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Jul 7, 2026

city council

The July 7, 2026 Compton City Council meeting was dominated by devastating public testimony from the family of Mia Bordenave Jenkins, a 19-year-old UNLV student killed in a July 4th mass shooting at the Wilmington Arms apartments, whose body was left uncovered on the ground for approximately 12 hours while officers and bystanders stepped over it. Councilwoman Duhart formally requested an Internal Affairs investigation into deputies' conduct, and the mayor directed staff to develop a community safety and violence prevention action plan. In closed session, the council accepted City Manager Willie Hopkins' resignation and appointed Acting City Manager Grooms as interim city manager at $334,070 annually (3-1 votes). The council certified the June 2026 election results 3-1 despite public objections, approved $137,170 to complete the long-overdue General Plan 2045 update, and postponed a ballot measure to permanently ban fireworks after learning no enforcement task force had been deployed on July 4th.

Jun 23, 2026

city council

The Compton City Council adopted the fiscal year 2026-2027 budget, which includes approximately $30 million for the sheriff's contract, new street sweepers, a vacuum truck, and a community services manager position for homeless outreach that has gone unfilled for two years despite being budgeted. The council approved $600,000 in federal HOME ARP funds to formally partner with [HOPICS](https://www.hopics.org) for homeless supportive services for the first time and authorized $2.03 million to purchase four ambulances and one paramedic squad for the fire department. The council voted to pause its membership in the California Cities for Self Reliance Joint Powers Authority after discovering the JPA had not actually joined a critical lawsuit challenging the state's ban on blackjack-style card games, potentially jeopardizing casino revenue. During discussion of extending contracts with eight outside law firms, Councilmember Bowers raised conflict-of-interest concerns about council members voting on a firm's contract after accepting holiday gifts from that firm, prompting a public exchange with the city's special legal counsel about [Form 700](https://www.fppc.ca.gov/Form700.html) reporting requirements.

Jun 22, 2026

charter committee

The Compton Charter Review Committee held a special meeting to continue reviewing Section 500 of the city charter, focusing on three major issues: whether to recommend restoring the elected city attorney position removed by Measure CA, whether to return to citywide at-large voting instead of district-based elections, and total compensation for the mayor and city council. Committee members learned that council members receive a $600 monthly stipend, $650 auto allowance, $100 phone allowance, $20,000 annual discretionary event funds, and lifetime medical/dental/vision benefits after five years of service — with Commissioner Baker raising concerns about insufficient safeguards against cronyism in discretionary spending. No formal votes were taken; staff was directed to research total compensation details, the 2012 redistricting settlement agreement, and residency requirements for an elected city attorney, with responses expected at the June 29 meeting.

Jun 4, 2026

personnel board

The Compton Personnel Board held a special meeting on June 4, 2026, approving several routine staffing actions including eligibility lists for two assistant electrician and three office assistant positions, three temporary 90-day appointments, and the exemption of an associate civil engineer position from classified service for up to six months while recruitment continues. The board abolished the Code Enforcement Officer 2 eligibility list because those positions have been reclassified as Public Safety Supervisors, and abolished the Painter list after the top candidate fell through. The board tabled approval of October 2023 meeting minutes so newer members could review video recordings, while approving the May 2026 minutes with one abstention from newly appointed member Bryant. Board member Black raised concerns about expiring temporary payroll specialist appointments in the city controller's office and was told recruitment should be ready for the next regular meeting.

Jun 3, 2026

city council

The Compton City Council held its annual AB 2561 public hearing on workforce vacancies, with HR reporting the city's vacancy rate dropped from 27.8% to 20.1% after 136 successful hires this fiscal year. The Fire Fighters union raised concerns about 15 fire department vacancies and the loss of 239 years of combined experience from 22 departures over the past decade. Multiple residents urgently demanded action on World Oil refinery emissions near Cesar Chavez Park, citing repeated citations, a facility fire, and ongoing health effects including nosebleeds and nausea affecting families and children. A proposed memorandum of understanding with SLA Inc. for a Raymond Street Park equestrian project failed on a 2-2-1 vote after concerns about the lack of a competitive bidding process. Council Member Bowers was appointed the new Mayor Pro Tem for District 3, and the fiscal year 2026-2027 budget public hearing was rescheduled to June 16.

