Board of Commissioners Announces Intention to Break the Law in 2009

Cool! Thanks for the advance notice!

Let's check the law:

Los Angeles Administrative Code

Sec. 503. Organization of the Board.

(a) Officers. Each of the boards created in the Charter shall elect one of its members President and one Vice-President.

Officers shall hold office for one year and until their successors are elected, unless their membership on the board expires sooner. Elections shall be held during its last meeting in July of each year, but the board may fill the unexpired term of any vacancy occurring in the office of President or Vice-President at any meeting.

(b) Meetings. Each board shall hold a regular meeting at least twice a month. All meetings shall be in a municipal or other facility open to the public.

(c) Action. Each board shall exercise the powers conferred upon it by the Charter by order or resolution adopted by a majority of its members. Action of the board shall be attested by the signatures of the President or Vice-President, or two members of the board, and by the signature of the secretary of the board.

Okay, the law is pretty darn clear: "Two meetings a month." That's the law, Commissioners!

Every year, around this time, Board Secretary Ross Pool (aka "Hoss Fool") publishes the coming year's planned meeting schedule for the Board of Commissioners for L.A. Animal Services. In December 2007, Fool announced that the Board would not meet the required number of times due to holidays or whatever. Usually, and according to the published agendas, the Board meets on the 2nd and 4th Monday of each month. Last year, Hoss Fool posted a schedule that is in violation of the above law . Seems the Board and Hoss don't know there are those other pesky 4 days in the week which would gladly host their rescheduled Board Meeting. Who's foolin' whom, Fool?

The Board intended NOT to meet 24 times in 2008. In fact, the Board, as far as we can tell, only met 11 times or 46% of the meetings they were required to hold. Ed Boks loves this because it gives the board that many fewer opportunities to tell Boks what to do. More on that later. Yes, the Board is Boks's Boss and sets policy for the Department of Animal Services.

For 2009, the Board intends to Break the law some more and plans to meet only 21 times.



Well, we the People of Los Angeles are not satisfied and demand that the Board meet twice per month. Reschedule your meeting for another day if a holiday falls on the 1st or 3rd Monday. At Christmas or Hanukkah time, you can meet twice earlier in the month, no?

Is there not enough of the animals' work for you to fill two meetings per month? Catshit!
Don't you realize that the less work you do to effect change in this wretched Department of Animal Services results in more murdered animals? Huh?

You are hereby put on notice. Post your revised schedule showing that you will meet 24 times in 2009 by January 15, 2009. If you don't, we will make you meet the number of times that the law requires. Those pesky judges love to make Cities follow the law. We'll find one of those judges and get a court order
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