Charter Review Commission postscript

Last night was the final meeting of the 2020 Pomona Charter Review Commission. We approved (with some minor modifications from what was in the agenda packet) the final report which will be submitted to the city clerk for inclusion on the November 2022 ballot. There will be 8 items on that ballot as follows: 

1. Police Commission
2. Ethics Commission
3. Redistricting Commission
4. Term Limits
5. Resign to Run
6. Primary Election
7. Campaign Finance
8. General Charter (many misc items)

Expect more information on these items as we get closer to the election cycle.

At the meetings we thanked each other for our hard work, city staff who supported us, and the city attorney who helped us draft language and lead us through the pitfalls of writing legislation.

But I’d like to take this opportunity to especially thank all those residents of Pomona (and some outside Pomona) who provided both personal and public comments which helped us shape the items proposed for the ballot. While we sometimes went the other way from what specific speakers asked for, we trust that the voters will make the final decisions on some of these important issues. We had many speakers who helped us with such issues as term limits, police commission, primary elections, the preamble, and assorted other issues. Whether we agreed or not, I can say that each of us on the commission LISTENED to your concerns and arguments, because in the end it will be YOU who decide on these issues.

THANK YOU! It was a pleasure to serve you on this most important commission. I hope that we serve as an example to future Charter Commissions. The next one will be seated either in 2029 or 2030 (depending on whether the General Charter amendment passes). I hope that Pomonans will be inspired to serve on the commission with the understanding that it will be one or two years of very intense work.