Apr 14, 2026

city council

The council voted 2-3 to reject a travel authorization (Item 5) totaling $1,623 structured across three separate General Fund line items — $1,000, $548, and $75 — for elected officials to attend the 67th Annual Municipal Seminar in Indian Wells in May 2026, with Mayor Sharif, Spicer, and Bowers voting no and Duhart and Darden voting yes; the three-way split of expenditures for a single event is a pattern flagged in the structured agenda. A right-of-entry and access agreement with nonprofit Connecting Compton for a former landfill site at 2815–2901 West Alondra Boulevard (Item 6) was tabled 4-1 (Bowers dissenting) after council members raised concerns about soil contamination, the city's disclosure of two unresolved competing access challenges filed against the city, and the revelation that vendor NV5 holds an active city stormwater-sampling contract at the site yet has produced no reports to the council. Staff was directed to bring NV5 before the council for a full presentation, explore a request for proposals for soil site analysis, and contact the EPA directly, with all three components targeted to return by mid-May 2026. The closed session on public employee discipline — concerning the city manager currently on administrative leave — was referred to outside retained counsel Enzo Law with no additional reportable action; two members of the public addressed the closed-session item before it convened, both speaking in support of the city manager.

Apr 7, 2026

city council

The council's two largest expenditure approvals were a combined $1,129,333 to Savi Construction, Inc. — structured as an $847,000 three-year citywide red curb painting contract plus a separate $282,333 first-year purchase order to the same vendor — approved 5-0 with Councilmember Bowers voting yes while stating 'reluctantly'; and a $801,642 two-year sole-source lease with Flock Safety, Inc. for 74 automatic license plate readers and 37 PTZ cameras, approved 5-0 despite opposition from at least four public speakers who cited privacy concerns, potential conflicts with California's SB 34 and SB 54, and the sole-source designation of the contract. The consent agenda — which included a $62,100 contract to Mariposa Eco Consulting for SB 1383 implementation, acceptance of a $32,208 LA Dodgers Foundation grant paired with a $24,000 contract to Harold Johnson (an amount that sits just below the $25,000 council approval threshold), and two sets of meeting minutes — passed 5-0 after item 7, a $5,662 Grainger purchase order for portable evaporative coolers at Wilson Park Gymnasium, was pulled for separate discussion and then approved 5-0. At the close of the meeting, following a reconvened closed session, council reported that the city manager was placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. Item 12, a discussion on facilities honoring Cesar Chavez, received no council direction and died; item 11, scheduling public hearings for the FY 2026-27 budget, was tabled to be returned with printed dates.

Mar 17, 2026

city council

The council's largest spending action was approving Road Repair Project Phase IX, which encompasses a $5.58 million contract with Hardy & Harper, Inc. for construction and six separate line items to Bowman Infrastructure Engineers Ltd. totaling approximately $1.22 million for construction management and inspection services; the council voted specifically on a Bowman contract amendment stated in the resolution as $204,116.70, passing 4-0-1 with one abstention unnamed in the record — Bowman also held a $257,977 construction management contract approved in October 2024 for the same project type, and that identical figure reappears among the current Bowman line items. The council also approved a $98,375 contract with [Selbert Perkins Design](https://selbertperkins.com/) for municipal branding and marketing consulting services, 5-0 after council discussion; the amount falls $1,625 below the $100,000 approval threshold. The full consent agenda — including a $250,000 recurring purchase order with Springbrook Holding Company LLC for utility billing software (a vendor the city has paid continuously since at least 2009, when comparable orders were under $52,000), $182,182 to the LA Gateway Region Integrated Regional Water Management JPA for water quality monitoring, and $63,112 to Advanced Compliance Engineering for fuel pump maintenance — passed 5-0 without discussion. More than fifteen residents addressed the council during public comment on non-spending matters including pothole damage claims, parking enforcement disputes, and code enforcement concerns; no members of the public spoke to any of the spending items on the agenda.

