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On Monday, July 26, Thousand Oaks Planning Commissioner Al Adam submitted to the city of Thousand Oaks an initiative calling for term limits for persons serving on City Council. Under the initiative, terms would be limited to three consecutive four year terms with the requirement that an individual wait a full four year term before seeking election again. This initiative would not impose a lifetime ban. After review and comment by the City Attorney, petitions will be drawn up and signatures gathered from 10 percent of the City’s registered voters to call for a vote during the next scheduled election.
Clearly, the voters are demanding change. Measure T, the term limits initiative for the Ventura County Supervisors, passed in 2008 with 74 percent of the vote.
“People are tired of entrenched politicians serving special interests instead of the voters who elected them” said Adam. “Special interests give incumbents the advantage in fundraising which discourages qualified challengers from running.”
In many elections incumbents often run unopposed which decreases government accountability. The cost of Thousand Oaks City Council campaigns has skyrocketed from just a few thousand dollars twenty years ago to $150,000 and more today.
Long-term relationships between special interests and Can’t-Lose politicians are a dangerous combination. Term limits provide a level playing field of competition which stimulates change. Thomas Jefferson and the Founders spoke of “rotation in office” which would reverse reelection rates from the current 95 percent to a more competitive 50 percent. Jefferson knew the necessity of term limits when he observed that they “prevent every danger which might arise to American freedom from continuing too long in office.”
Adam believes that “term limits bring power back to the people and keep it out of the hands of special interests.” Let’s eliminate the “good ole boy” network and encourage fresh thinking and new ideas. With term limits, we can build a citizen’s City Council and drive out the career politicians by encouraging greater voter participation in elections. The time for talk and posturing is over. The time for term limits is now, he said.