Making Democracy Work
Read Interviews with some Elected Officials
1. California has an ongoing structural imbalance, with insufficient revenue for the programs we would like to support, and an ongoing problem with the actual process of passing a budget. Even though we just passed Proposition 30, we recognize that this is just a first step towards financial stability for California.
A: What measures would you support to continue the progress that Proposition 30 represents?
Ms. Campos felt optimistic that the State Legislature will not need to cut services like we have had to for the last two years. In particular, the preservation of services for the poor, and continued investment in education are among her most significant legislative priorities. We need to look at common core as a priority and anything that would move California forward.
B: What measures would you support to change the budget process?
She shared that the Democratic Caucus will be mindful and strategic about how they will use the current majority in the Assembly. With regards to the 2/3rds vote to raise taxes, she has introduced ACA 3 to allow local government to lower the threshold to 55% to tax themselves for public safety. It doesn't address the equity issue so the Governor is presenting proposals for equity in education. She is not opposed to discussion about a two-year budget cycle, and debating the pros and cons of such a proposal.
2. There was an unprecedented amount of money spent in this election in California. What measures would you support to address the problem of money in politics? What improvements are needed to disclosure rules in California?
Ms. Campos supports bills introduced by Assemblymember Wieckowski and by State Senators Leno and Hill for full disclosure. She believes in full disclosure so people may make informed decisions. The Secretary of State gets overwhelmed with last minute contributions. She feels technology needs to be improved so there is disclosure in a timely manner during elections. She is open to discussions about how to help the Department provide greater accountability measures. Democrats and Republicans want to get their message out so they are putting lots of money into getting that message out. There is politics in everything. Running for office is about sharing a value system, not just about an individual. Throughout her tenure as an elected public servant, she strives to consistently articulate what's important to her constituents.
3. During the last legislative session, efforts were made to change the California Environmental Quality Act. In particular, an end-of-session attempt at a significant rewrite of CEQA was attempted but was not successful. What is your view of CEQA? What changes do you think it needs, if any?
Ms. Campos says CEQA does need updating, but we must not compromise environmental sustainability. CEQA should not be abused by some for their own gain. There are conversations going on now at the State Legislature. It is not an easy issue. At the local level, Ms. Campos wants full disclosure of environmental information related to CEQA translated into multiple languages to increase access to information for all community members---which is why she has proposed Assembly Bill 543. Currently, there are 7 million Californians who don't speak English or speak limited English.
4. San Jose Water Company has implemented a recent rate hike of 44% over three years which began in January 2013. What is your view of the situation? (The Division of Ratepayers Advocates of the California Public Utilities Commission has said a rate of 10% was more in line with what they found in their review.)
She received many calls from her constituents on this issue. Ms. Campos recognizes that it is a private company, but it serves a public function. People cannot opt out. It is a question of equity. It is something that may need more public oversight.
5. Do you see hope for the resurrection of redevelopment agencies?
Ms. Campos said that in the past, the taxes from the redeveloped areas went into the general fund and did not remain in the areas that were developed. There were other loopholes too. She thinks development can be done by targeting census tracts for investment in urban and downtown areas to create jobs using private investment through her bill AB 690, which proposes using tax increment financing (TIF) and the money stays in the local area.
6. What other issues do you think the Legislature must deal with in 2013? What are your personal priorities?
Ms. Campos' legislative priorities have consistently championed a number of issues, including domestic violence issues. She is also on the Education Committee and says we must invest in education to ensure that we continue to grow and develop our next generation of workers from our communities, and so we don't bring our workforce in from other places. Immigration reform is another priority for California. It helps everyone. For the technology sector, for example, it is their number one priority that their innovators---their talent---who start many companies here are on short term visas and that must change. Also, our agricultural community is concerned about immigration reform.
Q 1. California has both an ongoing structural imbalance, with insufficient revenue for the programs we would like to support, and an ongoing problem with the actual process of passing a budget. Even though we just passed Proposition 30, we recognize that this is just a first step towards financial stability for California. a. What measures would you support to continue the progress that Proposition 30 represents? b. What measures would you support to change the budget process?
Assemblyman Fong said California has both an ongoing structural imbalance, with insufficient revenue for the programs we would like to support, and an ongoing problem with the actual process of passing a budget. Even though we just passed Proposition 30, we recognize that this is just a first step towards financial stability for California.
He said there will be taxes. He supported Proposition 30 and also supports an oil severance tax. He wants to include the state park system in funding. The tax will be a penny at most at the retail level.
He also supports a split roll tax to update commercial rolls. The big corporations are getting 1978 tax rates. This needs to be updated.
