to standing commissions created by
ordinance that are advisory to a department or
office.

This requirement does not apply to
commissioners who are elected or who serve ex
officio. (2) No person who is required by
ordinance to be registered as a lobbyist shall be
appointed to a commission whose members are
required to file financial disclosure statements
pursuant to the California Political Reform Act.”
Section 3. Section 206 of the Charter of the City of
Los Angeles is hereby amended to read as follows:
“No person may serve more than two terms of office
as Mayor. No person may serve more than two
terms of office as City Attorney. No person may
serve more than two terms of office as
Controller. No person may serve more than two
three terms of office as member of the City
Council. These limitations on the number of
terms of office shall apply only to terms of office
which begin on or after July 1, 1993. These
limitations on the number of terms of office shall not
apply to any unexpired term to which a person is
elected or appointed if the remainder of the term is
less than one-half of the full term of office.”

Section 4. Subsection (l) of Section 470 of the
Charter of the City of Los Angeles is hereby
amended to read as follows:
(l) Campaign Expenditures – Uncontrolled by
Candidate or Committee. Persons or organizations
not subject to the control of a candidate or
committee but who make independent expenditures
for or against a candidate or committee shall
indicate clearly on any material published, displayed
or broadcast that it was not authorized by a
candidate or a committee controlled by a candidate
comply with the applicable disclaimer
requirements established by ordinance.

Section 5. Subdivision (4) of subsection (A) to
Section 49.5.10 of the Municipal Code of the City of
Los Angeles is hereby amended to read as follows:
“No lobbyist or lobbying firm shall make, and no City
official shall accept, any gift from a lobbyist or
lobbying firm which is a restricted source as to that
official.

The prohibition of this subdivision shall not
apply to gifts of office or other hospitality, or other
gifts of nominal value, so long as the cumulative
value of such gifts from a single source does not
exceed $25 during any calendar year.

Section 6. Paragraph 19 of Section 48.02 of the
Municipal Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby
amended to read as follows:
“Lobbying firm’ means any entity, including an
individual lobbyist, which receives or becomes
entitled to receive $4,000 $1,000 or more in
monetary or in-kind compensation for engaging in
lobbying activities (either personally or through its
agents) during a calendar quarter any consecutive
three month period, for the purpose of attempting
to influence municipal legislation on behalf of any
other person, provided any partner, owner,
shareholder, officer or employee of the entity
“City Government Responsibility, Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act” 2
qualifies as a lobbyist. Compensation does not
include reimbursement of or payment for reasonable
travel expenses. An entity receives compensation
within the meaning of this definition whether or not
the compensation is received solely for activities
regulated by this article or is received for other
activities as well; however, only that portion of
compensation received for the lobbying activities
shall count toward the qualification threshold. An
entity ‘becomes entitled to receive compensation’
when the entity agrees to provide services regulated
by this article, or performs those services, whether
or not payment is contingent on the accomplishment
of the client’s purposes.”

Paragraph 20 of Section 48.02 of the Municipal
Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby amended
to read as follows:
“‘Lobbyist’ means any individual who receives or
becomes entitled to receive at least $4,000 in
monetary or in-kind compensation for is
compensated to spend 30 or more hours in any
consecutive three-month period engaging
engaged in lobbying activities which include at least
one direct communication with a City official or
employee, conducted either personally or through
agents, for the purpose of attempting to influence
municipal legislation on behalf of any other person,
during any calendar quarter.”

Section 7. The Municipal Code of the City of Los
Angeles is hereby amended by adding Section
49.5.18 to read as follows:
“All City Officials are required to participate in
an ethics training no less than once every two
years conducted by the City Ethics Commission,
in partnership with the Office of the City
Attorney. These training sessions shall be
structured to assure that each participant has
the knowledge to comply fully with all of the
relevant ethics laws governing their service to
the City of Los Angeles.”

Section 8. Subsection (D) of Section 49.5.11 of the
Municipal Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby
amended to read as follows:
“For one year two years after leaving City service,
no former elected City officer, member of the City
Ethics Commission or other former high level official
shall, for compensation, engage in direct
communication with any agency for the purpose of
attempting to influence any action or decision on
any matter pending before an agency on behalf of
any person other than an agency. This section
shall only apply to City officers and officials who
leave City service after the effective date of the
ordinance.”

