Campaign Contributions Watch
"Corruption poses a serious development challenge. In the political
realm, it undermines democracy and good governance by
subverting formal processes. Corruption in elections and in
legislative bodies reduces accountability and representation in
policymaking; corruption in the judiciary suspends the rule of law;
and corruption in public administration results in the unequal
provision of services.

More generally, corruption erodes the institutional capacity of
government as procedures are disregarded, resources are siphoned
off, and officials are hired or promoted without regard to
performance. At the same time, corruption undermines the
legitimacy of government and such democratic values as trust and
tolerance."
"Corruption also undermines economic development by generating considerable distortions
and inefficiency. In the private sector, corruption increases the cost of business through the
price of illicit payments themselves, the management cost of negotiating with officials, and
the risk of breached agreements or detection.

Although some claim corruption reduces costs by cutting red tape, an emerging consensus
holds that the availability of bribes induces officials to contrive new rules and delays. Where
corruption inflates the cost of business, it also distorts the playing field, shielding firms with
connections from competition and thereby sustaining inefficient firms."

Corruption also generates economic distortions in the public sector by diverting public
investment away from education and into capital projects where bribes and kickbacks are
more plentiful. Officials may increase the technical complexity of public sector projects to
conceal such dealings, thus further distorting investment. Corruption also lowers compliance
with construction, environmental, or other regulations; reduces the quality of government
services and infrastructure; and increases budgetary pressures on government."
Source: Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_corruption
WatchOurCity.com
In The Public Interest
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Campaign Contribution Watch 1
""When a public
official breaches
that sacred trust
by illegally
exploiting their
position for
personal gain,
confidence in
responsible
government
suffers and
promoted is the
belief that those in
government are
in it for
themselves only
and not because
they wish to serve
and make a
difference.".
- Donald Thomson,
Jr., FBI Agent in
Charge, Richmond
Virginia
"Actions Speak Louder than Words"

July 19, 2004
By WatchOurCity.com

Huntington Park- On March 4, 2003, three council candidates running as a slate win city
council seats: Mario Gomez ("Integrity"), Ofelia Hernandez ("Community Service") and
John Noguez ("Experience"). Council Member Ed Escareño enthusiastically endorses and
actively campaigns for all three candidates. Mayor Ric Loya endorses two of the three.
The slate's themes:
"Actions speak louder than words."; Working together for our
Community, for Our Children, for our Future."

In Huntington Park, a city of approximately 62,000 residents, approximately 12,000 are
registered to vote.
As few as 1,217 votes can elect a new Council Member in this city,
which represents about 9.7% of registered voters, or 2% of the total city population. It
takes at least $24 per vote per candidate to win a city council seat, as was demonstrated
during the 2003 election year (based on public record campaign filing statements on file
with the City Clerk's office).

On 4-02-03
Then U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin, ex-Mayor of Huntington Park, takes time from her
official duties in Washington D.C. to attend the inauguration of the newly minted City
Council members who won local elections in March 2003. Pictures of her appear on their
campaign literature while she was U.S. Treasurer. Allegedly, she took the time during
some local public appearances to single out all three candidates, seemingly geared to
benefit their unified political campaign, in light of her official duties as U.S. Treasurer.  
After the elections, a very grateful City Council voted and passed a resolution to escort
the Honorable Rosario Marin to the Sister City of Playas de Rosarito, with a contingency
of Huntington Park police officers in tow, all at a relatively considerable expense to Public
Funds. Little did the voters realize that a budding romance had developed between
council member Ed Escareño and a local school teacher in Rosarito, thus seemingly
explaining why it had become such a darling Sister City, and the subject of frequent cell
phone and extravagant travel charges made to Public Funds by Escareño.

On 12-01-03
City Council announced that Francisco Leal of the Los Angeles law firm of Leal, Abich
and Dominguez would become the new city attorney, a decision made reportedly in
closed door session under questionable circumstances. "The vote was 3-1 with Mayor Ed
Escareño and council members Ofelia Hernandez and Mario Gomez in favor and
Councilman Ric Loya opposed. Noguez was absent.
The city attorney contract was
reportedly awarded without going out to bid according a report in the local Wave
Community Newspaper. Mayor Ed Escareño and City Clerk Elba Romo sign the city
attorney contract on December 15, 2003. The contract stipulates a base salary of $140
per hour, not to exceed $25,000 per month in legal fees (equivalent to $300,000 per
year), unless otherwise authorized by City council. Upon review of the 2004-2005 city
budget, WatchOurCity.com notes that the city allocates in excess of $1 million dollars for
legal fees to the city attorney under different departments and budget categories scattered
throughout the 500 page-plus budget report.

