For years, El Cerrito residents have been misled — by City Attorney Sky Woodruff, who quietly shapes how ballot measures are presented, and by former Councilmember Greg Lyman, whose decisions nearly bankrupted the city.
Now they’re back, pushing a new library tax through a campaign riddled with misleading claims and questionable tactics. This time, they were caught — but how many times haven’t they been?
A Summary Full of Falsehoods
On June 10, a “pre-litigation demand letter” was filed against City Attorney Woodruff for including seven false and misleading statements in the official summary of a proposed library tax measure. That summary was supposed to neutrally inform voters before they signed a petition to qualify the measure for the ballot. Instead, it included exaggerations and misstatements that gave the campaign a clear advantage.
Among the claims struck from the summary:
That library use is increasing (it isn’t), That the building would serve as emergency shelter (with no proof or requirements), That the money couldn’t be used for city salaries (it can), And that services like tutoring and summer programs were guaranteed (they aren’t).
Each of these was quietly removed only after the threat of legal action — not because of transparency, but because they were caught.
City Attorney or Political Operative?
Let’s not forget: Sky Woodruff is not just a consultant — he’s the City Attorney. His job is to safeguard the law, not spin narratives. The fact that he included multiple misleading claims in an official ballot measure summary should concern every El Cerrito resident and voter.
And if this is what they caught him doing — imagine what’s slipped by. How many other ballot measures, council decisions, or contracts have been filtered through his office without full accuracy? This isn’t the first time . What other truths have been massaged into half-truths or no truth to push an agenda?
The role of a city attorney should be apolitical. Yet Woodruff’s actions raise serious doubts about his objectivity, judgment, and fitness to serve a community that expects facts — not fiction.
Lyman Returns with the Same Reckless Strategy
Former Councilmember Greg Lyman, who authored the flawed ballot initiative, is no stranger to financial irresponsibility. During his time on the Council, El Cerrito’s financial situation spiraled. Budget reserves were depleted. Spending soared. And when tough choices were needed, Lyman failed to make them.
Now, rather than working through a transparent City Council process — which would require two-thirds voter approval — Lyman is using the citizen initiative process to pass the tax with a simple majority.
And just like before, the rollout is steeped in confusion and manipulated messaging. A taxpayer-funded $38,000 survey designed to “test” which library tax messages would perform best was conveniently released after the ballot language was filed — but suspiciously aligned with the campaign’s talking points. Residents who took the survey said it was more propaganda than polling.
This Is a Pattern — Not a Fluke
Both Lyman and Woodruff have spent years shaping policy with misleading narratives, unsupported promises, and half-truths. It’s a pattern — not a fluke. And El Cerrito is still paying for it, both in dollars and in trust.
Yes, El Cerrito deserves a better library. But we also deserve honest governance, not manipulation. We deserve to know:
Who’s really benefiting from this tax? What guarantees are actually in place? And how many times we’ve been misled — without even knowing it?
Time to Break the Cycle
This is not just about a library. It’s about accountability. It’s about the quiet erosion of public trust, one misleading sentence at a time. If we keep empowering the same voices with no scrutiny, we’ll keep getting the same results: poor planning, inflated promises, and a shrinking pool of public confidence.
Let’s stop rewarding those who have repeatedly failed to tell us the complete truth.
If you’re tired of the spin, show up. Speak up. Share this. And let’s hold El Cerrito’s leadership — past and present — to the standards our city deserves.
El Cerrito Committee for Responsible Government (ECCRG) 