Tulare County Assistant District Attorney Don Gallian has determined the Porterville City Council did not violate the Brown Act when it reached a Cooperative Agreement with the Tule River Indian Tribe during closed session in March.

Gallian’s decision comes in response to a request made Nov. 1  on behalf of the Coalition of Retailers, a group of local business owners.
He presented his decision in a statement released Nov. 17.

“After careful review of all the documents provided, it is my opinion that both sides are correct in their allegations. It appears that the people of Porterville were not given an opportunity to voice their support or opposition to the Cooperation Agreement prior to it being acted on by the Porterville Council and the Tule Indian Council...However, it is my responsibility to determine only whether there has been an intentional violation of the Brown Act. Based upon the material that has been provided, I agree with the City Attorney that there was not a violation.”

Coalition member, Taha Saleh, said Gallian’s decision does not come as a surprise.

“When we talked to the DA, we knew he wouldn’t have picked it [the violation] up, because there was nothing criminal about it [the agreement]. The Council was not acting in their own best interest, but trying to streamline the process with the tribe. They unintentionally skipped the process. I don’t think the councilmen knew what they were doing and just acted upon staff’s recommendation,” Saleh said.

According to Saleh, this decision does not bring him closure, but it will serve the City well.

“I feel like it helps the city understand that where we were coming from is not a ‘laughable’ joke but rather a legitimate problem. However, it does not bring closure, and it doesn’t give us the opportunity to comment. We were simply looking to get credit for what the City Council thought we lacked.”
The next move, Saleh said, is in the Council’s hands.