May 11, 2008

Freebies long gone year after council adopts no-gift policy

City officials turn down tickets, lunches, other presents

By Kristina Peterson / Daily News Staff Writer

In the first full year since Palo Alto City Council members banned themselves from receiving gifts, the freebies have officially dried up.

Statements of economic interest filed this spring show nary a free lunch, Stanford football game ticket or anything else that could be construed as a perk. California requires elected officials, appointed officers and certain public employees annually to fill out the paperwork, otherwise known as Form 700s, which disclose assets, investments, income and gifts.

"I definitely did turn down gifts," said Council Member Yoriko Kishimoto, chairwoman of the council's Policy and Services Committee.

At times, would-be gift givers seemed "a little bit taken aback," but ultimately understood the ethical principles involved, she said.

Navigating through welcoming ceremonies with international visitors who often bring gifts sometimes got sticky, said Kishimoto, who served as mayor last year. She often had to depend on symbolic gestures, such as handing out city pins, to smooth out the exchanges.

Formerly, the council observed the Fair Political Practices Commission guidelines, which require elected officials to report all gifts valued over $50 and abstain from voting on any matter in which the member has received a gift exceeding $390. The council adopted the no-gift policy to prevent the perception that freebies lead to compromised decision-making.

Council Member John Barton said the new rule had little impact on his decisions to go to events or meet with residents this year.

Even before the policy, "I tended to pay for things," he said.

Barton did open his wallet for one new item - Stanford football tickets.

"I was one of those people who occasionally did the football tickets at Stanford. Last year, I paid for my tickets," he said.

Falling under a looser policy, several city officials and board members did accept small gifts and the occasional ticket or two, according to their statements of economic interest.

Deputy City Attorney Amy Bartell noted she accepted basketball tickets worth $100, City Clerk Donna Grider recorded three $45 lunches while at meetings of the League of California Cities Employee Relations Committee, and departing City Auditor Sharon Erickson accepted gift certificates totaling $300 and two $15 lunches co-workers gave her at farewell parties.

Among city commissions and boards, only a handful of members had anything to declare.

Planning Commissioner Arthur Keller and his wife accepted a $100 dinner from Ben Abram of the Westly Group, while Historic Resources Board Member Beth Bunnenberg accepted $236 worth of tickets to the San Francisco Ballet and Opera.

Though he didn't receive any gifts, City Manager Frank Benest padded his city salary last year with a string of brief consulting jobs in which he trained employees of other cities.

Benest received somewhere between $1,001 and $10,000 in "trainer fees" from each of six organizations, including the Texas City Management Association, the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators and the cities of San Luis Obispo and Covina, as well as between $500 and $1,000 from two other groups for the same services.

The California Redevelopment Association also reimbursed Benest a total of $530 for airfare, taxi and airport parking.

Kishimoto, whose travel to mayors' conferences in Utah and London was also reimbursed, said such payments are accepted so the city does not have to pick up the tab.



E-mail Kristina Peterson at kpeterson@dailynewsgroup.com.