WISPPA Protesting for Portantino Assembly Records

Women Involved in South Pasadena Political Action, aka , have written to Assemblyman John A. Perez to protest his demand that Assemblyman Portantino immediately cut $67,000 from his budget.

"As individuals deeply rooted and involved in our community, we are outraged by accusations that the budget brouhaha is in retaliation for his vote against a severely flawed budget," WISPPA president Gretchen Robinette stated in the letter. 

"Your failure to produce the requested records in the absence of an express exemption under the Act is strong evidence of the punitive nature of your recent budget demand upon Mr. Portantino," she continued. 

California newspaper publishers, as well as Portantino himself, demanding that the spending records be made public. 

Portantino filed his  after being warned by the Assembly's rules committee that he would need to reduce his office's budget by $67,000 or risk having his staff furloughed between Oct. 21 and Nov. 30.

He claims that the  come not as a result of overspending, rather as punishment for failing to follow the Democratic party line on several key issues, including the state budget that was passed in June.

WISPPA members agree. 

"The apparent punitive treatment that Anthony Portantino has received from you and the Assembly Rules Committee is unconscionable. Whatever you choose to call your actions, we and our community see them as retribution," Robinette wrote. 

The assembly's rules committee has shot down all public records requests for spending information, asserting that the information is "correspondence of and to individual Members of the legislature and its staff" and said it could be exempt on the basis of being "preliminary drafts, notes or legislative memoranda," which are exempt under the California Public Records Act.

"WISPPA members represent various political points of view but all agree with our primary tenant that government actions, regardless of party, should be transparent to the electorate," Robinette told Patch Wednesday. 

WISPPA is urging community members in the 44th Assembly District to write to Assembly Speaker Perez, Assemblymember Nancy Skinner and/or the Assembly Rules Committee to protest the actions taken against Assemblyman Portantino. 

To contact Speaker Perez, click here.

For Skinner's info, click here.