Jose Duran, president of the Anaheim Police Association, speaks in favor of a “gate tax” on Disney theme park admissions during public comments.
By DUANE J. ROBERTS Editor & Publisher
On Tuesday, October 28th, the Anaheim City Council rejected a push by the Anaheim Police Association—the union representing 400 sworn personnel employed by the city’s police department—to place a measure on the ballot that would impose a “gate tax” on Disney theme park admissions.
Despite a parade of police union leaders speaking out in favor of the measure during public comments, proponent Councilwoman Natalie Rubalcava, whose political campaigns have been heavily funded by law enforcement, was forced to acknowledge that it was “dead on arrival” after a lengthy debate.
In addition to Gaby Sutter, the Anaheim Police Association’s executive director, others from that organization who addressed the council included Jose Duran, the president, Tony Lee, its vice president, and Cesar Aguilar and Breana Castro, members of their political action committee board.
Photos obtained by The Anaheim Investigator that were used in last year’s campaign opposing Rubalcava’s recall show Duran, Lee, Aguilar, Castro, and other police union leaders posing with the councilwoman; many also hold signs with the words, “Anaheim’s First Responders Say Vote No Recall.”
Rubalcava with police union leaders (circled in red) who spoke at the meeting.
Like most surveys, it reflected the needs and priorities of those who funded it, and a number of questions used wording which favored positions aligned with the police union, such as repeated items about expanding Anaheim Police Departmentstaffing levels and boosting pay and benefits of officers.
In a brief conversation, Rubalcava denied being privy to any details of their survey before requesting that an item about the “gate tax” be placed on a future city council meeting agenda. However, she admitted that they, along with another union, were part of an “emerging coalition” supportive of it.
But this issue is far from settled. Although the city council opted not to put the measure on the ballot at this time, members voted 5–2 to continue the item so it can be included in a wider review of revenues, the budget cycle, and prospective city projects. A date for that discussion has not yet been set.
Campaign photo of Natalie Rubalcava with Jose Duran (second left), president of the Anaheim Police Association, and three of their board members (right).
By DUANE J. ROBERTS Editor & Publisher
The Anaheim Police Association—the union representing 400 sworn personnel employed by the city’s police department—commissioned a survey in mid-August asking residents if they supported “new taxes” on Disney theme park admissions providing the revenue would “help with long-term budget issues without cutting services.”
The survey in question, of which a link was texted directly to the smartphones of individuals that The Anaheim Investigator characterizes as being “high propensity voters,” was conducted through Qualtrics, a platform frequently used by political strategists to gauge public opinion on candidates, issues, or ballot measures in real-time.
Although the Anaheim Police Association has not yet publicly endorsed a “gate tax,” evidence indicates they, along with the Anaheim Municipal Employees Association, are part of an “emerging coalition” supportive of it–something proponent Councilwoman Natalie Rubalcava acknowledged in a brief conversation earlier this month.
Screenshot of completed survey questions on new taxes.
Like most surveys, this one was designed to reflect the needs, wants, and priorities of those who funded it, and a number of questions used wording that favored positions aligned with the police union, such as repeated items about expanding Anaheim Police Departmentstaffing levels and boosting the pay and benefits of officers.
Moreover, some questions exposed matters hidden from public view, such as an ongoing dispute with The Walt Disney Company over how cops assigned to patrol their theme parks do their job: “If there is a disagreement over how these officers should enforce the law and public safety at Disney, who should make the decision?”
Respondents were also asked to weigh in on other important issues, including whether or not they believed Disneyland wields “too much influence at city hall,” how millions in surplus funds freed up by paying off infrastructure bonds needs to be spent, and if our police force should “cooperate with federal immigration officials.”
Screenshot of completed survey questions on police staffing.
Because the survey was most likely completed before Councilwoman Rubalcava officially requested the item of a “gate tax” be placed on the agenda of the September 23rd city council meeting, The Investigator approached her to inquire if the police union shared the results with her. She denied being privy to any details.
However, when Rubalcava was asked separately about a message about the “gate tax” she posted to her Instagram account on September 19th and shared with both the Anaheim Police Association and Anaheim Municipal Employees Association, she admitted they were part of an “emerging coalition” that was supportive of it.
The Anaheim Municipal Employees Association has also heavily backed Rubalcava and represents non-sworn personnel at the Anaheim Police Department. Jonnae Barreras, its president, is a senior police analyst who earned $135,953 in pay and benefits last year. Two other members of their board work for the department as well.
It should be noted that Barreras and other top leaders of the Anaheim Police Association are in multiple photos obtained by The Investigator that were used in the campaign to defeat Rubalcava’s recall. Several of them, including her, can be seen holding up signs emblazoned with the words “Anaheim’s First Responders Say Vote No Recall.”
Jonnae Barreras, President, Anaheim Municipal Employees Association.