Mar 10, 2026

city council

The council's two largest spending approvals at the March 17, 2026 meeting were a $204,116.70 amendment to an existing professional services agreement with Bowman Infrastructure Engineers Ltd. for additional construction management and inspection on road repair project phase nine—passed with four affirmative votes and one abstention—and a contract not to exceed $98,375 with Silbert Perkins Design for municipal branding and marketing consulting, passed 5-0; the Silbert Perkins amount sits $1,625 below $100,000, which analysts typically flag as a potential threshold-adjacent figure, though Compton's specific contract approval threshold is not stated in the meeting materials. Bowman Infrastructure Engineers is a repeat vendor on a multi-phase road project, with this item adding funds to an existing agreement whose original contract value is not disclosed in the available materials. A Special Legal Counsel Authorization Resolution (Item 2 on the structured agenda) was also approved as part of the consent agenda, 5-0, with no dollar amount appearing in the available materials. More than fifteen residents addressed the council during public comment on non-spending matters—including pothole damage reimbursement denials, parking enforcement disputes, code enforcement complaints, and questions about commissioner eligibility to run for office—while no members of the public addressed either the Bowman or Silbert Perkins spending items before those votes were taken.

Mar 5, 2026

personnel board

The Personnel Board held a brief special meeting that addressed open competitive recruitment for at least two positions: an inspector in the Public Works Department and a driver in the Regulation Department. Representatives from the Maintenance Division and other departments were present to provide background on the positions. Brief discussion touched on park maintenance and tree safety, with members noting progress on fallen branch removal. The meeting adjourned shortly after convening, with no contentious votes or disputes recorded in the available transcript.

Mar 3, 2026

city council

The council's largest spending approvals came through the consent agenda — passed without individual vote tallies verbally recorded — totaling $141,115: $57,000 to UCLA Center for Prehospital Care for paramedic training, $70,560 across two line items to New West Landscaping for weed abatement (a vendor with recurring contract appearances in Compton records dating to at least 2018), and $13,355 to TAJ Trading Corporation for office furniture and counter purchases; a travel authorization totaling $1,253.24 from the General Fund for elected officials to attend the 2026 City Leaders Summit in Sacramento passed separately, 5-0 (Duhart, Spicer, Bowers, Darden, Sharif all yes). A $350,000 California DOJ Tobacco Grant budget amendment — which would have directed $332,668 of those funds to overtime pay for code enforcement inspections, $16,664 to salaries, and $668 to equipment — was tabled after council members questioned why inspection work was structured as overtime rather than regular-duty assignments; the item is scheduled to return the following week. The council discussed but did not vote on special legal counsel, directing the city manager to bring back a formal action item for three finalist firms: Alvarez-Madruga, Sanders and Roberts, and Norseman. Approximately sixteen residents addressed the Richland Farms parking permit ordinance during public comment — the night's dominant topic — with the majority demanding termination of the program and a smaller number expressing support.

