City Council
MEETING DATE: 1/13/2016
TITLE:
Title
Resolution on U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United Ruling
End
FROM:
Tracey Martinez, CMC
Deputy City Clerk
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Staff recommends the City Council adopt a Resolution of support to amend the Constitution to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling.
Body
BACKGROUND:
Council Member Shelley Kaplan received an email from Move to Amend Coachella Valley asking the Council Members of Cathedral City to take a position on Citizens United. Council discussed this item in study session on November 16, 2015 and directed staff to bring the resolution back for action.
Move to Amend (MTA) Coachella Valley is the local affiliate of a grassroots, not-for-profit, nonpartisan, single focus national organization.
The email indicates that the Supreme Court ruling in Citizen's United and other court cases affects the amount of influence city voters have in their elections. The Supreme Court in June 2012 said the Citizen's United case meant that Montana's state law did not apply so there cannot be limits on campaign contributions in state and local elections.
There are less than fifty multi-millionaires making enormous contributions to more than 600 Super Political Action Committees (PAC's). These groups drowned out the voices or regular voters in the 2012 and 2014 elections. With these court decisions corporations could donate large sums of money to a challenger in the next city council election.
They indicated that they believe the best method of correcting the Citizens United court case is by adopting a Constitutional amendment and are requesting that Cathedral City adopt a resolution of support to amend the Constitution rejecting the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling.
DISCUSSION:
Attached for your review is a draft Resolution of support to amend the Constitution rejecting the U.S. Supreme Citizens United ruling.
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