On December 2003,
Francisco Leal and Robert Rodriguez of Oldtimers Foundation accompany Mayor Ed
Escareño to Playas de Rosarito, Mexico, on a Christmas 500-gift-giving mission at two
local schools. Their visit was reported in Ecos de Rosarito newspaper which stated that
Mayor Escareño was having a romantic relationship with a certain local school teacher
whom is employed, coincidentally, at the same two schools where gifts were to be
distributed. Rosarito is a recent Sister City of Huntington Park.
Mayor Escareño had
charged Public Funds for his cell phone costs of approximately $1,200 during December
'03 and January of '04 reportedly made to a single phone number in Rosarito, according
to city records. To date, council member Escareño has not publicly justified these and
other questionable charges to Public Funds,
including a seemingly lavish and
unprecedented $25,001 in travel expenses since the 2002-2003 fiscal year.

On 1-05-04
Mayor Ed Escareño, Mario Gomez and Ofelia Hernandez give the residents of
Huntington Park a New Year's surprise: they quietly passed a resolution giving themselves
a
pay raise of $350 per month each, five days into the new year, when it seemed nobody
was watching.
Ed Escareño and Ofelia Hernandez were seemingly unemployed at the
time. Council Member Noguez voted against it but still takes the extra pay raise. His
campaign theme was "Honest and Dedicated". He is employed by the County of Los
Angeles as a property assessor. Council member Loya voted against the pay raise and
does not currently take the pay hike. He is employed by LAUSD.

On 2-2-04
City Council awarded a nearly $4 million Transportation Services contract to Oldtimers
Foundation, along with Fiesta Taxi.  Reportedly, neither was low bidder nor best qualified
according to an independent consultant as reported by the Wave Community Newspaper.
The recommendation by Ed Escareño and Mario Gomez, who make up the
Transportation Committee, ignored recommendations made by professional city staff and
an independent transportation consultant, and also chose to ignore that the cost to the city
would reportedly be $22,000 more than if awarded to the responsible low bidder.

On 2-09-04,
City attorney Francisco Leal hosts a political fund-raiser at his home for the U.S. Senate
campaign of Rosario Marin (an ex-mayor of the city and ex U.S. Treasurer). Campaign-
finance statements reviewed by WatchOurCity.com show that on that date, Rosario
Marin received a combined total of $28,000 in contributions from 24 individuals.
The invitation for this partisan political fund-raiser lists the following people as co-hosts:
George Cole of Oldtimers Foundation (a private non-profit 501(c)3 entity), Victor
Caballero of Fiesta Taxi, and Vicente Ortiz, a prominent member of Meta 2000. Mr.
Caballero and Mr. Ortiz were appointed as Arts and Culture Commissioners on 9-2-03.
On 2-9-04 the following people donate to Rosario Marin's campaign (according to federal
campaign-finance statements):
George Cole (Oldtimers Foundation), $2,000
Victor Caballero (Fiesta Taxi), $2,000
Robert Rodriguez (Oldtimers Foundation), $1,000
Francisco Leal (Huntington Park City Attorney), $2,000
Mehdi Momennasab (Fiesta Taxi), $500
John Noguez (City Council), $500 (2-9-04) + $1,000 (12-23-03)
Coincidentally, five of the six above are prominent recipients of questionable City
contracts.

On 6-21-04
Mayor John Noguez, Council Members Ed Escareño, Mario Gomez and Ofelia
Hernandez voted on June 21, 2004 to hire Tigran S. Marcarian to set up a card club in
the city at Leonardo's Night Club ignoring the fact that the State has stopped issuing card
club permits and a state-wide moratorium is in place against card clubs until 2010, and the
last permit holder is in jail. Leonardo's was a major campaign contributor to Noguez,
Gomez and Hernandez. Mayor John Noguez has publicly stated that the owners of
Leonardo's are allegedly his relatives. They also seem to ignore conflict of interest, or the
appearance of it at least.

On 7-6-04
City Council moved to "Award contract to Oldtimers Housing Development Corporation
IV to administer the City’s HOME CHDO Program and authorize staff to prepare the
agreement". City Council agenda did not indicate a contract amount.

Also on this date,
City Council donates $50,000 to private business group Meta 2000 for
park use for 1-day El Grito event. Fees to the Joe Otero Baseball League are raised by
500% (from $6,000 to $30,000) and Little League player fees are raised 100% to $60 per
kid. Pre-School programs are reduced from approximately $87,000 to $20,000 as
allocated in the 2004-2005 budget report.
Actions, indeed, speak louder than words.
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