The Los Angeles City Council has requested a comprehensive report on potential revisions to the city’s ethics and conflict of interest laws, with the aim of requiring lobbyists to disclose any connections they have with council members or their staff. Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky initiated this motion in response to a possible breach of ethics involving her predecessor’s planning and land use deputy, who helped secure a zoning designation for the controversial Bulgari Hotel in Benedict Canyon.
According to records from the Ethics Commission, Stacey Brenner received over $174,000 for lobbying efforts to obtain a General Plan amendment for the hotel project, while her husband Shawn Bayliss served as the planning and land use deputy for then-Councilman Paul Koretz. This situation raised concerns as it appears that neither the City Ethics Office nor the City Attorney’s Office were consulted about this obvious conflict of interest, or the potential mitigation strategies.
Councilwoman Yaroslavsky expressed her frustration, stating that there is “absolutely no evidence” of any consultation regarding this matter. She also highlighted the fact that it was Brenner herself who submitted and signed the General Plan amendment application. Additionally, developer Gary Safady spent nearly $3 million on lobbying for the desired amendment.
The motion put forward by Yaroslavsky received unanimous support from the council, passing with a 12-to-0 vote. However, council members Monica Rodriguez and Curren Price were absent during the vote.
In an effort to prevent conflicts of interest from arising in the future, the motion directs various departments and agencies within the city to provide a report on the feasibility of implementing such measures. This includes the chief legislative analyst, the city’s Ethics Department, and the City Attorney’s Office.
Specifically, the motion requests the establishment of laws that mandate lobbyists to disclose any familial relationships they have with council members or their staff, such as being a spouse, registered domestic partner, parent, or child. Furthermore, these lobbyists would be required to file a Form 700, which involves disclosing their economic interests in accordance with the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission.
The motion also seeks the enactment of legislation that prohibits registered lobbyists who are close relatives from lobbying the respective council office on any proposed or pending land use development projects within the council member’s district. Additionally, it would disallow any communication between council members or their staff and a registered lobbyist who is a close relative of either the council member or their office staff.
Yaroslavsky’s motion points out that under the current interpretation of the city’s ethics and conflict of interest laws, the staff of a council member are only advised to create a “firewall” within the council office when the spouse of a staff member is a registered lobbyist seeking to influence their own spouse’s office. This guidance is provided only if the staff person actively seeks advice from the Ethics Commission or the City Attorney’s Office. The motion argues that this scenario, at the very least, creates an appearance of conflict of interest if not an outright conflict. Therefore, it emphasizes the need to address this unregulated area of the law as the City Council considers changes to the existing legislation.
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