A motion (pdf) coming before the City Council Planning & Land Use (PLUM) Committee this afternoon could mean complete structural and operational reorganization for the Los Angeles Bicycle Advisory Committee (BAC), a group which serves at the pleasure of the Mayor and City Council in an advisory capacity on bicycling in the City of Los Angeles.

The BAC, comprised of 4 Mayoral appointees and 15 Council appointees, one for each District, has been charged with ineffectiveness by critics who point to the Committee’s weak attendance record and its lack of action as evidence of its irrelevancy.

During ’07, the BAC took action 10 times. 6 of those actions were to approve minutes and 4 times the Committee voted to send a letter although there is no evidence that any letters were ever sent.

During that same period of time the Committee members averaged 64.9% attendance, almost 2 out of 3 meetings!

Meanwhile, local cyclists have attended regularly, organizing “Storm the Bastille!” rides over the last 14 months and lobbying the Committee to act on issues that affect the cycling community. Through it all, cyclists have urged the Committee to serve as “Watchdogs, not Lapdogs!”

The BAC was established in 1973 by Mayor Tom Bradley and, according to the Charter, its purpose is "to act in an advisory capacity to the Mayor, City Council Members, and the various agencies of the government of the City of Los Angeles in the encouragement and facilitation of the use of the bicycle as regular means of transportation and recreation."

Members of the committee are expected to regularly communicate in writing with their respective council member and staff as well as the Mayor’s office and staff.

Through it all, the LADOT staff who “support” the BAC have come under attack for violating the Brown Act, a State Law that guarantees the public the right to participate and that requires bodies such as the BAC to conduct its business openly and transparently.

The Brown Act has been around for more than 50 years and from the City Council to the Neighborhood Council, the public is guaranteed the right to an agenda with a bit of information on it, timely notice of meetings (72 hrs) and the right to address agenda items as they come up.

These Brown Act guarantees have been a regular item of contention over the past 14 months and include the BAC’s inability to hold a meeting without requiring the public to show identification in order to attend.

As that issue is being resolved, the BAC is now holding “serial meetings” using email exchanges among members (complete with DO NOT FORWARD in the subject) in order to discuss committee business, all the while excluding the public.

Join the City Council’s PLUM Committee in celebrating participatory Democracy and celebrate Bike Week, part of Bike Month, part of Bike Life and fight for a representative Bicycle Advisory Committee.

“See you on the Streets!”