Approved Minutes — original pdf

Approved Minutes

ETHICS REVIEW COMMISSION REGULAR CALLED MEETING MINUTES JUNE 22, 2022 The Ethics Review Commission convened in a Regular Called meeting on June 22, 2022, at Austin City Hall, Room 1101, 301 W 2nd Street in Austin, Texas and via Videoconference. Vice-Chair Kahle called the Ethics Review Commission Meeting to order at 6:06 p.m. Commissioners in Attendance: Vice-Chair Mary Kahle, Secretary Nguyen Stanton, and Commissioners: Betsy Greenberg, Donna Beth McCormick, and Mikki Teneyuca were present at City Hall. (Secretary Stanton joined the meeting near the beginning of discussion of item 1(c ). Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Chair Luis Soberon, and Commissioners: Debra Danburg, Raafia Lari, and Sydney Williams attended via videoconference. Commissioners Absent: Commissioner Michael Lovins. Vacancy: Mayor’s nominee. City Staff in Attendance: Lizette Benitez, Staff Liaison; Lynn Carter, Commission Executive Liaison & Assistant City Attorney. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL No one registered to speak during Public Communication. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 1. Potential amendments to the financial disclosure provisions of City Code Chapter 2-7 (Ethics and Financial Disclosure). The motion to approve recommended language, amending Subsection 13 of Section 2-7-72 replacing “Equitable or Legal Ownership” with “Equitable, Beneficial or Legal Ownership”; amending Subsection E of Section 2-7-72 of the City Code, Subsection 8 adding “A substantial interest including whether as legal, equitable, or beneficial interest” and replacing “State Address” with “Street Address”; amending Section 9 of Section 2-7-72, to include a substantial interest in place of 5% interest of the filer, further clarifying that the itemized property lists should include a description to the property, was approved on Commissioner Greenberg’s motion. Commissioner Teneyuca seconded on an 8-0 vote. Voting in favor: Chair 1  Soberon, Vice-Chair Kahle, and Commissioners: Danburg, Greenberg, Lari, McCormick, Teneyuca and Williams. Secretary Stanton and Commissioner Lovins were absent. 2. City Council Candidate Forum Planning. Carol Eckelkamp, League of Women Voters Austin Area, spoke on the candidate forum agenda item. Secretary Stanton arrived during discussion of agenda item. The motion to include Vietnamese and International Mandarin Chinese in the Campaign Candidate Forums and to treat them on the same level as Spanish, was approved on Commissioner Greenberg’s motion. Secretary Stanton seconded on a 9-0 vote. Voting in favor: Chair Soberon, Vice-Chair Kahle, Secretary Stanton, and Commissioners: Danburg, Greenberg, McCormick, Lari, Teneyuca and Williams. Commissioner Lovins was absent. 3. Statement and/or Video of What the Commission Does & How the Public can use the Commission and Statement on Equity, Access, and the Need for Reform by the Working Group on Race, Identity and Equity. Potential amendments to the financial disclosure provisions of City Code Chapter 2-7 (Ethics and Financial Disclosure). Vice-Chair Kahle advised the Commission that the media piece was not ready. The agenda item was postponed until the next Regular Commission meeting. DISCUSSION ITEMS 4. Candidate and Officeholder Campaign Finance Brochure Briefing on anticipated changes to campaign contribution limits based on recent increases in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. Lynn Carter, Commissioner Executive Liaison & Assistant City Attorney, briefed the Commission. No action was taken on this agenda item. 5. Review and Evaluation of the dollar limits established in Chapter 2-2 (Campaign Finance) and consider making recommendations to the City Council as to those limits.. No action was taken from the Commission on agenda item. This item was struck off to be dropped from the future agenda items. 6. Content of the agenda for future meetings, including description of Commission’s jurisdiction and/or function. No action was taken from the Commission on agenda item. This item was struck off to be dropped from the future agenda items. STAFF BRIEFINGS 7. Ethics Code Overview of Section 2-7-62 (Standards of Conduct) and conflict of interest provisions,2-7-63, 2-7-64, and 2-7-65, and Section 2-7-2 (Definitions). 2  The presentation was made by Lynn Carter, Commission Executive Liaison & Assistant City Attorney, Law Department. WORKING GROUP RECOMMENDATIONS 8. Report of recommendations by the Working Group on Sanctions, Procedures, and Other Issues (Chair Soberon, Secretary Stanton and Commissioners Greenberg and Teneyuca). No action was taken on agenda item, as starting March 2023 the new Working Group should be started as terms for many Commissioners are ending in February 2023. 9. Report of recommendations by the Working Group on Race, Identity, and Equity (Chair Soberon, Vice-Chair Kahle and Commissioner Lari). No action was taken on agenda item. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 10. Approve the minutes of the Ethics Review Commission Regular Meeting on May 25, 2022. The minutes from the meeting of May 25, 2022 were not ready and were postponed on June 22, 2022. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 11. Lynn Carter, Executive Commission Liaison & Assistant City Attorney, announced that the City Clerk’s Office has trainings with the Liaisons for consistency and transparency purposes and is wanting to do away with standing items on an agenda. 12. Secretary Stanton announced that she’d like to discuss the topic of the Calendar of Commission Tasks as an agenda item. Vice-Chair Kahle co-sponsored Secretary Stanton’s future agenda item. 13. Vice-Chair Kahle announced that Commissioner Greenberg would like to discuss the topic of Publishing Disclosures, to include publishing the financial disclosures filed by council members. Secretary Stanton and Commissioner Teneyuca co-sponsored Commissioner Greenberg’s future agenda item. 14. Lynn Carter, Executive Commission Liaison & Assistant City Attorney, recommended that the Commission add as a future agenda item to discuss, the threshold for Lobbyist regulations of City Code Section 4-8-3 or Chapter 4-8 addressing regulations for City Lobbyists. ADJOURNMENT Vice-Chair Kahle adjourned the meeting at 8:24 p.m. without objection. 3 The minutes were approved at the August 24, 2022 Regular Commission meeting on Secretary Stanton’s motion, Chair Soberon seconded on a 10-0 vote. 4