Asia-Pacific

US city to be deprived of cityhood due to corruption

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-12-06 20:37

LOS ANGELES -- Vernon, a small city near Los Angeles, will be deprived of cityhood due to a corruption scandal involving city officials, according to reports here on Sunday.

A bill aimed at dissolving the city is being prepared by State Assembly Speaker John Perez, a Democrat from Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Times said on its website.

Perez's bill would mandate the disincorporation of any city with fewer than 150 residents, and Vernon is the only city in California that fits the description, making it possible Vernon becomes part of unincorporated Los Angeles County, according to the report.

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"The issue here is about the complete lack of transparency and accountability in Vernon," Perez told the paper. "We cannot tolerate a situation where a handful of individuals are able to use an entire city as their own personal fiefdom."

The town of about 95 residents has been controlled by a few families and their associates for decades.

In response to the bill, Vernon's current City Administrator Mark Whitworth issued a statement Friday, saying disincorporation would "cost thousands of people their jobs and the state hundreds of millions in tax revenues."

Whitworth also said Perez's bill violated the state Constitution and the rights granted charter cities.

"The city of Vernon intends to defend the rights of its residents, the 1,800 businesses and tens of thousands of people who earn a living in Vernon," he said.

Disincorporation typically requires a vote by residents, and there is no precedent in California abolishing a city against the will of its residents.

All of Vernon's voters live in city-owned housing for which they pay below-market rent, and that is believed to influence how they vote, according to the report.

Three years ago, Vernon's longtime mayor Leonis Malburg was charged with voter fraud and then city administrator Bruce Malkenhorst was charged with public corruption. Malkenhorst now awaits trial on charges of misappropriating about 60,000 dollars, according to the report.

Vernon, founded in 1905, has witnessed a series of corruption scandals in recent years.