M.A.L.D.E.F. or the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund what is it and why should I care?
MALDEF is short for Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund it is a non profit organization that is deeply rooted in LA Politics and corruption.
Here is a brief history lesson on how these players are all interconnected.
MALDEF and it’s other corporation the MALDEF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CORP which as last reported had assets of $6,857,569.00 & income of $1,108,791.00 is no stranger to City Hall or the Mayor.
Meet Thomas A. Saenz MALDEF President and General Counsel began serving as lead counsel to Antonio Villaraigosa in 2005, and was a member of the mayor’s four-person executive team providing legal and policy advice on major initiatives.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, received the Excellence in Government Service Award from MALDEF last year, “This award honors a person with great leadership abilities who seeks to bring about societal change for the benefit of underserved and underrepresented communities“
Where is fiscal conservative Miguel Santana in this?
Miguel Santana is currently sitting on the MALDEF board!
Miguel Santana has a long history with the Mayor & Maldef, In 1992, Santana worked with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), spending taxpayer money identifying the cause of the Los Angeles riots and other underlying social issues.
Just How Deep are MALDEF the Mayor and the CAO entrenched in city hall?
Meet Jose Sanchez another MALDEF Board Member and partner at Sidley Austin, LLP which has had countless contracts with the city namely bond, special tax and disclosure counsel services for various City debt programs.
Another case of taking care of their own?
PURPOSE OF CONTRACT:
- To assist the City Attorney with disclosure counsel services for the CRA in connection with a proposed tax allocation bond issue
- To provide Outside Counsel for professional legal services to the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (CRA/LA)
- To assist the City Attorney with bond counsel services for the CRA in connection with a issue of tax allocation bonds
- To provide Bond, Swap and Disclosure Counsel Services for the City of Los Angeles Wastewater System Revenue Bonds
- Other City Contracts with the LADWP, Harbor department and more.
634 South Spring St & the Phantom Loans
So in today’s Budget crisis we have certainly changed our ways after all the workforce is taking cut after cut after cut. Well not exactly. Somewhere along the line the mortgage crisis didn’t quite hit well connected groups like M.A.L.D.E.F. The City of Los Angeles actually gave them a loan you see and it has been refinancing it for years. Finally they decided that the general fund or the city didn’t need cash in payment they traded services in lieu of cash. How much ?
$4.8 million ($2.8 million Residual Receipt Loan and $2 million Interest Only Loan) with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.
AUTHORIZE the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) to:
a. Convert annual interest payments (3%) on a $2 million rehabilitation loan into service repayments in lieu of cash payments by providing educational and health care outreach services to the downtown community.
b. Convert an existing $2.8 million residual receipts loan into a service repayment grant agreement in an amount not to exceed $280,000 annually in lieu of cash payments for services to be delivered to the downtown community.
OK so you took 26 furlough days so they could get a free ride no big deal it’s corruption at it’s finest in my opinion but wait there’s MORE!
See that loan is for a building at located at 634 South Spring St. in LA the address may sound familiar to some of you because currently yes you guessed it the City of Los Angeles is Leasing space from M.A.L.D.E.F. or more accurately the shell company MALDEF Property Management. It is shocking to keep telling the workers of this City to take cut after cut when the Mayor and CAO are conspiring to give breaks to those who they are so well connected to.
Let’s take a look at some of the lease agreements your furlough days are paying for.
$410,760.00 2007-2010 Lease
Lease agreement for 3 year lease of 25,760 square feet of office space located at 634 South Spring $1,243,500.00
intrest only loans paid back not in cash, but in service credits. Oh the irony!
Is Mayor Antonio Villarigossa selling out city employment to low income replacements?
This takes us to the Mayor and his plans for replacing current employees with new hires with entirely different pay and benefit schemes. His Truck Training program, LAUSD academy’s, California Conservation corp, and many other groups are lining up ready to replace those who are left behind.