Subsection (E) of Section 49.5.11 of the Municipal
Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby amended
to read as follows:
“For one year two years after leaving City service,
no former City official shall for compensation,
engage in direct communication with any agency in
which he or she served during the twelve month
period preceding his or her departure from City
service, for the purpose of attempting to influence
any action or decision on any matter pending before
that agency on behalf of any person other than an
agency.

For purposes of this subsection, the agency
of a City Council office employee means his or her
former Council office and the Council member of
that district. This section shall only apply to City
officers who leave City service after the effective
date of the ordinance.”

Section 9. Subsection (A) of Section 49.7.26 of the
Municipal Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Disclosure of Payments. Any person that makes or
incurs independent expenditures of $1,000 or more
in support of or in opposition to any City measure,
candidate for elective City office, or one or more
payments for member communications as defined
by this article, totaling $1,000 or more in support of
or in opposition to a candidate for elective City office
or City measure, shall notify the City Ethics
Commission within 24 hours by certified mail or fax
or e-mail each time one or more payments, which
meet this threshold, are made.

Subsection (B) of Section 49.7.26 of the Municipal
Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby amended
to read as follows:
“Contents of Notice. The notification shall consist of
a declaration specifying each candidate or measure
who was supported or opposed by the expenditure,
the amount spent to support or oppose each
candidate or measure, whether the candidate or
measure was supported or opposed, and that the
expenditure was not behested by the candidate or
candidates who benefitted from the
“City Government Responsibility, Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act” 3
expenditure. This declaration shall be made under
penalty of perjury and signed by the person or
officer and the treasurer of the group making the
expenditure. In addition, the date and amount of the
payment, a description of the type of communication
for which the payment was made or incurred, the
name and address of the person making the
payment, the name and address of the payee, and a
copy of the mailing or advertisement, or a copy of
the script or recording of the call, transmission, or
advertisement, shall also be provided to the
Commission.
The notification shall also include
disclosure of all contributions made by the
person to City candidates, their controlled
committees, committees primarily formed to
support or oppose City measures, and City
general purpose recipient committees in the
current calendar year. In the case of
independent expenditures and member
communications made by a City general
purpose recipient committee, the notification
shall also include disclosure of all contributions
received by the committee since the day after
the closing date of the committee’s last
campaign report.”

Subsection (D) of Section 49.7.26 of the Municipal
Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby amended
deleted:
“Additional Notification Required. Any person that
makes or incurs independent expenditures of more
than $10,000 in support of or opposition to a
candidate for elective City office, and any person
that makes or incurs one or more payments for
member communications as defined by this article,
totaling more than $10,000 in support of or
opposition to a candidate for elective City office
shall notify the City Ethics Commission in
accordance with the reporting schedule for the
primary or general election for which payments are
made, and no later than seven days prior to the
primary or general municipal election, with a closing
date of the previous Friday and covering activities
and payments through that date. For purposes of
this ordinance, the notification shall contain all
information required by Government Code Section
84211, and shall report all contributions received on
or after the date a candidate for City office begins to
fundraise, all expenditures and payments within the
meaning of California Government Code Section
85312 made or incurred on or after the date a
candidate for City office begins to fundraise, in
support of or opposition to candidates for elective
City office.”

Section 10. Section 49.7.26.3 of the Municipal
Code of the City of Los Angeles is hereby amended
to read as follows:
“DISCLOSURE ON VOTER COMMUNICATIONS
A. Any person or committee that makes an
independent expenditure of $1,000 or more for a
broadcast or mass mailing advertisement that
advocates the election or defeat of a candidate for
City elective office or any ballot measure must
disclose the name of any contributor or $25,000 or
more to the committee in the six months prior to the
date of that payment. This information shall be printed
clearly and legibly in no less than 12-point type and in
a contrasting color to the background on which it
appears in all materials published or displayed. If the
communication is broadcast or otherwise spoken, the
name of any contributor of $25,000 or more to the
committee in the six months prior to the date of that
payment shall be disclosed throughout the
advertisement. Payments of $25,000 or more that are
earmarked for any other candidate or ballot measure
outside of the City of Los Angeles need not be
disclosed.
B. In addition to the requirements set forth in
Charter Section 470(l), an advertisement, call, mailer,
or other communication paid for by a non-candidate
committee shall include the full name of the committee
in all materials published, transmitted, displayed, or
broadcast. If an acronym is used to specify any
committee names, the full names of any sponsoring
organization of the committee shall be printed on print
advertisements, spoken in broadcast advertisements,
or included in the script of a live or recorded telephone
call.

