BOARD PLANS TO REGISTER LOBBYISTS LAUSD TO ADOPT SYSTEM.

Byline: Helen Gao Staff Writer

Wary of lobbyists seeking to reap profits from a massive local school bond measure on the fall ballot, officials of the Los Angeles Unified School District plan to enact a registration system intended to disclose influence-peddling and conflicts of interest.

The effort comes after three years of delays. Although the school board adopted a lobbyist-registration code in 1999 and created an ethics office, a tracking system has never been implemented.

Now the project has taken on a new urgency, school board members say, in response to voters' concerns about approving the LAUSD's $3.3 billion proposal for school construction and modernization, with billions of dollars more likely in matching funds from a state bond issue. Lobbying for a slice of that lucrative pie is sure to be intense.

``We are unaware of who is lobbying for whom. (People) will often make appointments to see you,'' said school board member Julie Korenstein, who represents part of the San Fernando Valley. ``We don't know who they are associated with. We don't know if they have a conflict of interest.

``When we are dealing with millions, if not billions, of dollars - especially with school construction - you really want to know who you are dealing with, what their motives are, if everything is on the up and up.''

Details of how exactly the lobbyist-registration system will work remain to be worked out. But school officials expect to create a program similar to the city's, and they are considering having the city administer it on the LAUSD's behalf.

The board in early July directed the district's ethics officer and inspector general to present recommendations Aug. 15 to the Business, Finance, Audit and Technology Committee.

School board members Caprice Young and Jose Huizar said having Los Angeles city government run the district's registration system would be the easiest and most effective solution.

``There is no sense in reinventing the wheel,'' Young said. ``This is the same city. The same lobbyists who lobby them lobby us as well.''

Under the Los Angeles Municipal Code, lobbyists and lobbying firms - defined as those who receive $4,000 in compensation in a calendar quarter for their work influencing municipal legislation - must register with the city.

They are also required to file quarterly reports disclosing projects and legislation they attempted to influence, compensation they received for their efforts, political contributions they made and payments received from city agencies.

Under the code, elected city officials and high-level government executives are also restricted from receiving gifts exceeding $25 per calendar year from any registered lobbyist or lobbying firm.

``The public has a right to know what money is being spent to influence projects,'' said Barbara Freeman, director of outreach for the city's Ethics Commission. ``(The registration system) is an especially good way for the press to hold public officials accountable. The public can decide how they feel about the activity.''

While a lobbyist-registration system can help illuminate the political process, some reformers caution against relying on such a program to curb influence and money in politics.

``Lobbyist disclosure laws don't necessarily in and of themselves reduce the influence lobbyists have on the political process, but (they) add an important level of transparency to the political process, so the public knows who is making their case in front of a public agency,'' said Andy Draheim, West Coast coordinator for Common Cause, a political reform group.

Steven Afriat, a registered lobbyist with the city, argues that little if anything has changed in municipal politics despite the disclosures,.

``People somehow think this does something. Are things any better than they were 10 years ago?'' he asked rhetorically.

Afriat observes that lobbyists themselves pay more attention to disclosure statements than others do because they want to find out how much their rivals earn and whom they represent.

``It's a sporting event - that is of interest to 30 or 40 people in the city - for which the taxpayers are spending a lot of money to finance,'' he said.

District officials estimate establishing a registration system will cost $150,000 to $300,000, depending on its sophistication.

School board member David Tokofsky calls the program a ``minimal incremental step'' to promote integrity in district operations.

In addition, Tokofsky said the district needs a host of other ethics-reform measures, ranging from overhauling the procurement procedures to crafting a rigorous background-screening process to ensure that contractors represent themselves truthfully.

In March, the school board rescinded a contract with an adult literacy software company.