MOTION
The Bureau of Sanitation employs a significant number of truck operators (about 700) who require either a Class A or Class B professional driver’s license. The Bureau believes that the driver-training program run by the Academy can be used in some form to train Bureau of Sanitation Drivers-In-Training to become certified drivers.
I FURTHER MOVE that the contract agreement include a provision assuring that at least 25% of the Trucking Academy participants be residents of the Seventh Council District and that efforts be made to partner with knowledgeable local workforce development agencies and/or organizations to identify potential participants.
SEIU Mayor and Maldef connections
What is corruption without our unions participating right?
SEIU721 Board members approved a request to contribute to the MALDEF Event. It was for 4 seats at the event. Approved expenditure: $1,000.00
SEIU also Joined the LA City Council in supporting MALDEF in it’s lawsuit against the State of Arizona immigration Law.
Surplus Equipment, $1.00 dollar sounds fair right?
Finally ignoring all common sense the same old councilmen Namely Tony Cardenas and the former Cocaine addict, sex-tape collector disgraced councilman now advisor to Jan perry and Bernard Parks (go figure) Mike Hernandez & Tom Labonge love selling quality equipment to Mexico for $1.00.
Here are just a few highlights and totals to see how much of the General Fund could have been spared.
170 surplus pieces of equipment sold to foriegn governments, and friends of the Mayor and
CAO. Estimated price of $17,850,000.00 Which would have gone into the General Fund.
“The sale of the equipment at below market value price is consistent with the City’s Financial Policies as the Los Angeles Beirut Sister City Committee is an official organization of a Sister City of the City of Los Angeles. This below market sale will increase the General Fund by $2.00.” Loss to general fund -160,000.00 add the two dollars they paid and we have a net loss of $159,998.00
Estimated $575,000.00 worth of Surplus equipment sold for $4.00 ignoring fiscal policy all “In the spirit of potential mutual cooperation initiatives between our two cities”
$305,000.00 Subject Motion – The Cal Bomberos, a non-profit service organization, has requested that City of Los Angeles sell to it a surplus fire engine for City of Ensenada, Estado de Baja California, Mexico. The Cal Bomberos, a service organizations of Los Angeles City Fire Dept, consists of fire fighters & paramedics who for 22 years have been assisting local & international organizations provide better fire service to their residents. THEREFORE MOVE that Ccl authorize the sale of a surplus City fire truck (Shop 60246), to Cal Bomberos for City of Ensenada Fire Dept, at below market value (i.e. $1.00 – one dollar); & that Ccl find that this transfer of surplus equipment is for a humanitarian purpose, is of benefit to the City, & that City is receiving adequate compensation for such equipment.
Est. $305,000.00 Council File: 96-1067
Title CITY OF ENSENADA – SURPLUS FIRE ENGINE
Subject Motion – The City of Ensenada is in need of a fire engine to support their efforts to suppress fires within the community. The City of Ensenada, through a Los Angeles Fire Department sponsoring organization called “Los Bomberos”, has made a request to the City to sell them a surplus fire engine for $1.00. THEREFORE MOVE that the City Council authorize the sale of a surplus fire engine (shop number – 60243) to City of Ensenada for $1.00 and that the City Council find that this transfer of surplus equipment is for a humanitarian purpose, is of benefit to the City, and that the City is receiving adequate compensation
Title: SURPLUS MEDICAL EQUIPMENT
Subject Motion – THEREFORE MOVE that Ccl auth the sale of surplus medical equipment (Personnel Dept Inventory numbers 10183, 60455, 104202, 100976) & other miscellaneous supplies (not identified by inventory numbers) to the City of Ensenada for $1.00 & that this transfer of surplus equipment is for a humanitarian purpose, is of benefit to the City, & that the City is receiving adequate compensation. $200,000.00
TONY CARDENAS YES
ERIC GARCETTI YES
TOM LABONGE YES
JAN PERRY YES
ED REYES YES
GREIG SMITH YES
DENNIS ZINE YES
Council File:96-1715 91-2202 etc.