HomeIssues & Actions

Issues & Actions

Public Comment

Observer Corps

Charter Reform

Democracy Dollars

How to Make Public Comment to City Council & Council Committees

There are two ways to make comment live during the meetings.

Submit a speaker card in person at City Hall – approach the clerk for a speaker card and fill out before the item is heard.
Submit an electronic speaker card to comment on Zoom:

Go to Legistar and find the meeting you would like to attend
Click the “e-comment” button to the far right
Complete the online registration to sign in to speak on a particular numbered item
Your name will be called when it is time for comments to be heard on that item
Raise your hand on Zoom and unmute yourself to give your comments

Live comments are the most impactful way to make your voice heard with city leadership. However, you can also send written comments to all Councilmembers at council@oaklandca.gov.

Observer Corps

The Observer Corps, the LWVO’s “watchdog” arm, has been following some of the 40+ Boards, Commissions, and Committees in Oakland city government for decades. Our presence at city meetings is a reminder to our leaders that we, the People, have a right to know what actions our government is taking. The League believes that this access is fundamental to our mission as well as to the health of our democracy.

Following the grave oversight compliance deficiencies of Oakland government detailed in the Alameda County Grand Jury report (2024-2025), the Corps will be paying special attention to the actions of oversight commissions of active ballot measures – such as Measures MM, KK, U and Q. In addition, the Corps will be keeping tabs on issues of continuing concern to the League and to the Oakland citizenry: good government, public finance, and the health and safety of our community.

Interested in Volunteer Opportunities with the Corps?

Charter Reform

The Mayor of Oakland announced on July 25, 2025 that she had convened a working group to review and provide recommendations for reforming Oakland's Charter.

The League of Women Voters of Oakland and SPUR are co-facilitators of the working group process. LWVO and SPUR will also facilitate extensive public outreach and community engagement both to educate the community about the role of the Charter and to solicit information and viewpoints for the working group to consider. The working group will issue an advisory report in January 2026. The report will address provisions of the Charter that concern:
1) the roles and responsibilities of elected officials,
2) responsible financial planning, and
3) oversight and accountability.

Actual Charter changes must be approved by voters. Specific proposals for changing the Charter would be presented via a ballot measure put on the ballot by the City Council or one qualified by the gathering of a required number of signatures.

Democracy Dollars Update

Oakland voters approved the Fair Elections Act (FEA) in November 2022 to introduce Democracy Dollars to Oakland - an innovative approach to campaign finance reform. We are the second city in the country, after Seattle, Washington, to adopt this method of financing political campaigns with public money. Oakland’s charter-mandated Public Ethics Commission, which administers the prior and more limited current system of campaign finance, is responsible for implementation.

However, success at the ballot box is just the first step toward implementation. Given Oakland’s budget deficits, neither the Mayor nor the City Council identified sufficient resources to fully launch the FEA in the 2024 elections. Nonetheless, the Mayor’s budget included an allocation to begin preparations for full implementation in 2026.

See our latest blog for updates