He also supported middle class scholarships. The bill was defeated in the Senate but did get through the Assembly. The bill dealt with the tuition situation. Paul Fong said that he will support something like that again.
Currently, the budget is in the hands of the legislature 72 hours before approval. He feels three days is way too long; one day would be good. The public elected us (the legislature) to represent their interests. The budget in the hands of the legislature a day before approval would be good. He supports a two-year budget process if there is the ability to amend the second year budget.
Q 2. There was an unprecedented amount of money spent in this election in California. What measures would you support to address the problem of money in politics? What improvements are needed to disclosure rules in California?
Assemblyman Fong introduced AB400. It would require listing the five top contributors to a ballot measure. He supports transparency in the initiative process all the way to end. He is the principal co-author of the Disclose Act.
His assistant Sophia Quattlebaum mentioned the Fair Political Practices Commission and AB552. This bill will expedite this commission to pay unpaid fines.
Q 3. California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA): During the last legislative session, efforts were made to change the California Environmental Quality Act. In particular, an end-of-session attempt at a significant rewrite of CEQA was attempted but was not successful. What is your view of CEQA? What changes do you think it needs, if any?
Assemblyman Fong supports CEQA laws but he thinks they do need amending. He wants to keep the intent of CEQA to protect our environment because CEQA is a good law.
He mentioned AB900. For any projects over 100 million dollars there is a need to shorten the period of time to file a lawsuit to six months. He also wants to for projects for lower amounts - say five to ten million dollars.
Q 4. Local League Question
The League brought up the issue of the San Jose Water District's proposal to increase fees by over 40 percent. Assemblyman Fong mentioned the California Public Utilities (CPUC) Rate Payers Advocate's counter proposal to increase fees of less than ten percent per year over several years.
He also touched on hazardous waste, proper pill disposal, and fracking in California. He mentioned that environmentalists say fracking is really bad. He doesn't support fracking.
Q 5. What other major issues do you think the Legislature must deal with in 2013? What are your personal priorities?
Assemblyman Fong said that initiative reform is a high priority of his and also Campaign finance reform. He supports full disclosure of any moneys coming in.
Assemblyman Fong said it costs only $200 to file an initiative proposal. He thinks the cost should be higher, such as $2000 or $2500. He feels the initiative process is being abused.
He supports public financing because it levels the playing field.
1. California Budget: California has both an ongoing structural imbalance, with insufficient revenue for the programs we would like to support, and an ongoing problem with the actual process of passing a budget. Even though we just passed Proposition 30, we recognize that this is just a first step towards financial stability for California. a. What measures would you support to continue the progress that Proposition 30 represents? b. What measures would you support to change the budget process?
Given the current political spectrum, he does not see likelihood that there will be legislation to make the Prop 30 changes permanent. There will be seven years under 30 until it "sunsets" to move to make it permanent. If the Democrats in the Legislature can hold the super-majority in next election, there is possibility in future years for that happening. He does see an opportunity to get measure through legislative process to allow local governments bonding approval with 55% vote, which would provide some local revenue and relief. He also is working to convert the current "tax credit" into a "tax deduction;" this change would result in long-term increased state revenues.
The legislature is faced now with "opportunity" of a surplus and the issue is: What to do with it. He does not support using surplus just for pay down of the State's debt. He also would support two-year budget process, but not likely to see change happening this session. As the chair of the Committee on Judiciary, he would like funds restored to judiciary system, which is having to close down many courts in rural areas without access to justice system (he noted that these courts are civil courts, since criminal courts have set-aside funding and are not affected).
Would like to move to two year budget, but does not see that happening in the current session. Due to term limits, the Legislature tends to have "Band-Aid" solutions opposed to long term structural changes.
2. Election Reform/Money in Politics: There was an unprecedented amount of money spent in this election in California. What measures would you support to address the problem of money in politics? What improvements are needed to disclosure rules in California?
In the last session, he sponsored AJR 22 that was passed by both the Assembly and Senate (resolutions don't go to the Governor) to urge Congress to overturn the Citizens United ruling by the Supreme Court. In the current session, he is authoring AB 644, sponsored by Common Cause, which is a voter-instruction ballot measure that will come before the California voters in 2014 if approved by the Legislature and signed by the Governor. If passed by the voters, it would instruct California's Congressional members to author a Constitutional Amendment to overturn Citizens United and instruct state legislators to ratify it. Similar measures were approved by Montana and Colorado in 2012.
There are two bills in Senate SB2 and SB3 to increase disclosure requirements for any donation of $100,000 and more, which he strongly supports.
