Alameda County
Lee Releases Strong Statement on Integrity and Ethics in Government
In a statement released recently, Lee said she fully supports current efforts by the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, ACLU and Oakland Ethics Commissioners to look at how to strengthen accountability and trust in government. She said she supports a review of the city charter to clarify lines of accountability between the city administrator and elected mayor, so the City of Oakland uses every tax dollar wisely to deliver essential services in the most efficient ways.
By Post Staff
The people of Oakland expect and deserve a transparent, accountable government that serves the people, not special interests, according to Oakland mayoral candidate Barbara Lee, who pledges to bring the same “energy, ideas, and dedication” to ethics in City Hall that she had in Congress.
“There should be no tolerance whatsoever for secret pay-to-play schemes that erode the public trust. Oaklanders expect and deserve leaders who have only one agenda—honest, accountable leadership that serves the people of Oakland,” she said.
In a statement released recently, Lee said she fully supports current efforts by the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, ACLU, and Oakland Ethics Commissioners to look at how to strengthen accountability and trust in government.
She said she supports a review of the city charter to clarify lines of accountability between the city administrator and elected mayor, so the City of Oakland uses every tax dollar wisely to deliver essential services in the most efficient ways.
In addition, Lee said, the current prohibition on gifts to elected officials is too loosely worded and should be strengthened to ensure no one is prone to influence. There is also no user-friendly portal where any member of the public can view contract scopes and amounts, which should be available online for public review.
She also supports the city pursuing available legal remedies to secure financial relief or judgments against persons or entities convicted of defrauding the City or using illegal means to profit on the backs of Oakland taxpayers.
Though Oakland’s governmental structure is complex, leadership is what matters, she said. The city needs reforms to ensure accountability and transparency and needs leadership.
Lee said she is proud of her strong track record on ethics and integrity.
As a congresswoman, she was a leader in one of the most sweeping political ethics reforms, which banned gifts from lobbyists and prohibited House members from traveling on private planes, among other vital reforms. That reform law ended pay-to-play schemes that had run rampant in Washington, D.C.
Congresswoman Lee also played a key role in the comprehensive ethics reform package in 2007, which required lawmakers to disclose how much campaign cash lobbyists raise on their behalf and what earmarks they have requested.
Starting from her very first day in Congress, she supported campaign finance reform to get big money out of politics, including limiting the size of campaign donations.
She spearheaded efforts to overturn the Citizens United decision, which opened the floodgate to unlimited spending by billionaires to buy elections.
She supported public campaign financing to combat the influence of big money in politics, including the Government By the People Act.
