SANTA ANA : City Hall Gag Order Wins Final Approval

The City Council has given final approval to an ordinance that prohibits council members, city officers or employees from publicly disclosing information discussed in private meetings.

The council also unanimously passed a resolution that will exempt the city attorney and city manager from the new law when “necessary to perform their duties.”

The ordinance was proposed in July by Councilman Daniel E. Griset, who said he wanted to stop information leaks around City Hall. He particularly objected to “calculated” leaks that he said came from closed-door council sessions where sensitive personnel matters or pending litigation is discussed.

The council holds at least two closed sessions each month before or after regular council meetings. Under the new law, individuals sitting in on the closed portion of the meeting can only disclose the content of discussions with permission from a majority of the council.

The ordinance was given preliminary approval by the council on Aug. 6 by a 4-3 vote. Councilmen John Acosta, Ron May and Richards L. Norton voted against the measure. The votes remained the same during the final approval process this week.

The Santa Ana law is similar to one in Costa Mesa, the only other city in Orange County to pass a law which prohibits closed-session information from being discussed.