3. California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) + During the last legislative session, efforts were made to change the California Environmental Quality Act. In particular, an end-of-session attempt at a significant rewrite of CEQA was attempted but was not successful. What is your view of CEQA? What changes do you think it needs, if any?
The changes that he sees possible are in reforming the process "closing off causes of action" would be the best way to avoid law suits since projects that trigger suits already do comply with issues like air quality, land use, etc. Santa Clara County has typically not met with as much resistance regarding density as Fremont. The use of large amounts of redevelopment money allowed SC to build large projects using large developers. Small developers who try to use TOD in Fremont meet with public resistance so they back off and the development does not happen. The climate for density is different in a more urban setting. Fremont lags. Currently, no "good guy" wants to put forward a bill to change CEQA rules or change the process. California was a pioneer in environmental protection, and CEQA is an important document. It needs to be updated, with public hearings and thoughtful study, but there seems to be no impetus in the Assembly for taking that on this year. There is always the possibility of a last-minute bill, like last year, but then the rushed timing would preclude a thorough review. No one has looked at all the acts involved in the document. A thorough study would include all the component parts. Too often CEQA is used as the basis of a lawsuit to delay or stop development. There should be a way that developers, especially those of smaller projects like infills, can be protected against such delays if they have complied with all the acts in CEQA.
4 Local Issues
A. It is difficult to legislate for the entire district as it is urban and rural, has pockets of poverty, is ethnically diverse and huge. The interests of public schools and large industries affect land use decisions, and lack of his public recognition is apparent. Meeting with the San Jose/Santa Clara LWV will be a way to meet constituents. B. We introduced an article sparked by a Joint Venture Silicon Valley conference about combining services and government in the 9 Bay Area counties that the Assemblyman took with interest. C. Mr. W. is on the Health Committee, and he firmly supports universal health coverage with a single payer. Since the ACA will not cover all children until 2018, he supports providing care for children when they enter school, even if it is done with a mobile van. He was not specific about how this would become a law. D. He supports adding the subject of Financial Literacy to the CA common core requirements, and would like to the LWV to support the Student Bill of Rights and will send us information about the proposal. E. CA has some of the best gun control legislation in the nation, but he will work to make the public safer and has already signed on to several bills and will support John Perez's legislative committee to examine the issue.
5. What other major issues do you think the Legislature must deal with in 2013? What are your personal priorities?
On Affordable Health Care: There will still be 3-4 million people not covered, and 70% of them are children; partly due to undocumented parents. He feels this issue needs to be tied to school entry and if solution can be worked out with Homeland Security and Immigration to get around this issue, at county-level and local level, we could find way to provide health care to parents and these children.
Other concerns: he is working on legislation affecting garnishment of wages. Right now, high medical bills is one of leading causes of a person falling into debt, and garnishing wages only worsens situation for working poor. He would like to waive garnishment of wages if individual is 70% of federal poverty level.
He noted that he is carrying a legislative package of bills called the Student Bill of Rights. It is designed to make sure that education remains a pathway out of poverty, not into it. It calls for financial literacy education in K-12 (AB 391); private student loan entrance and exit counseling modeled off of the federal loan counseling so students Know Before They Owe" (AB 534); preventing the garnishment of wages for all non-federal student loans to protect students from having up to 25 percent of their paychecks taken (AB 233); and Assembly Joint Resolution 11, urging Congress to make private student loan debt dischargeable in bankruptcy.
Question on the open calender issue:
Assemblyman Gordon feels hopeful because there are a handful of legislators who are in favor of this issue. The recent court ruling (Sacramento Superior Court Judge) on Legislators' budgets ruled that the Assembly must open their fiscal records, but did not mention the calendars. {See SJMN Editorial on 12/06/11}. He mentioned that the County Supervisors produced a weekly calendar of public events the week after the fact; an after the fact calendar helps address the security issues. The format is the challenge: sometimes meetings are unscheduled and brief, so it would be difficult to get that on a calendar. He says at least scheduled meetings should be on the calendar + generally he has 4-5 per day when he is in Sacramento.
The issue of how often a legislator meets with a lobbyist won't really be that revealing on an open calendar, as most often the lobbyist meets with staff rather than with the legislator. R.G. mentioned that there are two entrances to the Assembly Chambers, one by the bench where the lobbyists sit and the one by the elevator, so he uses the elevator entrance if he doesn't want to be stopped by a lobbyist.
Gordon was asked about lobbyists who text or call while a legislator is sitting on the floor of the Assembly. He said the rules don't permit it and he would report it if it happened. Lobbyists are permitted to give business cards to one of the sergeants who can deliver it to the legislator who is free to go meet with the lobbyist. In his case, he said that 75% of the time he texts his staff and asks one of them to go down and meet with the lobbyist.