DISCLAIMERS ON CAMPAIGN
COMMUNICATIONS.
A. Any candidate or committee that pays for a
campaign communication shall print, display or
incorporate the following words anywhere
within the communication: “Paid for by”
immediately followed by the name, address and
city of that candidate or committee.

If an acronym is used to specify a committee name,
the full name of any sponsoring organization of
the committee shall be included in the campaign
communication disclaimer required by this
section.
B. (1) Campaign communications funded by an
“City Government Responsibility, Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act” 4
independent expenditure supporting or
opposing City candidates shall include the
phrase “Not authorized by a City candidate,”
and shall also include the name of any
contributor of $25,000 or more to a committee
funding the independent expenditure in the six
months prior to the date of that payment in the
phrase “Major Funding Provided By [Name of
Contributor(s)].”
(2) Campaign communications funded by an
independent expenditure supporting or
opposing City measures shall include the name
of any contributor or $25,000 or more to a
committee funding the independent expenditure
in the six months prior to the date of that
payment in the phrase “Major Funding Provided
By [Name of Contributor(s)].”
C. For printed campaign communications, the
requirements of subsections (A) and (B) shall be
satisfied by using a typeface that is easily
legible to an average reader or viewer, but is not
less than 12-point type in contrasting color to
the background on which it appears. For
campaign communications sent through the
mail, the requirements of subsections (A) and
(B) shall be satisfied by printing the required
statement on the outside of the mailer or
envelope.
D. For telephone call or radio advertisement
campaign communications, the requirements of
subsection (A) shall be satisfied by using the
words “on behalf of” immediately followed by
the name of the candidate or committee that
pays for the communication in a clearly audible
manner at the same speed and volume as the
rest of the telephone call or radio advertisement.

The requirements of subsection (B) shall be
satisfied by incorporating the required language
in a clearly audible manner at the same speed
and volume as the rest of the telephone call or
radio advertisement.
E. For purposes of this section, “campaign
communication” means any of the following
items:
1. More than 200 substantially similar pieces of
campaign literature distributed within a calendar
month, including but not limited to mailers,
flyers, pamphlets, door hangers, e-mails,
campaign buttons 10 inches in diameter or
larger, and bumper stickers 60 square inches or
larger.
2. posters, yard or street signs, billboards and
similar items;
3. television, cable, satellite and radio
broadcasts;
4. newspaper, magazine, internet website
banners and similar advertisements;
5. 200 or more substantially similar live or
recorded telephone calls made within a calendar
month.
F. For purposes of this section, “campaign
communication” does not include: pens,
pencils, clothing, mugs, skywriting or other
items on which the statement required by this
section can not be reasonably printed or
displayed in an easily legible typeface;
communications paid for by a newspaper, radio
station, television station or other recognized
news medium; and communications from an
organization to its members.”

Section 11. A new subdivision (3) is hereby added
to subsection (G) of section 48.09 of the Municipal
Code of the City of Los Angeles:
“Any person who submits a written response to
a request for proposals, request for bids,
statement of qualifications or other document
submitted for the purpose of entering into a
procurement, services, or construction contract
with the City that requires approval by the
Council and/or Mayor or is subject to Council
review pursuant to Charter section 245 shall
certify, on a form proscribed by the Ethics
Commission, that the person acknowledges and
agrees to comply with the disclosure
requirements and prohibitions for lobbying
entities established by ordinance. Each
department shall include a copy of Municipal
Code section 48.01 et seq. in each request for
proposals, bids or statements of qualifications
for a contract with the City that requires
approval by the Council and/or Mayor or is
subject to Council review pursuant to Charter
section 245.”

Section 12. The amendments to the Municipal
Code outlined in sections 5 through 12 of this Act
shall become operative only upon the approval of
the amendments to the Charter outlined in sections
1 through 4 by the voters of the City of Los Angeles,
and upon the acceptance and filing of the Charter
Amendments by the Secretary of State.


“City Government Responsibility, Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act” 5