FUND-RAISING PROBE REACTION IS MIXED.Byline: Rick Orlov Staff Writer Mayor James Hahn For the Iowa politician, see . James Kenneth "Jim" Hahn (born July 3, 1950) is an American politician from the Democratic Party. He was the Deputy City Attorney (1975-1979), City Controller (1981-1985), City Attorney (1985-2001) and Mayor of Los Angeles, California defended contracting and political fund-raising practices by Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. airport commissioner Ted Stein on Monday even as City Councilman Tony Cardenas Tony Cardenas served in the California State Assembly. In the Assembly, he had the powerful position of chair of the Budget Committee. He is now a Los Angeles City Councilman, representing the 6th district, which includes parts of the San Fernando Valley. promised to look closely at the activities. At the same time, Miguel Contreras Miguel Contreras (September 17, 1952–May 6, 2005) was an American labor leader. He "was known as a king-maker for both local and state politicians."[1] , powerful head of the county labor movement and an airport commissioner, distanced himself from Stein's practice of getting involved with staffers in early stages of contract negotiations and said he would take his concerns to the mayor. ``I've never been invited to one of those and I'm not sure we should go. I don't have the expertise and I don't think the commission should micromanage micromanage Administration A popular term for excess oversight of lower management by upper management the department in that way,'' said Contreras, executive secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO AFL-CIO: see American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations. AFL-CIO in full American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations U.S. . ``We have to make sure there is no appearance of impropriety Appearance of impropriety is a term often used in reference to a situation whose ethics is deemed questionable. It means that any layperson, without knowledge of the facts, would assume that something he/she saw or heard was inappropriate or a violation of a rule/regulation. . We have to make certain everything we do is above board and beyond reproach.'' The District Attorney's Office has opened an inquiry into whether contractors at LAX were pressured into giving contributions by Stein in order to win contracts, according to a report in the Los Angeles Business Journal and confirmed Saturday by the Daily News. Contributions reportedly were made to the anti-secession campaign and to Hahn's campaign. Stein, an Encino resident and San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. developer, has not returned repeated calls for comment. Cardenas, who chairs the council's Commerce, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which oversees the Department of Airports, promised to examine LAX contracting practices and any link to campaign contributions. ``We will provide the oversight that is necessary and scrutinize all questionable practices by a city department or its commissioners,'' Cardenas said in a statement. Hahn issued a statement in support of Stein. ``The mayor talked with (Stein) and was assured that nothing improper was done,'' the mayor's spokeswoman Julie Wong said. ``The mayor believes that all city laws were followed and is insisting to all his appointees that they obey the law.'' The mayor is scheduled to appear at a Dec. 3 event at Stein's home in Encino with members of his campaign executive committee. It is not a fund- raiser, campaign aides said, and the mayor has no intention of canceling the event. One company that was said to have been asked for a contribution is URS URS Yours URS Ultimate Roulette System URS Uniform Reporting System URS User Requirement(s) Specification URS Undergraduate Research Symposium URS Unified Registration Statement URS Undergraduate Research Scholars Corp., a San Francisco-based design firm. Officials from the company did not return telephone calls Monday. Ron Rogers, a Los Angeles public relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most consultant, said he had been contacted by District Attorney's Office investigators but was told not to comment any further. The Airport Commission received a legal opinion that commissioners could be involved directly in negotiations. The review comes at a critical time as Hahn is promoting his $9.1 billion LAX modernization plan. City Controller Laura Chick is expected to release an audit of LAX contracting procedures next month. The city Ethics Commission is reviewing a proposal to require city commissioners - who are appointed by the mayor and serve at no pay - to disclose any fund raising they do on behalf of an elected official. An initial review showed that of 245 commissioners appointed between 1999 and 2001, 84 had given contributions that totaled some $185,000. But those figures did not include any other fund-raising activities commissioners might have performed. Rick Orlov, (213) 978-0390 rick.orlov(at)dailynews.com |
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