HRC still in business HRC still in business (May 27, 2005)

Unanimous council decides to keep commission

By Jon Wiener

The volunteers serving on Mountain View's Human Relations Commission (HRC) got a big vote of confidence Tuesday night when the city council unanimously agreed to reinstate the group's monthly meeting schedule.

The decision put to rest weeks of speculation about the commission's future, stemming from a recommendation from the council procedures committee -- a body consisting of three council members -- for the council to either increase the group's responsibility or abandon it altogether.

Mayor Matt Neely, who serves on the procedures committee, said no one ever intended to get rid of the commission, but only suggested doing so as an alternative in order to force the council to solidify the group's work plan.

Unlike other commissions, the HRC has no clear task as part of its charter. In the past year, the commission has discussed issues such as racial profiling by the police department and disbursal of federal grant monies for community groups, but much of its time is spent coming up with a work plan. Tuesday, the council forwarded the commission a list of potential issues to choose from, ranging from renter concerns to child care services.

"I think it's very positive," commission chair Bill Bien said after the vote. "There's a commitment to improving outreach to different groups. The onus is now on the council and the commission" to identify the issues to focus on.

The discussion of the HRC's future, an issue that had generated more media coverage than any other issue involving the commission in recent memory, was originally scheduled to take place two weeks ago, but was delayed to give the council more time to deliberate.

Several commissioners and their supporters spoke on behalf of the group's ability to give a voice to the disenfranchised and provide a forum for residents from underserved populations.

"If the council looked like the Human Relations Commission, we would not need an HRC," said Ronit Bryant, a former parks and recreation commissioner.

When public comment closed, council members quickly asserted their support for the body.

"It's time to abandon our love-hate relationship with the Human Relations Commission," said council member Laura Macias, referring to Bryant's earlier description of the issue. "It's time to have a love-fest here."

Neely and Bien quibbled with the assertion that there has been significant tension between the council and the commission, with Neely singling out the media for misrepresenting the issue.

"The media's job is to be skeptical of government, please be skeptical of the media," Neely said.

Council member Greg Perry, the chair of the procedures committee, did not attend the meeting. He was at home attending to his newborn child.
E-mail Jon Wiener at jwiener@mv-voice.com

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