What the Measure Would Do

Measure OO is intended to update the purpose and governance practices of the Public Ethics Commission (PEC) and to align its structure and staffing to better meet its core responsibilities. The measure would make changes as follows:

• Mission — Amend the city’s charter to include in the PEC’s listed purposes promotion of a more inclusive, representative, and accountable democracy in Oakland, consistent with Measure W, the Oakland Fair Elections Act (2022).
• Staffing — Increase minimum staffing by one investigator no earlier than July 2026 and retain language giving the Oakland City Council the right to limit staffing in times of extreme fiscal necessity.
• Commissioner qualifications — Adopt additional minimum qualifications for a person to be appointed to the PEC to promote independence and avoid the appearance that a commissioner is biased in favor of or against an elected official or political faction.
• Service restrictions — Prohibit commissioners from being compensated by or receiving gifts from an elected official during their tenure.
• Commissioner removal — Permit the City Council by a 6–8 vote or the PEC by a 5–7 vote to remove a commissioner for cause.
• Commissioner vacancy appointment — Allow the PEC to make a commissioner appointment if a vacancy has not been filled within 120 days by the appointing authority, thereby ensuring that extended vacancies do not impact PEC operations.
• Legal capacity — Provide that when the City Attorney has identified a conflict of interest, the PEC Executive Director shall have sole discretion to select outside counsel.
• Salary setting — Change the frequency with which the PEC adjusts the salaries of the City Attorney and City Auditor from annually to every two years, the schedule the PEC uses to set the City Council’s salary.
• Legislative proposals — Require that PEC legislative proposals be referred to the City Council for consideration within 180 days.
• Lobbyist gifts — Prohibit registered lobbyists from giving gifts with a cumulative value exceeding $50 during a calendar year to elected officials, candidates, and their immediate family.

The Backstory

Measure OO aims to update Oakland’s charter by increasing the minimum staff capacity of the Public Ethics Commission and, in doing so, clarify the commission’s purpose, processes, and procedures.

In the 10 years since voters adopted Measure CC, which set a minimum level of staffing for the commission, the commission’s workload has nearly doubled. In 2022–2023, PEC processed 75 new cases, up from 40 in 2014–2015. Its current enforcement staffing minimum of one enforcement chief and one ethics investigator is no longer sufficient to meet caseload demands. Measure OO would increase PEC’s minimum staff by one investigator.

In addition, Measure OO aims to reflect in the city’s charter a core commission responsibility established in 2022, when Oakland passed the Oakland Fair Elections Act. The act establishes public financing for city officials and Board of Education elections, promotes transparency in campaign contributions, and strengthens lobbying restrictions for former city officials and directors. The act expanded the mission of the PEC from watchdog to promoter of more inclusive, representative, and accountable democracy in Oakland through administration of the Democracy Dollars program.

In light of changes to the commission over the past 10 years, in 2023 the PEC established a committee to make recommendations to improve the PEC’s organizational structure and procedures and to update the city’s charter accordingly. PEC staff presented their recommendations to the City Council in May 2024. Some recommendations, including shifting responsibility for setting the mayor’s salary from the City Council to the commission and allowing the commission to put items on the ballot without prior approval by the City Council, were rejected by the City Council and removed from Measure OO.

One concern raised by Measure OO is the prospect of increasing the PEC’s minimum staffing level when Oakland is running a budget deficit. However, the guarantee of a minimum enforcement staff is essential for the commission’s proper functioning and is considered a best practice.

Measure OO was placed on the ballot by the City Council. It needs a simple majority (50% plus one vote) to pass.

Equity Impacts

SPUR identified no significant, direct equity impacts for this measure. However, SPUR believes that good government initiatives that work to balance all voices and that are not subject to the undue influence of any group or political power can lead to more equitable policies and outcomes.

Pros

• Aligning the commission’s staffing with its structure and purpose would better accomplish the commission’s core responsibilities.
• Updating the mission of the commission would more clearly clarify its purpose.
• Updating qualifications of commissioners would avoid the appearance that a commissioner is biased in favor of or against an elected official or political faction.
• Ensuring that commission seats don’t remain vacant for too long would ensure that PEC’s work is accomplished in a timely manner.

Cons

• The measure does little to strengthen the independence and oversight capacities of the commission.