Tony Lee, Vice-President, Anaheim Police Association.
Steven Dahl, Secretary, Anaheim Police Association.
Michael Fleet, Treasurer, Anaheim Police Association.
For the record, The Investigator made at least three attempts via email to contact Duran and Barreras to ask them about matters that were touched upon in this article. But neither has bothered to respond to our inquiries. Rubalcava–who actually invited us to send her follow-up questions–has not replied to any of our messages either.
Matt Cunningham, James Vanderpool, Molly Jolly, and Laura Cunningham having lunch with Mayor Ashleigh Aitken.
By DUANE J. ROBERTS Editor & Publisher
The Anaheim Investigator has reviewed more than 200 photographs that were taken of a luncheon held at Angel Stadium on June 6th which not only clearly show Mayor Ashleigh Aitkensharing a table with Laura Cunningham, president and CEO of the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce, but Molly Jolly, senior vice president of Finance/Administration for Angels Baseball.
In one photo, the mayor can be seen talking to Matthew Hicks, vice president of Public Affairs for ocV!BE, a $4 billion mixed-use development surrounding the Honda Center that is controlled by Henry Samueli, a Newport Beach billionaire. In another, John Carpino, president of Angels Baseball and right-hand man for team owner Arte Moreno, is standing directly behind her.
Mayor Aitken was not alone at this event. Photos show Councilman Stephen Faessel sat at the ocV!BE table between Hicks and George Urch, their lobbyist. Councilwomen Natalie Meeks and Norma Campos-Kurtz were huddled together off to the side, not far from Mike Lyster, chief communications officer for the City of Anaheim. Fire ChiefPat Russell was also present.
Mayor Pro Tem Natalie Rubalcava and Councilman Jose Diaz were seated at the same table as Aitken was. So was City Manager James Vanderpool, who was stuck in the middle of Jolly and Matt Cunningham, Laura’s husband. Also joining them was Alicia Valadez-Gonzalez of Northgate Markets. One photo shows Berenice Ballinas, Aitken’s Chief of Staff, taking selfies with her.
The Anaheim Chamber of Commerce table.
The luncheon, an annual event that is organized by the Anaheim Chamber, typically brings in a little league baseball team from the local community to meet and interact with persons who played for Angels Baseball, both past and present. Some of the featured guests on June 6th included Patrick Sandoval, Chuck Finley, and Clyde Wright, three generations of Angels pitchers.
Neither Mayor Aitken or any of the five council members who attended this luncheon responded to questions The Investigator emailed them asking about who paid for their tickets and what actions they took to avoid violating the Brown Act, the state law which regulates the conduct of elected officials at meetings. Instead, they directed our questions to Lyster.
“The Brown Act,”he told us via email, “allows a majority of or all Council members to attend public events without discussing city business among themselves. Our Council members are made aware of and follow this practice.” Though Lyster is technically correct, there is one slight problem: tickets to this luncheon cost a whopping $200 per person and were “limited.”
It could be conceivably argued that despite the fact this event was “open” to the public, the steep price of admission created a barrier to access based on wealth and social class: only people with money could afford to attend. The Brown Actmakes it illegal for public meetings to be held in facilities which require payment to enter, but that provision doesn’t seem to apply here.
With respect to the tickets that the mayor, city council, and city staff received from the Anaheim Chamber, Lyster said as follows:
Mayor Aitken, Mayor Pro Tem Rubalcava and Council Members Faessel, Diaz, Campos Kurtz and Meeks attended and were provided tickets.
For Aitken, Faessel and Kurtz, their tickets fall under ceremonial job duties as Aitken addressed attendees, Faessel did the invocation and Kurtz led the pledge of allegiance.
For Rubalcava, Meeks, Diaz and City Manager Jim Vanderpool, it will fall to them to list their tickets as part of a form 700 due in spring 2024.
In a follow up email, he confirmed the city didn’t pay for the tickets and that the Anaheim Chamber gave them away for free.
Carpino, Aitken and Meeks.
Because this is a breaking news story, The Investigator is still in the process of gathering information about this luncheon. Last week, we filed multiple public records act requests with the city to see if there are any emails and other documents which might shed more light on this matter. If we find anything else significant to report on, a follow up article will be written.
For matter of record, The Investigator does not possess the legal expertise to determine if the mayor and city council violated the Brown Act. And even if Lyster is fundamentally correct, none of this changes the fact they were having private conversations with representatives from the Anaheim Chamber, Angels Baseball, and other business interests out of public view.
Interestingly enough, there also seems have been a conscious decision by elected officials to keep this luncheon a secret. With the exception of a notation Aitken posted on her June calendar, nobody has talked about it. If it wasn’t for The Investigator’s dogged determination to expose what politicians do behind closed doors, the public would have never known it occurred.
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