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July 24, 2018
Non -Agenda Item
City waives $65,000 in fees for Taste of
Newport
Oct. 21, 2010
By Tony Saavedra, Register investigative reporter When is a limit not a limit?
For the answer, let's revisit Newport Beach's ballot measure to change the city's charter.
Among the proposed revisions, voters will be asked whether to repeal the charter's $2,400
limit -- established in 1955 -- on donations from the city to the chamber of commerce.
The Watchdog recently explored whether money given by the city to the chambers could
end up being used for political purposes. Now comes a new issue -- the city hasn't always
honored the $2,400 limit.
In fact, said city spokeswoman Tara Finnigan, local officials didn't even know the limit
existed until they started talking last spring about amending the charter.
So Newport Beach waived $19,250 in police services and other fees in 2008 for
the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce's Taste of Newport event. The next year,
by mistake, city finance workers neglected to bill the chamber for $46,044 in police security
and other fees for the Taste of Newport, Finnigan said. The increased costs represent a
new fee structure plus an additional morning of police services, according to Finnigan.
That's more than $65,000 in fees waived by the city over two years for the Newport Beach
Chamber of Commerce.
Richard Luehrs, chamber president, and others say the fee -waiver is an in-kind
contribution not a cash donation, therefore, it does not violate the limit.
Finnigan said the city doesn't necessarily see the distinction.
"I don't think anybody thought that hard about it," she said. "I think most of us didn't know
(the limit) was there. On there books, there's a lot of things that haven't been looked at in
years."
Robert Rush, a council watcher, said ignorance isn't a good excuse. Rush believes the
waiver violated the charter and the chamber should be billed.
"The chamber has a PAC (political action committee)," Rush said. "They can use my
money as a taxpayer and funnel it to their own political candidates."
Chamber officials say political donations come from a different fund. The chamber PAC
has donated at least $1,000 apiece to council incumbent Leslie Daigle and
candidate Rush Hill.
City officials say there is no plan to ask for the waived fees to be returned.