Sen. Glazer slams BART

OAKLAND — A state commission tasked with overseeing election laws is reviewing a complaint alleging BART illegally used public dollars to campaign for its $3.5 billion bond measure, dubbed Measure RR, a commission spokesman said Thursday.

State Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, one of BART’s staunchest critics, filed the complaint with the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) on Oct. 17. Jay Wierenga, a spokesman for the commission, said the review will determine whether it has merit. The review process can take up to 14 days, though Wierenga said campaign-related complaints are moved to the “top of the stack.”

Glazer is alleging the transit agency illegally used staff time and resources to promote the bond. BART denies the allegations.

The complaint, obtained by this newspaper, cites email updates BART sent to members of the public who signed up to receive them, including one entitled, “Get informed about Measure RR” and another, “What’s threatening power to the people?” Links in those emails take readers to videos describing the impact of the bond measure and to BART’s website, which has information about the bond.

“You can’t do that,” Glazer said, “and you shouldn’t even get close to the line in doing that.”

California law prohibits public agencies from advocating for or against any candidate or measure in an election, but it does allow them to “provide factual information,” according to the FPPC. In BART’s case, the agency was merely seeking to educate riders about the need for the bond, said BART spokeswoman Alicia Trost.

“What we’ve been advised by our legal counsel is that the rules are that you can absolutely educate,” Trost said. “We cannot say vote for this or encourage someone to vote for it. ... That is where the line is drawn.”

Glazer also accused the agency of allowing people to place signs in support of Measure RR on BART property, including one example from BART’s 12th Street station in Oakland, a picture of which he posted on Twitter Wednesday. Trost said staff is aware they need to remove campaign materials from BART property — unless they are in the form of paid advertisements — and she would ensure it gets removed.

Compared to other public agencies with bond measures on the ballot, the allegations of misconduct are rather mild, said Robert Stern, the former president of the Center for Governmental Studies who, in 1974, helped write California’s Political Reform Act, which established the FPPC in the wake of the Watergate scandal.

“It’s not egregious,” Stern said of Glazer’s allegations. “I see it all the time when public agencies are trying to comply with the law, but, obviously, in their hearts, they want the measure to pass.”