He also explained that any legislator has until the end of the day's session to record his or her vote via computer if they miss the roll call vote. Legislators' votes are a matter of public record and he has a high percentage of not voting, because he never votes on highway naming bills, and there are about 20 to 30 such bills each year.
He told us the Transparency Task Force hasn't finished making appointments though they had one brief meeting. Speaker Perez says he values transparency but his office is at the center of the budget and calendar impasse. He noted that Assemblyman Portantino has gone outside "the system" and therefore has lost money from his budget. In Nov. of 2010 Perez lost his Education Subcommittee chairperson assignment which meant that he lost his budget augmentation for additional staffing, but did not reduce staff and thus exceeded his budget.
R. G. said each legislator has a base allocation of $276,000 which is enough for 4 staffers. Budgets are augmented based on committee assignments. Gordon has four local and four Sacramento staff persons because he chairs the Budget Subcommittee for Natural Resources & Transportation, which augments his budget by another $260,000. The cost for office space, office supplies, and staff travel is in addition to these allocations.
Question on the California State Budget:
Gordon co-authored a bill calling for a performance-based budgeting process, but Governor Brown vetoed it. The way the budget process demands that only changes to the budget are studied, not the entire budget. He said there is not real analysis of the budget or what they are achieving with their budget, something that a performance-based budget process would do. He developed a questionnaire for all departments under his Resources and Transportation Subcommittee to complete that asked for a mission statement and other documentation explaining the budget, something the departments had never been asked to do. Some did well, others not, for example the DMV mission statement was very long and elaborate but said nothing about issuing drivers' licenses or vehicle license plates.
He was asked about the possibility of having a "sunset" on departments' programs, although it would be problematic with term limits. He said that he has been appointed to the Sunset Review Committee, but it has met only two times, once to convene the committee, and once to hear a presentation of the sunset laws in other states.
Question on the California State Initiative and Referendum Process:
The Assemblyman said the initiative process is currently driven by money, which is ironic given its beginnings. He thinks: a) we need to deal with the very challenging money issue, b) we need a higher threshold to qualify an initiative for the ballot c) we should explore the concept that the Legislature review or modify or place an alternative initiative on the ballot as other states do; and d) he is troubled that initiatives become part of the Constitution and feels that the legislature should be able to modify them.
He used as an example the Proposition 36 initiative which required the state to fund drug treatment for offenders prior to jail time for a 5-year period of time. This was not renewed by the Legislature due to budget concerns. As a result, the Courts cannot send first and second offenders to jail but conversly there is no money for drug treatment unless a county steps in to fund it.
When asked about the Clean Money Campaign/The Disclose Act, Rich Gordon said he is in favor of it.
Question 1. Do you support efforts to increase transparency and provide more information to the public through such steps as requiring disclosure and quick reporting of all election-related spending?
Congressman Honda strongly supports these efforts. He thought that the Supreme Court interpretation had gone "off the deep end." He knows of no further legislation, after the DISCLOSE act failed, that would address this problem.
Question 2. What can you do to help improve civic discourse and reduce the level of rancor and partisan bickering in national politics?
The congressman answered: "Tell the truth." He said the bipartisan seating during Obama's State of the Union address where Republicans and Democrats crossed physical boundaries and sat next to each other "was a game." Sometimes there is a need to be "diplomatic when disagreeing with them (the Republicans). Sometimes you have to be blunt." In talking about the deficit, Republicans forget the year 2000 when the budget was balanced, and that they inherited it and built up a deficit long before the recession. We must set the record straight on such matters. If you cut taxes, cut revenue, keep spending, you create a deficit.
He said that the role of the League of Women Voters is important. "This country deserves straight talk." Some people "don't make sense." They're "putting 30-second comments" that have "no bearing on the real issues." He wants citizens to be critical about what they're hearing. He said that the League of Women Voters provides a place to discuss things without the rancor.
Question 3. What are your major priorities for the 112th Congress?
There are priorities that are his, and then priorities of what can be done. Then he claimed to be speaking to those he thought could be done.
1. Comprehensive immigration reform. He would like to see this passed in its entirety. He feels it is fair to put people on a path to citizenship. He is trying to create a strident pathway to citizenship. It was very shortsighted not to support the Dream Act, when that would have called children to be responsible adults like one would think the Republicans would like. But the other plans for comprehensive reform are much better than what we got in 1986 (amnesty), and furthermore they (the immigrants) want this plan.
2. Comprehensive health reform. Finish this up. Add the public option. Public Option would provide competition among providers. Single Payer would be most efficient, but let's give the insurance companies a chance to go down the right path. As far as public option, startup would be expensive ($2 billion dollars to kick in) but then it would be premium driven and not as costly, overhead is very low. He noted that the single state exchanges that some states are setting up could lead directly to single payer. He is a single payer proponent.
