Oakland Municipal Code Art. I Findings and Purpose

This Chapter shall be known as the "Oakland Fair Elections Act," hereinafter referred to as the "Act."

(Res. No. 89316, § 2, 7-22-2022)

The Findings of this Act are as follows:

A. Residents of Oakland have a right to participate in Oakland's elections, and the voices of residents of Oakland should matter.

B. Spending in Oakland elections has increased significantly, reaching nearly five million dollars ($5,000,000.00) in candidate contributions and independent expenditures in the 2020 election.

C. Oakland candidates rely primarily on large contributions. In the 2020 election, only six (6) percent of contributions to candidates came from donors who gave one hundred dollars ($100.00) or less. By contrast, forty-five (45) percent of contributions to candidates came from donors who gave five hundred dollars ($500.00) or more.

D. Candidate contributions in Oakland elections come disproportionately from Oakland's wealthiest neighborhoods. In 2020, Oakland zip codes with a median household income greater than seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000.00) were responsible for sixty-six (66) percent of candidate contributions while comprising only forty (40) percent of Oakland's population. The six (6) Oakland zip codes with median household incomes below sixty thousand dollars ($60,000.00) provided merely a quarter of candidate contributions while comprising nearly half of Oakland's population.

E. The rapidly increasing costs of political campaigns are forcing officeholders to spend more time on fundraising and less time on the public's business. Because of these increasing costs and the need to fundraise, officeholders increasingly rely on large contributions from interest groups and donors with specific financial stakes in matters under consideration by the City government.

F. Candidates' reliance on large contributions from a limited number of powerful contributors creates the opportunity for and appearance of corruption in City government. This undermines the integrity of the governmental process and participation in campaigns by Oakland residents.

G. Candidates' reliance on large contributions from a limited number of wealthy contributors also gives incumbents an advantage over potential challengers and inhibits potential candidates for elected office who lack existing networks of wealthy contributors from running for office, thereby decreasing the competitiveness of elections in Oakland.

H. Meaningful participation in financing the campaigns of candidates for elected office in Oakland should not be limited to people and entities with significant wealth that are able to make large contributions.

I. Based on existing circumstances in Oakland, including those enumerated above, the programs and reforms in this Act will curb corruption, including quid pro quo corruption, and its appearance in Oakland elections and government. The programs and reforms in this Act will also ensure the right of Oakland residents to participate in democratic self-governance through effective participation in Oakland elections and government and their right to elected officials who are responsive to constituents.

J. The Democracy Dollars Program created by this Act additionally will enlarge public discussion and participation in elections by amplifying the voices of Oakland residents in elections through their participation in the Democracy Dollars Program. The Democracy Dollars Program will also support candidates for elected office who lack networks of wealthy contributors, and will encourage candidates across the political spectrum and from different backgrounds to seek elected office, thereby resulting in a pool of candidates that is more reflective of the diversity of Oakland residents and resulting in more competitive elections.

(Res. No. 89316, § 2, 7-22-2022)

A. The purpose of this Chapter is to build fair elections in the City of Oakland, expand public participation in the local democratic process and empower all Oakland residents with an opportunity to engage meaningfully in the campaign process, and prevent corruption and its appearance by:

1. Ensuring all Oakland residents have an opportunity to participate in local elective and governmental processes and to have their voices heard in their local democracy;

2. Ensuring candidates for office are free to focus on communicating with all Oakland residents and considering policy issues rather than devoting excessive time to fundraising;

3. Ensuring that access to networks of wealthy contributors is not a prerequisite for candidates to run competitive campaigns for elected office;

4. Ensuring a fair elections process that holds local elected leaders accountable to the people of Oakland by strengthening residents' engagement with the City of Oakland's government;

5. Ensuring candidates who receive public financing participate in public debates to assist residents with making an informed decision about each candidate and understand each candidate's stance on the issues affecting the City;

6. Placing reasonable limits on the amount individuals may contribute to political campaigns in municipal elections;

7. Ensuring that candidates are able to raise enough money to communicate their views and positions adequately to the public, thereby promoting public discussion of the important issues involved in political campaigns;

8. Ensuring that local officials and high-ranking staff are responsive to the needs of their constituencies and do not unfairly use the contacts and status earned in public service to lobby for private industries that have financial stakes in the matters under consideration by the City;

9. Tightening prohibitions on lobbying by former elected officials (the "revolving door" problem) to ensure that local officials are responsive to all of the residents of Oakland instead of wealthy special interests;

10. Providing full and fair enforcement of all the provisions in this Chapter; and

11. Creating a Democracy Dollars public finance program to expand the pool of candidates and donors for City of Oakland offices and to safeguard the people's control of the elections process in the City of Oakland.

B. This Chapter shall be liberally construed and vigorously enforced to ensure its purposes are fulfilled.

(Res. No. 89316, § 2, 7-22-2022)