Editorial: Should You Attend the 9/24 El Cerrito Financial Advisory Board Meeting?

If you’ve ever questioned how El Cerrito manages its finances or felt in the dark about important financial decisions, attending the upcoming Financial Advisory Board (FAB) meeting on September 24 might seem like a good idea. But here’s the problem: the lack of transparency at these meetings has become a glaring issue.

At the last meeting, several concerning things happened:

1. Residents Can’t Hear: One resident who attended couldn’t even hear what the committee members were saying. What’s the point of attending if public participation is effectively muted?
2. Testimony Ignored: This same resident submitted indicated they submitted testimony on a key financial policy item to the finance director. Guess what? The testimony never made it to the committee, and it wasn’t posted with the agenda packet. How are we supposed to engage in meaningful discussion if the public’s voice is ignored?
3. Delayed Agenda Items: A significant financial policy amendment was on the agenda, but the details were never released to the public before the meeting. When I asked about it, I was told to wait for the minutes. How can any of us provide informed commentary when we’re not allowed to see the key documents?
4. Reserves Policy in the Dark: FAB held a discussion on the city’s financial reserve policy, yet the members didn’t even know the current reserve amount! City management is refusing to provide that information, leaving us all in the dark about the financial stability of our city.

FAB’s role is to advise the city council on critical financial matters, but it’s hard to see how that can happen when the board itself is kept uninformed. City management is actively limiting the information that FAB has to work with. This not only affects the board but also leaves residents like us without the transparency we deserve.

What Should Be on the Agenda?

Here are just a few issues that FAB should be discussing at the next meeting, and I’ll be looking to see if these make the agenda:

• The need for financial transparency and the city’s refusal to adopt a $1 million reserves policy.
• The city’s financial infrastructure—are staff even equipped to use the software they need to manage our money?
• A fourth-quarter budget update (it’s overdue).
• El Cerrito’s mounting CalPERS debt—what’s the plan here?
• The state auditor’s recent findings on El Cerrito’s fiscal health.
• What’s going on with the city’s financial reserves? Why wasn’t the September submission discussed in the August meeting?
• Measure G and its implications for our city’s financial future.
• The library proposal—are we being told the full story?
• The censorship of financial information. Why is information being withheld from the public?
• Our low BBB credit rating and how we can improve it.
• Why are we preparing for a TRAN (Tax Revenue Anticipation Note) when we’re not addressing the root causes of financial instability?
• The city’s policy of paying high interest instead of paying off certain debts.

These questions aren’t just technicalities—they are at the heart of whether El Cerrito will thrive or continue to struggle financially. It’s time for FAB to speak up at every council meeting and ensure that these issues don’t get swept under the rug.

Should You Attend?

Yes. Despite the lack of transparency, your presence at FAB meetings is critical. We need more residents showing up and demanding answers. It’s time we hold our city accountable for its finances.

Hope everyone attends at least one meeting.