Divided KC council defeats $5 gift proposal — ‘we’re doing fine’

Kansas City Councilman Scott Taylor’s proposal to sharply limit lobbyists’ gifts and taxpayer-funded travel, dismissed by colleagues as mayoral campaign-season grandstanding, officially died Thursday.

Even a watered-down substitute failed 7-to-4, with some contending that an overhaul made no sense without adding more transparency to campaign contributions from parties with an interest in city decisions.

Other members said the ethics code, which was tightened somewhat by the council in 2013, was sufficient.

“I don’t understand what the big deal is,” said Councilwoman Teresa Loar. “We’re doing fine.”

Taylor, one of five council incumbents running for mayor in 2019 (there are a total of nine candidates) proposed to all but eliminate gifts, most of which are meals and tickets to sporting events.

The measure slashed the maximum value of gifts from $1,000 to $5. It restricted city-funded council and mayoral travel to two trips per four-year term, except when representing the city before the state or federal government. It also doubled from one to two years the time ex-officials must wait before lobbying the city or working as a contractor.

Council members took serious exception to a campaign mailer Taylor released shortly after introducing the ordinance last month. It promised to end “wining and dining” by elected officials and pointed out that he has spent no taxpayer funds on travel.

Mayor Pro Tem and mayoral candidate Scott Wagner introduced a substitute ordinance Thursday that eliminated the travel restrictions and kept the “revolving door” provision at one year. It required that any gift of $50 or more be reported to the city clerk. The current threshold for reporting is $200. The measure also provided that ethics rules be reviewed by an independent commission every two years, starting next August, after the city elections.

“The idea was to get the politics out of it,” Wagner said.

Each council member receives a $10,900 “legislative activities account” for travel and other expenses, although some trips are paid for from other department budgets. Wagner, who had a tense exchange with Taylor at a committee hearing two weeks ago about his trips to China and Germany (several were self-financed) proposed that all travel be disclosed in monthly reports to the council.

Taylor attempted to restore his original ordinance, but his motion died for lack of a second.

Councilwoman Alissia Canady, a mayoral candidate, proposed amending Wagner’s substitute to require council members to promptly report any campaign contributions of $1,000 or more from parties with an interest city business.

“People shouldn’t have to go look at the Missouri Ethics Commission reports,” she said. The commission requires candidates to file a series of campaign finance reports.

In the end, there was little appetite for any change.

Voting against Wagner’s substitute were council members Quinton Lucas, who is running for mayor, Heather Hall, Katheryn Shields, Lee Barnes, Jr., Canady, Loar and Mayor Sly James.

Voting for were council members Dan Fowler, Jolie Justus, Taylor and Wagner.

Council members Jermaine Reed, a mayoral candidate, and Kevin McManus were absent.

This story was originally published July 26, 2018 at 6:30 PM.