Folsom council continues to ponder proposed city charter changes

The question over whether Folsom city officials want to put amendments on the November ballot which would call for changes to the city charter continued to be pondered at the City Council meeting this week. While there are three proposed amendments to the charter up for consideration, one in particular garnered attention Tuesday night: whether the individual campaign contribution limit should be increased. Currently, that limit is $150. Changing the city charter was also discussed at the previous council meeting on May 12, which brought a packed crowd of concerned citizens wanting to learn more and express their thoughts. This comes after the 2026 Ad Hoc Charter Review Committee, which was established in December 2025, conducted a comprehensive review of the city charter, which is in effect the city's constitution. The committee's mission was to evaluate the charter and recommend updates and changes for the city council to consider. Folsom City Manager Bryan Whitemyer said the committee met five times from March 4 through May 4 and recommended updates to seven sections of the charter and a section of the Folsom Municipal Code. The council's May 12 meeting resulted in the approval of three of the committee's eight recommendations for further consideration, including: Section 4.03 would make the city council responsible for the hiring and oversight of the city attorney rather than giving that responsibility to the city manager. Section 4.07 would remove the language that, "All boards and commissions only shall be advisory to the Council" to allow greater flexibility in how commissions and committees operate." Folsom Municipal Code 2.48.030 - To consider an increase in the campaign contribution limit. Just one lone person showed up at Tuesday night's meeting to make a public comment about the committee's recommendations regarding campaign contributions, but the speaker came with a significant history with the city and even slides for visuals. Tom Aceituno, a former city councilmember himself and member of the Ad Hoc Charter Review Commission, addressed the council about the proposed campaign contribution limit increase, an issue near and dear to his heart. Aceitano thanked Mayor Justin Raithel for putting him on the committee. "I don't think he knew what he was getting into when he put me on it," joked Aceituno. The two apparently had moments when they disagreed over issues but always maintained mutual respect along the way, explained Aceituno. Aceituno has long believed the contribution limit should be increased so individual candidates who don't have the deep pockets of Political Action Committees (or PACs) behind them aren't at an insurmountable disadvantage. "I'm not doing that because of any concern about corruption in the city of Folsom," explained Aceituno. "I'm just concerned about what I call a level playing field." Aceituno provided slides showing numbers from the 2022 and 2024 local elections as recent examples of the power PACs can have in elections. "PAC money usually generally dominates. Usually, PAC money exceeds the amount that individuals raise," explained Aceituno. "PAC money, at least in the last two elections, has supported the winner three times." Councilmember Barbara Leary, who won her seat in District 4 in the 2024 election despite not having the advantage of PAC money support, is an example of a candidate who was still able to win despite being at a financial disadvantage. What she did have in her arsenal was decades of involvement in the community. During the meeting, Leary said it is daunting as a candidate running against a person who has PAC funding, because that person has the financial ability to send more mailers, lawn signs, place ads on social media, etc. "In a small town … name recognition is a really important factor in getting enough votes to win, so I really believe that we need to try to level the playing field," said Leary. Aceituno agreed the power of name recognition by being involved in the community does have its own significance, but by raising the campaign contribution limit, he's hopeful it would send a message to the community to support their candidate and help them succeed. "We have a cherished history in this town of having individuals overcoming that disadvantage," said Aceituno. "We have this history where we can do it but it takes a lot of leg work." Information provided by Aceituno will be attached on the city website along with the usual post-meeting information. Another factor that came as a bit of a shock, according to City Manager Whitemyer, is the cost of putting this issue on the November ballot. According to city officials, the Sacramento County Department of Voter Registration and Elections updated its election fee formula. In other words, it got a lot more expensive. The 2024 election, which included Measure G and two city council positions, cost the city $61,145. The revised cost structure for the upcoming election would be about $83,000 for the first ballot measure, with additional measures costing $10,750 per item. If the city decided to add all three measures to the ballot, that would cost an estimated $115,250. If the council decides to move forward with the proposed charter amendments, a second public hearing will be held June 23. The next significant date would be July 14, when the council would consider a resolution to formally approve the amendments for the November ballot. If the council makes that choice, the charter changes will be in the hands of Folsom voters; the general election will be held Nov. 3.