3. Get out of Afghanistan.
4. Leave the House better than we found it. (I think this was in reference to this particular Congress.)
5. On the deficit: he said that people complain about how much China is doing, but they are funding only 9.5% of the debt while 53% of the debt is held by the US public. China doesn't want to support the growing national debt anymore.
6. Global warming. I want to leave the planet better for my great great great grandchildren. We need a national policy on Global Warming. We need to be partners with China and India on this issue.
7. Education is what he breathes every day. California spends $9,000.00 per child whereas New York spends $16,000.00 per child. California has built 22 new prisons but only one new state university.
We have recently set up a Committee on Equity and Excellence (it's on the web site). They will hold nine meetings regionally with the stakeholders (April in San Jose), wanting to involve the public, and getting at concepts rather than specifics. For example, the concept of equity (just and fair), not parity (the same to everyone). This is a process that does not have a law at the end. Focus on individual child and resources behind the child, not "the children", and resources for the children and excellence of teachers, to address the needs of each child. (What does each child need, as opposed to what do children need?) Problems are cultural (we still go by an agricultural calendar, and pay teachers as if they are housewives getting a job) and infrastructure (now based on the needs of adults).
He feels that the founding fathers did not mean that there should be state's rights for education in perpetuity. Although they set up departments for the military and the postal system, they did not set up a department of education. They left it up to the states. Standards should be across states. He sees the possibility of a federal lawsuit for civil rights for children.
1. Do you support efforts to increase transparency and provide more information to the public through such steps as requiring disclosure and quick reporting of all election-related spending?
Congresswoman does support transparency, and was a strong supporter of the Disclose Act which did not pass in the Senate. She noted that with the 112th Congress and the Republican control she did not think it could pass in the current Congress. She said that the recent court decision was one of the worst (written by Justice Kennedy) which would lead to open assault on transparency. She noted that little rural communities were getting millions of dollars in the past election year that they wouldn't otherwise get (largely from outside their community).
2. What can you do to help improve civic discourse and reduce the level of rancor and partisan bickering in national politics?
She said that she does this with how she comports herself. She believes that most of the rancor and partisan bickering has been in media and on talk shows with hostile commentary. She is no longer chair of Ethics. She said that during the Rangel proceedings comments were awful, things like (he) "ought to be killed". She was critical of media which allowed violent comments on their websites. She said media is not required to publish such commentary. She said today the parties are diametrically opposed views on where the country should be headed.
3. What are your major priorities for the 112th Congress? She noted that much of what a Congressperson does is done through committees. Congresswoman is on the House Committee on the Judiciary, the Science, Space and Technology (subcommittee on Energy and Environment), and House Administration Committee.
She said that on Judiciary, she would be the senior Democrat on Immigration subcommittee, and that she expects debate will be contentious. And she will also serve on the Intellectual Property Committee, which is important to her constituency in Silicon Valley + and she saw opportunities to act on issues of patent and copyright. She had, in the 111th Congress served on Homeland Security, which she's left to return to Science, Space and Technology Committee. Being on the Energy Subcommittee will also allow her to work on climate change and alternative energy issues. On House Administration, her assignment at the time of our meeting, was not finalized. She also chairs the California Democratic Congressional Delegation, and in that capacity has invited the Californian Republic leadership to meet with them (but it has historically never happened). Beyond committee assignments, she said the deficit is problem. She feared that some efforts to reduce the deficit too quickly could result in backward movement and tailspin. She expects some key votes on debt ceiling. She doesn't agree with Majority Leader John Boehner + Republicans and Democrats will be playing a "game of chicken" on how far it will go. She was critical of some of the new Republican freshmen who don't know and understand the gravity of situation, only want to spend money on defense.
Additional Questions
1. Do you believe that Congress should delay or curtail enforcement of the Clean Air Act?
Congresswoman is supporter of Clean Air Act + she fears that Republicans will use the appropriations process to stymie enforcement of the act, "starving" the EPA of funds for environment. She expects a big contentious fight. A contingency resolution that allowed funding expires in March. She noted though that she felt that the Republican leadership doesn't have control of their body. She noted that she was in Congress in 1994 when Republicans were in control under Newt Gingrich as speaker + but she noted that at least he believed in science and understood how government works + a situation she suggests does not exist today. She expressed grave concerns about the current body of legislators who don't have background (on how government works) but who have a belief system that is paramount and who want to go back to "origins" of government.
