It’s clear to us that the San Juan Bautista City Council
violated the spirit of the Brown Act with its decision to make a
trip to Seattle to discuss a federal grant with the Economic
Development Administration. And, we will be interested to see
whether District Attorney John Sarsfield concludes that they
violated the actual law.
It’s clear to us that the San Juan Bautista City Council violated the spirit of the Brown Act with its decision to make a trip to Seattle to discuss a federal grant with the Economic Development Administration. And, we will be interested to see whether District Attorney John Sarsfield concludes that they violated the actual law.
Despite protests to the contrary, it’s clear that the Council went beyond the pale with its decision to send a delegation to Seattle. Mayor Dan Reed and Council members Priscilla Hill and Arturo Medina – a quorum of the council – all knew about the trip and two went on it without an agendized vote. That decision violates the rules and the spirit of the Brown Act, which requires government officials to conduct their business in public.
The official line is that no violation occurred because Medina was included in the trip “not in the interest of developing a ‘collective concurrence,’ but rather as a means to provide for a suitable replacement council member for the delegation,” after Reed decided not to go because of health concerns. But what doesn’t pass the smell test is after the matter became public, the council approved the trip retroactively, thus “curing” any violation to avoid trouble with the District Attorney’s Office, which was looking into the matter after Councilman Chuck Geiger voiced his concerns about the secret trip.
As longtime San Juan political activist Rebecca McGovern said, “I don’t understand this ‘curing’ of the Brown Act. It’s like if you shoot someone and then say sorry, you didn’t mean to? You violated the Brown Act. You can’t just cure it.”
The handling of this grant casts doubt on the ability of the city to complete the multi-million dollar overhaul of the city’s water collection system without serious fumbles. The council should take this incident as a wakeup call that they and their staff need to handle this $3.8 million grant in a much more professional and open fashion if they are going to succeed in fixing the most important problem facing the city.
That is a particular concern now that it looks certain that San Juan’s leaders will insist on overhauling the water system without the input and expertise of the San Benito County Water District.
This is the most significant project before the city of San Juan, and our faith is shaken in their ability to do it in a forthright and effective fashion.
