By Matt Neznanski
Gazette-Times reporter | Posted: Tuesday, April 28, 2009 12:00 am
Posting urban renewal info could be seen as advocacy, city fears
If you've got questions about Measure 02-68, a proposed urban renewal district in downtown Corvallis heading to voters this weekend, don't look to the city's online archives for information.
In February, the city removed from its Web site all of the online record of discussions about the measure to prevent being charged with trying to influence voters to support the measure.
But the Corvallis League of Women Voters wants the information returned.
"Citizens of Corvallis should be able to find out not only how their publicly elected representatives voted on issues, but also how they arrived at those decisions," wrote Annette Mills, the group's president, in a letter to state election officials. "For the first time, such public documents giving this information have been withdrawn and are no longer accessible from the Web site. The League considers this a precedent-setting action by the City."
The decision to remove information from the Web site stems from the June 2007 decision by the state Elections Division to fine three city employees a total of $425 for violating elections laws by using taxpayer time and money to advocate for the unsuccessful cell-phone franchise tax.
State elections officials contended that the city violated election laws when officials didn't withdraw information - including City Council and advisory committee minutes - from its Web site and when it mentioned the tax in a citywide newsletter after the matter was referred to the ballot.
One 2007 violation that the state elections officials noted was the city's statement that the City Council "voted unanimously" to support the cell phone franchise tax. Although that was factually correct, state elections officials noted it would have been sufficient to state that the vote was 9-0 rather than stating the Council "voted unanimously." That sounded too much like advocacy.
Such interpretations have made city officials cautious, Ward 9 Councilor Hal Brauner said.
"We're not trying to hide anything, but it's a stupid regulation that we have to abide by because it's putting our staff personally liable," Brauner said.
A downtown Corvallis urban renewal zone as proposed would stretch from Fillmore Avenue to Crystal Lake Drive, and from Sixth Street to the Willamette River.
Urban renewal creates money for public projects through a system called tax-incremental financing. The system directs money to fund improvements with the hope of encouraging private investment within a particular area.
Once an urban renewal zone is created, payments to taxing jurisdictions such as schools, the city and the county are frozen. Any increase in property taxes within the zone is set aside for renewal programs.
City Manager Jon Nelson, who paid the $425 in fines personally for himself and staff members in 2006, said election officials aren't being clear about how they might respond in case of a citizen complaint.
"I'm concerned about city employees getting fines because the state elections division is being inconsistent with its own policy," he said.
State election officials said the city could return information to the Web site so long as it wasn't collected on a page for easy viewing and defended their work in a recent letter to Nelson.
" … Our legal advice on this matter is consistent with past interpretations … and is not, as you have claimed, a 'moving target,'" wrote John Lindback, Elections Division director.
For now, however, Council and committee minutes are provided by the city in print form only at the Corvallis-Benton Public Library.
Matt Neznanski can be reached at 758-9518 or matt.neznanski@lee.net.