2. Do you support repealing or limiting the newly enacted national health care legislation, the Affordable Care Act?
No.
1. Budget Dilemmas: How will you prioritize the choices the Legislature needs to make to align the state's spending and revenue in a way that addresses the need for fair, sufficient and flexible revenue sources that can provide for state and local government services?
Assembly Beall: The state's three biggest expenditures are:
1. Education (K-12, community college, higher education)
2. Medication (health and human services)
3. Incarceration (prison system)
Education makes up the biggest portion of the budget pie. Health and human services make up the second largest portion. Incarceration makes up the third largest but is the portion that grows the most.
In Home Support Services (IHSS), which takes care of the elderly, the aging population and the disabled, is caseload driven. Caseworkers are paid less per caseload than ever before. There are more older people, and more older people need these services. Therefore, more money is needed.
When Arnold Schwarzenegger took office, 11.2 billion dollars was budgeted for IHSS in 2003. In 2010, 11.3 billion dollars was budgeted, meaning that the dollars apportioned did not grow over the years.
Between October of 2003 and October 2009, the caseload growth amongst the various human services programs varied from 10 to 50 percent in the number of people serviced. These include programs such as food stamps, CALWORKS, IHSS, SSI (Supplemental Security Income). The services provided are thinner and less because these caseloads are higher (due to the recession) and serving more people with counties administering these programs with less money. Welfare cash grant payments are back to 1991 levels. Payments to disabled people have been cut almost to the minimum allowed by federal law.
Incarceration makes up the single largest growth area in the state budget. However, the crime rate has not grown but has actually gone down slightly. But the prison population has gone up. Recidivism is at 75 percent. This means within two years after being released, 75 percent of released inmates are back in prison. California has the highest recidivism rate in the U.S.
The sentence terms get longer the second time a criminal is sent back to prison, and they get longer the third time a criminal is sent back to prison. With the three strikes law a criminal will face 25 years in prison upon the third sentence.
Increasing punishment for criminals involves lengthier prison terms. California has cut all programs for prisoner redemption. This includes education for inmates, drug treatment and mental health programs. The average cost to put someone in prison is $60,000 per inmate. The state has no reserves. Money is taken out of the existing budget to pay for incarceration. That means cuts to health care and education to pay for prison costs.
Assemblyman Jim Beall, Jr. said "no ballot measures unless you know what it's going to cost." Basically, he asked the question "How are you going to pay for it?" The public needs to know the funding source. He wants to see "more money for crime prevention programs" such as job training so that a certain number of criminals won't go back to prison. He upheld the state of Washington as the "golden standard" with a 28 percent recidivism rate. If California could reduce its recidivism rate to 50 percent, the state can close prisons and save money.
Currently, California mandates parole for all inmates. Other states don't mandate parole for nonviolent felons. There are over 30,000 adult males in state prison for non-violent drug offenses. And over a third of parolees return to prison because they commit a new drug offense and violate their parole. There are tens of thousands who had technical violations such as repeatedly not showing up for parole dates. A lot of these are schizophrenic and mentally ill people, who need a treatment program. "Not our job is the attitude."
The cost of prison hospitals is growing. It costs $200,000 to $300,000 to send a terminally ill inmate to a prison hospital. It is cheaper to send them to a county hospital or a nursing home.
Another source of wasteful spending is the California Youth Authority. There used to be 12,000 juveniles handled by the CYA. Now it is just 1200. The budget for the CYA is 350 million dollars. Santa Clara County has declined to send children to the CYA for eight years. Some counties do not send children. The Assemblyman called the program "how to be a dope dealer in high school."
2. The Budget Process: What proposals do you support to fix the budget process?
The Democratic Caucus will have hearings on proposals on Monday (April 26th).
Beall supports "Pay- Go. "If you're going to propose something, you have to pay for it."
He also supports passing local taxes with a majority vote.
He also wants to see "less bills" in the legislative process. He suggests a one-third reduction in the number of bills a legislator can introduce. Hopefully, it'll be reduced to around 10 each. Right now the number of bills introduced per legislator is around 20. With a reduction in the number of bills introduced, the legislature can focus more on the budget. "I think performance management and budget more important than bills."
The Republicans don't like the two-third vote on budget eliminated. It is on the ballot in November.
3. Constitutional Reform: What types of reforms do you think are important to make government function more effectively?
"Don't think constitutional convention will work." Legislature can make structural changes so constitutional convention unnecessary.
"Term limits have to be addressed." It is ludicrous to raise money to run and only serve a short period of time (two years for assemblyperson). There are 400,000 people represented in each district. "Two year term should be four years."
4. General Question: What other major issues do you think the Legislature must address in 2010? What are your priorities?
