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Anaheim Lays Out Reform Plans After Corruption Probe
Former Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu at the Orange County Black History Parade in February 2022: He would resign a few months later amid a federal investigation into allegations of influence peddling and pay-to-play politics in the city.
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Topline:
Anaheim City Council could adopt a three-month schedule for deciding on transparency reforms after corruption probes revealed widespread examples of influence peddling and pay-to-play politics in the city. The council will discuss the reform schedule at their regular meeting on Tuesday.
What are the proposed reforms? The reforms are divided into eight categories, including:
- Stronger rules on disclosing lobbying activity.
- Making sure government business doesn't take place on personal laptops and cell phones.
- Hiring an ethics officer.
- Tightening campaign finance rules, including putting limitations on independent expenditures and political action committees.
You can read the full list of proposed reforms and proposed schedule for discussing them here.
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What's prompting the reforms? Last year, the FBI released documents in a corruption investigation into former Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu and several other major political players. Sidhu was accused of soliciting a $1 million campaign contribution from Angels baseball leaders in exchange for passing them confidential information while negotiating the sale of Angel Stadium.
Then, earlier this month, the city released results of an independent corruption investigation that detailed numerous potential ethical and criminal violations among former and current city leaders and staff.
Sidhu's guilty plea: Sidhu pleaded guilty on Aug. 16 to obstruction of justice, wire fraud and making false statements to federal agencies. The plea also raised new ethical and legal questions surrounding a planned "mock city council meeting" where current and former city officials and staff would practice defending a controversial Angel stadium deal. Read the guilty plea here.
What's next? Anaheim City Council meets Tuesday at 5 p.m. Also, the nonprofit Orange County Communities for Responsible Development is sponsoring a community forum to discuss corruption in Anaheim on Aug. 31 from 6-8 p.m. at the Ponderosa Family Resource Center.
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