On Tuesday, April 12, the Irvine City Council voted 4-1 to extend an existing ordinance banning nepotism in order to include city-based boards, commissions, committees and other governing bodies. Currently, the ordinance only extends to compensated positions. 

For context, this ordinance bans family members of City Council members or city staff to serve on community-based boards. 

Prior to the vote Tuesday, Irvine City Council Member Tammy Kim, who brought the item to the council, said the extension would work to close an “existing loophole” in the city’s current nepotism ordinance. 

Kim added that she discovered that Irvine did not have a nepotism policy in place for commissioners and that local news outlets began covering the issue in other cities. 

“I want to be clear: This is in no way meant to be an attack on any one individual. This will hold true if this were my son, the mayor’s son, the mayor’s husband – we’re all held to the same standard,” Kim said. “In the city, we do have a nepotism policy, which is limited to employment and personnel matters and it’s not applicable to elected officers and members of boards, commissions and committees. The ordinance that we have is simply closing an existing loophole that we have banning nepotism, and applying it to our appointment.”

However, in passing the ordinance, Irvine City Council Member Larry Agran spoke in protest of the update, adding that the discussion was a direct attack on his family. 

Specifically, Agran pointed out that his wife, Dr. Phyllis Agran, a pediatric gastroenterologist, serves as the Chair of the Irvine Youth and Families Commission. 

With the council’s 4-1 vote, Dr. Agran will no longer be able to serve on the committee. During the meeting, Agran noted that his wife’s position was a voluntary appointment, with no compensation.

Agran also debated the concept of nepotism in Irvine, adding that the ordinance seemed more like a calculated effort to enforce arbitrary rules, rather than address “real problems in the city.” 

“I think it’s pretty hard to conclude that this is anything but an effort to have my wife removed from the Irvine Children Youth and Family Advisory Committee, notwithstanding continuing outstanding service on her part and to that committee and to the community at large,” he said. “We don’t have a problem with nepotism in this city. Nepotism, frankly, when it relates to family members, typically is putting someone in a position of power, that is compensated and for which, typically, they are not qualified.” 

Dr. Agran, who is also a Professor of Pediatrics at UC Irvine, was appointed by then-Irvine Mayor Sukhee Kang when the committee was developed. 

During her tenure, Agran helped establish a local child passenger safety seat program, which eventually led to the adoption of child passenger safety systems that are currently recognized nationwide. 

Kim objected to Agran’s theory, continually emphasizing that this was simply to uphold transparency. Adding that she wanted the council to discuss it after she had read about other cities in Orange County discussing the issue in January. 

“The purpose of having committees and commissions is to solicit a variety of voices from the community and provide residents an opportunity to serve,” Kim said. “This policy is building off our trust and transparency. We have to ensure we have broad representation.”

Prior to the vote, Agran asked Irvine City Attorney Jeff Melching how the council was prepared to vote on the matter, adding that he was under the impression that the agenda item would just be a discussion.

“How did this get prepared without the City Council giving you direction to prepare it – on what authority?” Argan asked.    

Irvine City Attorney Jeff Melching said he was directed by city staff prior to the meeting. Melching then pointed to an ordinance that had been updated during the meeting on March 22, and in accordance with the new rule, “staff is providing as much support as it can for an agenda item.”    

“I was asked by city staff to prepare the ordinance, and I did,” Melching said. “We modified our policies and procedures at the last meeting such that when you have a council initiated agenda item, the old rule was if the request was submitted 12 days in advance, then the staff could give support to assist with the agenda item and it was submitted five days in advance, then it couldn’t be.”

Melching added that the request to prepare the agenda item for a vote came from the City Manager’s office. 

“I think that request came from the City Manager, who I work for – and I did what I was told to do,” Melching said. “I’m not dodging the responsibility for it, I think that what was requested was consistent with our policies and procedures.”  

Agran, who offered an amendment that would exclude non-compensated positions, but was not seconded, continually objected to the idea that the only disqualification for his wife no longer being allowed to serve the community was simply based on marital status. 

“The only reason that she is being kicked off is because of our marital status – the fact that we’ve been married for 56 years,” said Agran. “If we were just friends with benefits – under those circumstances – those wouldn’t cover it would it?”  

Melching informed Agran that the language in the updated ordinance begins with “spouse.”

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