Jan 13, 2026

city council

The council's largest spending approval was a $350,000 budget amendment appropriating California DOJ tobacco enforcement grant funds — $332,000 of that amount designated for overtime — passed 4-1 with Bowers dissenting; the council also approved a $220,493 contract amendment with NV5, Inc. for the Wilmington Avenue pedestrian and bicycle project (5-0) and an $82,500 grant administration agreement with Corelink Consulting (5-0, voted in a block with items 10 and 11). Three separate consent-calendar items each totaled exactly $50,000: a purchase order to TV Pro Gear, Inc. for council meeting production equipment (5-0), a purchase order to TAJ Trading Corporation DBA TAJ Office and School Supply for small business workshop supplies (4-0-1, Bowers abstaining, after two public commenters stated the recipient businesses were not identified in the agenda package), and a purchase order to Sherwin-Williams for anti-graffiti paint (5-0, in the block vote) — three contracts at an identical dollar amount spanning different departments and vendors. The meeting also included approval of $54,716 in recurring annual fees to the State Water Resources Control Board and $9,900 in Charter Review Committee stipends (both 5-0), while the March 2025 minutes were tabled due to the packet not being included. Outside of spending, the council voted 5-0 in open session to recruit a city controller following closed session, received and filed Bishop Guillory's resignation from the Public Safety Commission (5-0), denied Commissioner Inez Adkins a six-month leave of absence (5-0), and heard competing presentations from Oliveras Madruga, Nassiman LLP, and Sanders Roberts for special legal counsel services, with no contract awarded at this meeting.

Dec 9, 2025

city council

The only new spending approved at the December 9, 2025 meeting was $4,643 for the Maxcy D. Filer Square street designation, passed 5-0; the structured agenda shows $4,560 of that total paid to a single vendor, El Gran Torino Corporation, with the remaining $83.01 listed as a separate line item — no additional vendor description or sole-source justification appears in the available materials, and the payment is split across two line items with no explanation provided. The council voted 5-0 to receive and file $89,369 in city credit card charges covering January through June 2025, but this is a financial records item, not a new spending authorization; the assistant city manager stated the purchasing card program has been suspended pending a formal investigation and asked that council not discuss the charges publicly to avoid compromising that investigation. The council voted 5-0 to amend the Olympics/Tourism Committee ordinance, increasing membership from 9 to 11 — the change was made on the floor after both original motions were withdrawn and re-entered — and the Key to the City Policy resolution was tabled when both movers withdrew their motions, with council directing staff to return the item with language distinguishing the honor from routine proclamations; neither item carries a disclosed expenditure. The charter committee reconvening (Item 4) was discussed but not voted on, with council directing staff to return the item the following week with stipend and skill-set recommendations; at least eighteen members of the public spoke during audience comments, with the largest concentrations addressing the mayor's announced intent to formally request removal of a Public Safety Commission member, Richland Farms parking permits, and the suspended credit card investigation.

Nov 4, 2025

city council

The council's largest spending approval was $1.4 million to United Pacific Services, Inc. for tree trimming, passed on the consent agenda 4-0-1 (Darton abstaining) as three split line items ($700,000, $400,000, and $300,000); the city manager stated additional funds may be requested to bring the year's total to $1 million. The same 4-0-1 consent vote also approved $88,151 to Nunez Office Installation DBA NOI Installations for Water Department furniture, structured as three separate payments ($44,076, $36,989, and $7,087). The council approved a $143,270 professional services contract with The Natelson Dale Group for an economic development strategic plan, 4-0-1 (Darton abstaining), despite lower competing bids on record at $137,675 and $129,500; the firm also appears in a separate Successor Agency action item, bringing its total across both agenda items to seven line items and $440,260. A six-year lease with Fathers and Mothers Who Care — which included a $175,000 city expenditure for improvements at a city-owned property on North Alameda — was tabled with no formal vote after council members questioned whether building and safety had inspected the facility and whether the improvement terms had been adequately documented. Approximately fifteen residents spoke during public comment, with multiple speakers raising complaints about Water Department billing fees, inconsistent charges, and staff conduct.

