See editorial from the Press Democrat. (Gee, do you think Doug Bosco
has influence on PD editorials?)

What strikes me as being absurd is that a residency standard
is hardly a basis for determining whether someone has a conflict of
interest when serving on a public agency's BOD. Suppose the state
of California sues the NCRA for violations of state law. Better yet,
suppose they had joined the Novato lawsuit.

Should all the Board members resign because they're residents of
the state?

Here's another point I don't get: the editorial failed to mention
that, so far, a Superior Court judge has ruled in favor of the City
of Novato, finding in setting the TRO against the NCRA, that the NCRA
had violated state law.

Here's the editorial

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Rail politics EDITORIALS
Novato representatives have no business being on NCRA board

April 22, 2008



The internal conflicts involving the North Coast Railroad Authority (NCRA) board have moved from the politically suspicious to the absurd.

Marin County's only two NCRA appointees are residents of Novato, a city that is suing the rail authority over plans for restoring freight service. Regardless, these two say they should be included in closed-door meetings on strategy for fighting the lawsuit.

Sound ludicrous? It is.

Other board members are wisely balking and have decided to ask the state attorney general for an opinion. For technical reasons, it's likely to be a close call. That's because Marin County is supporting Novato's case only as a "friend of the court," which may not present a direct conflict for the appointees. Furthermore, the Novato representatives are not decision-makers for the city.

Regardless, Marin County should be embarrassed by this blatant attempt by Novato interests to stack the deck and block the resumption of freight rail service from the inside.

The intent here was evident a year ago when Marin's only two appointees to the NCRA board were Marin County Supervisor Judy Arnold, a former Novato City Council member and a freight opponent, and Novato Mayor Pro Tem Jim Leland. Arnold and Leland left the board after the lawsuit was filed in September. But Arnold encouraged the supervisors to appoint two others: Former Novato Mayor Bernard Meyers and Novato resident Tom MacDonald.

NCRA officials contend Meyers and MacDonald have since hindered efforts to reopen the rail line and have made many demands for information, including reports on defense strategy in the lawsuit.

Adding to the intrigue is evidence that MacDonald has fed information to Novato City Manager Daniel Keen. The NCRA has produced copies of an Oct. 25 e-mail that MacDonald sent to Keen alerting him to a special NCRA meeting about awarding a contract to fix railroad crossing signals. "As I find out more I'll keep you posted . . .," MacDonald writes. "Maybe they are accelerating schedules to beat your TRO (temporary restraining order) threats."

Keen responds, "We will definitely want to review that contract and give you our input. These signal contracts are potentially at the heart of our case . . ."

While MacDonald was not disclosing confidential information, it clearly demonstrates a willingness on the part of a board member to share information with the NCRA's legal adversary. It also clearly shows an "us vs. them" mentality. If it's not a direct conflict of interest, it's dirty politics.

The NCRA should not be have to fight a lawsuit by Novato handicapped by two Novato board members who appear to be no friend of freight service. The city and county should trust that they have a better case without resorting to such shenanigans.

Marin County residents, especially those who recognize that freight service is environmentally superior to having trucks on Highway 101, should demand a change in their representation on the agency. It's time to clear the foxes out of this hen house. Marin County should be embarrassed by this attempt by Novato interests to stack the deck