Miguel Arias is picking up fellow Fresno City Councilmember Brandon Vang’s push to make city contracts more transparent.

The lawmaking duo will introduce a resolution at Thursday’s city council meeting that would post consultant contracts and other economic disclosures on a single city webpage. The measure also requires additional disclosures and reviews.

Vang held an abrupt news conference Jan. 7, bemoaning certain contracts for lobbyists.

Before Luis Chavez left the District 5 council seat after winning election to the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, he entered into two $100,000 contracts with political consultant Alex Tavlian.

Neither contract was voted on by the city council.

After winning a special election in March 2025, Vang inherited the contracts from his predecessor. He later canceled a constituent outreach deal with Tavlian.

“My focus remains on finding solutions,” Vang told Politics 101.

He said he is advocating for reviewing and tracking consultant contracts and strengthening oversight.

“Those principles remain unchanged, and I look forward to working collaboratively to put them into practice,” Vang said.

Information Available, but Scattered

The proposed resolution reinforces existing city policy: If multiple contracts from the same source cumulatively exceed the $100,000 threshold, city council approval is required.

Arias’ resolution does not alter the $100,000 limit established by the city council in 2024, a change Vang said earlier this month he would like to pursue.

The resolution would create a website showing all lobbyist contracts under $100,000, along with a list of registered lobbyists, behested payments, and Form 700 disclosures in a single location. The site would also include a searchable database.

All of the information is currently public, but scattered across the city’s website, requiring experience navigating municipal records to locate it.

The Fair Political Practices Commission — the state agency that enforces campaign finance law — defines behested payments as contributions made by one entity to another — usually a charity or government agency — at the request of an elected official. Reporting is required.

Form 700 is another FPPC requirement and serves as the financial disclosure form for elected officials and certain government employees. The city hosts a searchable Form 700 database on its website.

Lobbyist registration with the city is required and posted online, but difficult to locate without using a search engine.

Karbassi Proposes Review Committee

Fresno City Council President Mike Karbassi is following through on his idea for a transparency fix by establishing an ad-hoc committee to review city policies. The city council is scheduled to vote on the proposal Thursday.

Karbassi, Vang, and a yet-to-be-determined member will serve on the ad-hoc committee, which will sunset Jan. 29, 2027. The first items slated for review are the Transparency Act and the San Joaquin River and Bluff Protection Initiative. The city council could add one more member.

Because the committee will include fewer than a majority of city councilmembers, it does not fall under the Brown Act — the state’s open meetings law. Karbassi plans for the committee to meet privately.

Karbassi said the public is not clamoring to attend meetings of a policy-creating committee.

“Why go through the exhaustive process of extra staff when we are already paid to do our job?” Karbassi said in response to criticism that the committee would not be open to the public.

Any recommendations would still need to be discussed and approved at a public city council meeting.

State Dems Make Primary Picks

Annalisa Perea is the regional Democrats’ pick for state Assembly.

At a pre-endorsement conference held earlier this month, Perea, D-Fresno, won 81% of the delegate vote over Sandra Celedon, D-Fresno, in Assembly District 31. The state party will confirm Perea as its pick at the February convention.

The district is entirely within Fresno County. Roughly the southern half of the city of Fresno falls within its boundaries. Incumbent Joaquin Arambula, D-Fresno, intends to run for Fresno City Council.

In other regional races, Brian Pacheco, D-Kerman, earned 95% of the vote in Assembly District 27, which includes parts of Fresno, Madera and Merced counties.

Pacheco was the only candidate listed. Incumbent Esmeralda Soria is running for state Senate.

Soria, D-Fresno, secured the endorsement for Senate District 14, winning 93% of the vote over Sanger City Councilmember Esmeralda Hurtado, D-Sanger. Incumbent Anna Caballero is termed out and running for state treasurer.

Not all races appeared on the pre-endorsement ballot. Candidates were required to pay a filing fee to be considered.

Congressional Races

Randy Villegas, D-Visalia, earned 55% of the vote in Congressional District 22, defeating Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains, D-Delano, who received 45%. Candidates needed 70% to earn automatic consideration at the state convention.

Villegas is considered a progressive Democrat, while Bains is viewed as more moderate. Incumbent Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, has repeatedly defied the odds by winning a district with a Democratic registration advantage.

Michael Masuda, D-Amador, won the most votes in Congressional District 5 with 67%. Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove, is the incumbent.

Sandra Van Scotter and Kirstina Roper tied at 45% for the Congressional District 20 endorsement. Rep. Vince Fong, R-Bakersfield, is the incumbent.