Saying Yes by Saying No

I have been slowly catching up on things after having been off the last month or so. In the course of poking around I ran into an important point made by Yorba Linda councilperson Jan Horton who blogs at http://www.horton4yl.com/. In discussing her concerns about Yorba Linda's ethics code, she makes a point often overlooked about how a vote not to allow a project can, in itself, be a vote in favor of another project. Her specific comments related to the problem with not allowing campaign contributions within twelve months of approving a permit or decision.

Her specific comment is:

"This section deals with accepting donations, $250 or more from an applicant if a Council vote is taken on their project. BUT this prohibition did not include individuals who benefit from a “no vote” to a project. There is a potential to “buy” a vote from either direction."

This idea runs far farther than the context in which she has used it and bears being kept persistently in mind when thinking about the actual range and degree of influence of gifts and gratuities to all officials and employees and not just council members.