Beall wants to see "cleaning up the government". For example:
Working in committee to get departments to cut administration overhead and explore effective hiring principles. Now questioning and working with the state to realign the Medi-Cal waiver to get our state its fair share of federal dollars to pay for medical services for elderly, poor, and disabled. Working for effective solutions other than short-term decisions that may save the state money but shift the cost to local governments; the taxpayers still gets the bill but from a different source + nothing really changes. We can change that by solving the root problem, not the symptoms; emphasize preventive measures that we can realistic institute ... like more drug and alcohol treatment and counseling to stop recidivism. It's cheaper to treat them than jail `em, plus we solve the underlying problem. Doing all I can to increase my district's understanding of the issues and to dilute the polarization of the electorate. Informed voters make the best decisions. Holding neighborhood meeting every month, sometimes twice a month to maintain a dialogue. They do not have to come to me + I go to them.
1. Budget Dilemma: How will you prioritize the choices the Legislature must make to align the state's spending and revenue in away that addresses the need for fair, sufficient and flexible revenue sources that can provide for state and local government services?
Mr. Simitian observes: during tough times you spend less, raise more. Constituents want more services and lower taxes, but can't have both now. The challenge is that we have already made cuts. This can be either a revenue problem or an expenditure problem. Right now it's a revenue problem. Last year we did program cuts and raised revenue. The federal government's $8B helped to rescue. Voters said no on others. We did the sensible thing last year. As it went on in the year, however, there needed to be a combination of budget cuts and "gimmicks". This year, it has not turned around as hoped. We're going to have to use cuts. Republicans are not going to budge since they saw how those who supported increased taxes last year either lost, or are not running. Now it will be cuts and gimmicks as a matter of necessity. We will try to hang on to things as a matter of survival, e.g. try not to zero out programs since it is so difficult to reinstitute them. This holds across the board, whether health and welfare or education. Mr. Simitian will continue to push for the ability to make local choices + for example, parcel taxes are a particular push for him. We can also make sound policy choices for little money.
Example #1, change the starting age for kindergarten. Studies have shown that children are too young if they are allowed to start at age 4; currently children can start in September if they will be 5 by December. This cohort would save the state $700M. Thirteen years is $9.1B in savings. We could take half of that savings and use it in pre-school programs so those kids are addressed. There will be a huge debate about where to spend this instead of on pre-school.
Example #2 is on hold. Car registration done every 2 years, not every year, would save paperwork and administration, albeit be a 1-time boost in the amount a person pays. This one is tougher to introduce. Mr. Simitian made the observation that we need to be careful not to recalibrate our expectations. What we have now shouldn't be our long-term expectation; it should not be the new norm.
2. The Budget Process: What proposals do you support to fix the budget process?
Senator Simitian supports a change in the passage rate for the budget from two-thirds (2/3) to a simple majority. He says until we do, the public will not be able to hold Legislators accountable for their budget vote. With the 2/3s vote the majority party is able to say they voted for a budget but the minority party would not let it happen. The minority party says the majority party wanted to spend too much and the minority party prevented that from happening. So they blame each other rather than finding a solution in order to pass a budget. Additionally, he says the 2/3s vote requirement gives extraordinary power to 2 or 3 members of the minority party to get their pet projects put in the budget. Witness Abel Moldonado's ability to cut $2 Billion from the Budget he voted for as well as get the Open Primary proposition put on the June Ballot.
Senator Simitian supported Redistricting because if you are to hold Legislators accountable, California must have seats that are not gerrymandered.
3. Constitutional Reform: What types of reforms do you think are important to make government function more effectively?
Mr. Simitian favors redistricting and reapportionment reforms. At the top of the list he also favors eliminating the requirement for a two-third majority vote and replacing it with a simple majority to pass the legislative budget. He said if the Democrats raise taxes too much, or if the Republicans cut too much from the budget, just toss them out. He talked about partisan gerrymandering in Texas. He opposes efforts by Congress to undo the nonpartisan redistricting commission put in place in California. The question is should legislators draw their own lines or should a nonpartisan commission do this. He does not support putting a proposition on the ballot to undo the nonpartisan redistricting commission. Mr. Simitian supports Proposition 14 but says it is imperfect. He likes the old open primary better. He said he was elected through the open primary. It cost him $1.5 million dollars to win his primary. He was one of the two top vote getters in the primary. His opponent was Ted Lempert, also on the Democratic Party ticket. Under Proposition 14 the same race would have happened in the fall with the two top vote getters battling it out. Proposition 14 will allow only the top two vote getters in a primary for a statewide or congressional race, regardless of party affiliation, to advance to the fall election. This will be more expensive, and there will be more need to raise large amounts of money from interest groups. Mr. Simitian says that all three things (simple majority vote, reapportionment/redistricting, and Proposition 14?) will make the state run appreciably better.
