Department of Neighborhood Empowerment
Newsletter

February 2, 2004

** Notice due to a system error we were not able to send this out to all of the ELECTED board members. Presidents, please forward this on to your Board. A follow-up email will be sent to the additional board member as soon as our system in restored. I apologize for any inconvenience. **

CONFLICT OF INTEREST/FORM 700/FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

On Tuesday, February 3, 2004 at 2 p.m., the Education and Neighborhoods Committee will have before it an opportunity to approve our department’s amended conflict of interest code. If approved by the full City Council, Neighborhood Council board members who make decisions involving public funds (the $50,000) will have to file the Form 700 financial disclosure forms within 30 days. For quite some time, the Ethics Commission staff and our staff have been teaching Neighborhood Council leaders how to prepare for this. So, at this time, there is no requirement that the forms be filed, and no deadline for doing so.

At least one City Council member has questioned the need for Neighborhood Council leaders to file the forms, and it’s reasonable to expect that this will be part of the discussion tomorrow.

OFFICE SPACE PLAN

The Office Space Procedure plan was approved by the City Council on December 2. An ordinance is being drafted, and it needs the City Council's approval to finalize the new process which will shorten the amount of time that it will take Neighborhood Councils to lease or occupy office space from a best-case 4-6 months to 30-45 days. If I knew that this ordinance was close to being finalized, I wouldn’t tell you for fear of building up false expectations. So I won’t say anything.

CONGRESS OF NEIGHBORHOODS – SAVE THE DATE! APRIL 17.

The next Congress of Neighborhoods will be on April 17 at the Convention Center. It will at least be in the morning. How long it will last and what will be presented will be developed, as it always is, with the guidance of the Neighborhood Councils. Shortly, we will be holding some additional “focus” group meeting to discuss the event with you. But feel free to make your suggestions now.

With the launch of the Empowerment Academy (see next item), the event doesn’t have to be dominated by classroom instruction. It would be possible to put more of the focus on discussions and planning sessions among the Neighborhood Council leaders themselves. At the last Congress, these were the best-attended events.

EMPOWERMENT ACADEMY

By now, you must know about the Empowerment Academy. It was launched at the last Congress, and recently the schedule of classes for the first quarter, and an opportunity to register for them online, is available through your Project Coordinator, or on our home page at www.lacityneighborhoods.com. Click on Training.

“NEIGHBORHOOD CAFÉ” TAKING SHAPE

Channel 35, the city's cable station has offered to produce nine half-hour shows about the Neighborhood Council system. We continue to solicit your program ideas. Due to budgetary constraints, nearly everything will have to take place inside the Channel 35 studio. Expect the set to look like a café or coffee shop.

Bob Jimenez, formerly a reporter and anchor for Channel 2, and formerly a news anchor for KFWB, will be the host. The audience we’re aiming at will be all of the Channel 35 viewers, not just active Neighborhood Council members. The goal will be to inspire people to get involved in their Neighborhood Council. Any ideas for content?

PUTTING NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL MINUTES ON THE ENS

Earlier, we told Neighborhood Council that they could make their agendas available to the public by subscription through the Early Notification System just like the City Council agendas.

Jason Lyon of the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council had a great idea that we’re now implementing. Jason wanted there to be a way that Neighborhood Councils could also make their minutes available through the ENS subscription system. The answer was simple. In addition to giving us your agendas to be loaded into the system, give us your minutes also if you wish. Anyone who subscribes to receive your agendas will also get the minutes sent to them. Anyone who just wants minutes, will also get the agendas.

Additionally, there will be recommendation from me on the February 10 meeting of the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners which recommends that if a Neighborhood Council decides to let us post their agendas on the ENS system, they would be able to eliminate one of their five required physical posting locations.

ELECTION PROCEDURES

The Election Procedures Working Group continues to meet every other week. The next meeting is February 4 at 4 p.m. on the 10th Floor of City Hall. It is comprised mainly of Neighborhood Council leaders. The latest versions of their work is always posted on our home page. When they get closer to the end, they will have to decide which things to propose as citywide rules that would apply to all Neighborhood Councils when holding elections. Their recommendations will then go to the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners.

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Greg Nelson

866 / LA HELPS
213 / 485-1360
213 / 485-4608 fax
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