San Diego rejects proposal to limit corporate, labor union money in city elections with public financing

An effort to limit corporate and union money in San Diego’s municipal elections suffered a setback recently when a key committee rejected a November ballot measure proposing a public financing program.

The measure, if placed on a ballot and approved by voters, would provide candidates with several thousand taxpayer dollars so they have the opportunity to finance their campaigns without collecting private donations.

The City Council’s Rules Committee rejected the measure on April 18, out of concern that it would not apply to the mayor or city attorney, and because supporters propose that the city’s Ethics Commission oversee the program.

“I don’t think the inconsistency between city offices is appropriate,” Council President Sean Elo-Rivera said.

Another concern raised was that the coalition supporting the measure does not include several groups with a long history of supporting local voter rights and voter outreach efforts.

The coalition, which is called Clean Elections San Diego and includes several local Democratic clubs, said it excluded the mayor and city attorney from the measure aimed at reducing the cost to taxpayers.

When the City Council narrowly rejected a similar proposal from the same group in 2020, council members said the roughly $6 million cost to taxpayers was a major concern.

The cost to taxpayers would drop to about $3 million if the measure were limited to municipal elections, which generally require less money because council members are elected by small geographic districts rather than the entire city. like the mayor and the city attorney.

Councilman Raul Campillo, the only member of the rules committee to express support, praised the phased approach.

“I wholeheartedly support public funding and see some wisdom in how it has been reduced compared to previous versions,” he said. “It would be a good test, but it would also save us money.”

A separate group called Engage San Diego announced plans to soon offer a different version of public election financing called Democracy Dollars, where all voters are mailed campaign vouchers that they can give to candidates.

Supporters of Democracy Dollars say it increased voter turnout in Seattle, the first city to use it. In 2022, Oakland voters approved a Democracy Dollars program that takes effect with the 2026 election cycle.

Engage San Diego is a coalition of organizations including the local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, Mid-City Community Advocacy Network, Partnership for New Americans and Alliance San Diego.

Members of Clean Elections San Diego said public funding would diminish the impact of special interests and help ordinary citizens run for office.

“The objective is to broaden and deepen citizen participation, to broaden and deepen democracy and to provide the opportunity for those who want to run for office and are known in their communities but who have not simply don’t – or can’t have – that kind of participation. resources they need through traditional methods of financing,” said the group’s leader, Mark Linsky.

Derek Casady, president of the La Jolla Democratic Club, said ties to private donors should not be a prerequisite for running for office.

“It would give people who have worked hard in the community a chance to come forward,” he said. “Some people just don’t want to raise private funds. They are not interested, or they are not connected to private donors.

Under the proposal, the only way for candidates to receive public funding would be to agree not to raise any other large donations. Candidates who refused to participate could still collect significant donations

To receive the public funds, city council candidates would have to collect at least 300 qualifying contributions of $5 each from registered voters in the district. Qualified candidates would receive about $120,000 for the primary and about $240,000 for the general election.