4. General Question: What other major issues do you think the Legislature must address in 2010? What are your priorities?
Senator Smitian tries to focus on 1-3 issues each year, in addition to the general business. This year he will be focusing on changing the entry date for kindergartners to September 1, reducing carbon emissions 33% by 2020, and highway safety.
The change of the K starting date is the right thing to do educationally. Most states use a September 1 start date. Kindergarten has a substantial curriculum which is difficult for the young fives. Changing the date drops attendance for that year's cohort by 25% every year for 13 years as it progresses through school. The cost savings would be 700 million for each year. Senator Smitian recommends adding 350 million to the preschool program leaving 350 million for other uses.
The focus is on renewable energy to bring carbon emissions down 33% by the year 2020. There are 5 reasons to pursue renewable energy.
1. Immediately results in cleaner air.
2. Immediately effects climate change.
3. It is sound energy policy as diverse energy sources protect against market manipulation by single source suppliers.
4. American foreign policy should be based on American interests and values not from the source of our energy supply.
5. Creates jobs and economic development.
6. Does not necessarily require state expenditures.
Senator Smitian commented that there is more alienation of voters than he has experienced in his many years of public service. He feels that part of this is caused by the slow adapt ion to the internet age. Elected officials need to explain quickly in easy to understand language what they are doing and why.
1. Budget Dilemmas: How will you prioritize the choices the Legislature must make to align the state's spending and revenue in a way that addresses the need for fair, sufficient and flexible revenue sources that can provide for state and local government services?
The dilemma: The state of California is too dependent on personal income tax (approx. 54-56% of state revenue is from personal income taxes). A poor economy and/or economic downturn thus creates budget shortfalls. In addition, 36% of state revenue is achieved through corporate income taxes, which have been subject to added tax breaks and loopholes. The smallest part of revenue is from sales and use tax.
The solution: 1. Develop a budget that is less dependent on income tax. (As the state has become more service based, there is also an opportunity to create a new tax base) 2. Close the loopholes and reduce corporate incentives programs by reviewing current corporate tax breaks for continued viability. Taking these steps will create a broader tax base, eliminate services which do not meet the needs they were designed for, (there are currently 12 pages of funds that can be reviewed) and stabilize the revenue flow by rolling back expenditure levels until the economy recovers. Schwarzenegger's proposal to cut the CalWorks program does not make sense. It is counterproductive because CalWorks helps families get off assistance by providing job training. The Governor also cut the vehicle registration fee tax, which could be a significant source of revenue for the state. Support Prop 98 because the more revenue that is raised in the percentage based system, the more funds go to education. The cutting of Proposition 98 would create an education system in California similar to that of a third world country. That is not to say that Prop 98 is acceptable as is. It must be modified, modernized and provide more flexibility.
2. The Budget Process: What proposals do you support to fix the budget process?
See budget priorities. The State Constitution identifies the spending priorities as 1) debt 2) schools/education 3) state employees Additionally: reduce the voting requirement for budget approval from 2/3 to 50%+1, reform current reliance on income tax and establish a rainy day fund of savings and reserves for hard times (one which is not to be drained during times of plenty) The public services sector is hurting for funds. When cities speak of moving professional sporting teams, they are able to locate the funds necessary to do so. It's a matter of shifting priorities to where they are needed.
3. Constitutional Reform: What types of reforms do you think are important to make government function more effectively?
The question asked becomes who gets to decide what the state constitutional issues are? Do we include questions of gay rights, the death penalty, marriage, etc. If we were able to limit the discussion then maybe a Constitutional Convention might be a good idea. The initial reforms should include ballot initiatives, which should be reviewed for legislative viability as well as the potential to pass action in the legislature rather than adding to the cost of the voting process as well as clearly labeled revenue sources. Most importantly would be a performance based budget that sets achievement standards, evaluates progress and modifies as necessary. Secondly, require state agencies to make specific requirements to obtain funds, reduce Cost of Living increases to need/request not automatic yearly increases. Thirdly, fully support a 2-3 year rotating budget cycles that alternates focus, one year budget, 1 year legislation, etc.
4. General Question: What other major issues do you think the Legislature must address in 2010? What are your priorities?
1) Keep working on school finance and reform. ie: reform of Prop. 98 spending, and equalizing per child spending in reference to disparate cost of living increases. 2) The adverse affect of obesity and diabetes on government resources. ie: educate young people and inventory the actual cost. 3) Reform the way that state government gets financed.