Union Aims for Major Overhaul of Chula Vista’s Government

A prominent San Diego County labor union is preparing a November ballot measure that would dramatically reshape the city of Chula Vista’s government.

The measure, which union representatives say they plan to present to the City Council next week, would give elected city officials, including the current mayor, city councilmembers and the city attorney, an additional term in office while also potentially raising elected officials’ salaries by creating an independently appointed commission to determine officials’ annual compensation.

Currently, Chula Vista’s four city councilmembers serve part-time and are limited to two four-year terms in office. The mayor and city attorney serve full-time but also are limited to two terms.

The ballot measure would amend the city charter to give elected officials up to three terms in office, 12 years in total, and increase councilmembers’ responsibilities by creating several permanent City Council committees to address key city issues.

If approved by voters in November, the measure also would create a beefed up city ethics commission, shift some governmental work from appointed citizen commissions to the City Council, formalize lobbying rules and enable an appointed arbitrator to resolve stalled contract negotiations with public safety unions.

The goal, union representatives said, is to increase transparency and accountability in Chula Vista’s elected government and enable elected leaders to shepherd complex projects, such as housing developments, which often take longer than eight years to complete.

“As Chula Vista continues to grow, we believe it is important that the city’s governing charter evolve to meet the needs and expectations of today’s residents,” said Valentine Macedo, business manager of the laborers union local, known as LIUNA 89. The union represents construction workers and other laborers who often work on city development projects.

“We look forward to sharing the full proposal with the public and engaging in a community conversation about how these reforms can strengthen public trust, improve accountability at City Hall and help prepare Chula Vista’s government for the future,” Macedo said.

The laborers’ ballot measure comes on the heels of a similarly-spirited measure recently placed on the November ballot by majority Democrats on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

That initiative gives supervisors an additional term in office and includes provisions that would empower supervisors to be more directly involved in work currently performed by the county’s unelected bureaucrats.

Like the planned measure in Chula Vista, the county measure is backed by prominent organized labor groups, including the union representing county employees.

At least two unions representing city of Chula Vista employees, the Chula Vista Police Officers Association and the Chula Vista Firefighters Association, have pledged to support the laborers’ ballot measure.

David Martinez, president of the police union, said his members support the measure because extending councilmembers’ terms in office could create greater stability in city government and ensure that councilmembers favorable to union interests stay in office longer.

Of course, said Martinez, longer term limits cut both ways. “If it’s a bad Council, that doesn’t benefit us,” he said.

Martinez said police officers also like the prospect of adding binding arbitration to the city’s contract negotiation process for public safety unions.

In instances when city officials and union representatives reach an impasse, the added provision would force both sides to enter an arbitration process overseen by one or more appointed arbitrators. The arbitrator would have the power to force both sides to agree to a compromise.

Martinez said relations between the city and police have been amicable in recent years and officers currently don’t see the need for binding arbitration. But he said that could change “in the future if things change in city leadership and it gets hostile.”

“It’s a way for the process to be fair,” Martinez said.

Critics of the county’s ballot measure have called it a thinly disguised attempt to boost organized labor’s influence over county government. The Chula Vista measure similarly would empower elected leaders whose positions depend on winning elections with the help of financial backers, including deep-pocketed labor unions and other interest groups.

LIUNA 89, the labor union drafting the Chula Vista measure, has played a major role in recent city elections. A union representative said the union spent roughly $750,000 promoting candidates and issues in last week’s primary election alone, with much of that money directed toward races for Chula Vista mayor and City Council.

The union expects to spend as much or more in the November general election.

At least one City Councilmember, Jose Preciado of District 2, said he’s not sold yet on the LIUNA measure and wants to see the fine print before deciding whether to place it on the November ballot.

Preciado said he likes the idea of bolstering the city’s ethics commission with subpoena power and stiffening rules around lobbying.

But he said he’s undecided about the value of extending term limits and feels councilmembers’ current workloads are manageable and don’t need to change.

“I’m not finished with my career and I’m not interested in a full-time Council job,” said Preciado, who works as an administrator at San Diego State University. “I don’t think we’re ready for that kind of prime time. [Having] part-time councilpeople with one full-time aide and maybe one legislative committee is manageable.”

Currently, Chula Vista’s part-time city councilmembers earn roughly $65,000 per year. The mayor earns close to $159,000 per year. Councilmembers also are entitled to hire one full-time aide and seek reimbursement for city-related travel and other costs.

Apart from Preciado, other city councilmembers, including Mayor John McCann, either declined to comment on the measure or did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to California election law, city councils must vote to place ballot initiatives before voters at least 88 days before the next scheduled election.

Macedo said union representatives plan to present a draft of the union’s ballot measure at next week’s City Council meeting with the aim of getting the measure placed on this year’s Nov. 3 general election ballot.