Oct 21, 2025

city council

The council's largest spending approvals were a $75,000 maintenance services contract with Haaker Equipment Company and a $60,000 maintenance services contract with Quinn Company, both passed 5-0 on the consent agenda with no council discussion; no members of the public addressed either item, and the structured agenda records each as two matching line items of equal value (a contract and a budget allocation), a pattern flagged as possible split payments. As a separate action item, the council voted 5-0 with no council discussion to approve a GPS monitoring services agreement with Forward Thinking Systems, LLC—an initial purchase order not to exceed $46,531 plus an annual contract of $23,265.60 for up to three years with two one-year extension options; the initial amount sits just below the $50,000 approval threshold and the annual amount sits just below $25,000, both flagged as threshold-adjacent. The council also voted 5-0 to adopt an updated Emergency Operations Plan after an extended exchange in which at least one council member questioned fire department officials and an Area E DMACC coordinator on whether council had ever been provided the document and who constitutes the city's incident management team; fire department officials committed to distributing the plan to all council members. A city engineer's presentation on California's AB 413 daylighting parking law was informational only; the $90 figure associated with that item is a parking citation fee representing potential city revenue, not an approved expenditure. Approximately eleven residents addressed the council during public comment on topics including parking enforcement, charter compliance, and a request to investigate a city commissioner, but no speakers addressed the vendor contracts on either the consent agenda or the regular agenda.

Sep 23, 2025

city council

The council's only approved spending was a fire protection engineering services contract with KJ Consultants totaling $220,000 — structured as a $165,000 new contract plus a $55,000 recurring component — passed 3-0 on the consent agenda with council members Duhart and Spicer absent and no discussion before the vote; Council Member Bowers raised a question afterward about whether the city should explore in-house hiring rather than continued outside contracting, but the vote had already closed. Historical records show KJ Consultants has received fire engineering contracts from Compton across at least five prior agenda items dating to 2018 ($55,000), 2019 ($50,000), and two separate agreements in 2022 ($40,000 each), making this a long-running sole-source vendor relationship with no competitive procurement visible in the record. A second consent item — an agreement with Vantaggio for the 'Compton Connect Civic Innovation Initiative,' split across three line items ($348,200 contract plus budget allocations of $187,000 and $161,200) totaling $696,400 — was tabled before a vote and is expected to return at the first October council meeting; one public speaker specifically questioned who was preventing the item from advancing. Approximately twelve residents addressed the council during general public comment, raising concerns about charter enforcement, the city manager's authority to retain outside legal counsel without council approval, air quality near an industrial facility, homelessness encampments, and street maintenance — none spoke to the KJ Consultants contract before the vote was taken.

Sep 2, 2025

city council

The council's largest approved spending commitments were a $9.69M street rehabilitation contract with Palp, Inc. dba Excel Paving funded by MTA Bond Funds (5-0) and a $5.07M citywide road repair contract with Hardy & Harper, Inc. funded across Measure P, Measure M, and Measure R (5-0); Palp, Inc. dba Excel Paving is a flagged repeat vendor appearing in two agenda items totaling $20.34M on this agenda. The council also approved a $2.32M contract amendment with R2Build (dba R2B Engineering) for Tank Farm Reservoir upgrades from the Water Enterprise Fund (5-0), a $1.08M annual supply contract with Ferguson Waterworks (5-0), a $100,000 purchase order with Roadline Products, Inc. for pavement marking equipment with no council discussion (5-0), a health insurance contribution rate fix directing $2,520 and $2,409 per employee and annuitant respectively to CalPERS (5-0), and a $73,160 JAG grant budget amendment — with the city manager stating primary use will be license-plate-reader cameras — (5-0). Three items were not approved: the FY 2025-26 salary schedule budget amendment — which contains a $96,324 line item sitting just below the $100,000 approval threshold — was tabled at Council Member Duhart's request for more detail; a six-year lease with Fathers and Mothers Who Care covering $175,000 in building renovations at a city-owned property and $2,332 per month in rent was tabled after council members said the staff report lacked cost justification; and a budget amendment to direct approximately $141.82M to CalPERS for pension liability — making CalPERS a repeat vendor across four line items totaling $141.83M on this agenda — was pulled by the city manager, who said he wants to present it at a public workshop first. Nineteen residents addressed the council during public comment, with multiple speakers citing homelessness, a 6.8% property tax reassessment, deteriorating streets and missing street signs, and inconsistent street sweeping; one speaker alleged the city manager has been spending beyond the $50,000 limit set by Resolution 26100 for the past year.