El Cajon Irked by Parole Office Downtown : Bill Advances to Impede State’s Imposition on Cities

SACRAMENTO — Legislation triggered by El Cajon’s dissatisfaction with the opening of a state parole office in its downtown area was approved Tuesday by an Assembly committee.

Assemblyman Larry Stirling’s bill would stop state agencies from opening offices or constructing buildings in counties or cities without first notifying the local agency of the state’s intent. The measure also would require counties to notify cities under similar circumstances.

Stirling (R-San Diego) originally wanted the state to obtain local approval before leasing or building new facilities, but he abandoned that tack Tuesday when it appeared that state officials would oppose such a requirement on grounds that it would unfairly hamper the state’s ability to provide services and programs, especially prisons.

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Stirling also agreed to remove a provision in his original bill requiring county governments to obtain city approval before they built new facilities. That section of the bill would likely have drawn opposition from counties--including San Diego--that fear that cities would never let them build new jails within their jurisdictions.

Stirling said his bill was prompted by El Cajon’s outcry after the Department of Corrections opened a parole office last year in the city’s redevelopment area, located near an elementary school and a family restaurant. Convicted criminals use the office to meet with their parole officers after they are released from prison.

He said the department never notified the city of its desire to locate there and thus the city had no chance to fight the decision or suggest alternative locations. By the time the city learned of the lease, a contract had been signed and could not be voided. Stirling said such tactics are “bad public policy.”

“This is not Soviet Russia or Communist China, where the central government can walk into your neighborhood and do whatever it damn well pleases,” Stirling said in an interview. “This is a self-governing democracy. These guys have no right to do this.”

Stirling’s bill would require state agencies to notify legislators in whose districts offices are to be built or leased and also to notify members of county supervisors and city council members in the affected communities.

The amended measure sailed through the Assembly Committee on Governmental Efficiency and Consumer Protection without much discussion and was approved unanimously. It will now move to the full Assembly unless the Department of Finance determines that the measure would cost the state money, in which case the bill would face a hearing in the Ways and Means Committee.

Assemblywoman Delaine Eastin (D-Union City) said she would have supported the stronger version and urged Stirling to attempt again to require local approval of state land-use decisions.

“We talk about putting more accountability into the locals, yet we’re going to shove down their throats certain structures and designs,” Eastin said. “It really does lead to resentment of state government, I think.”