Image by NeydtstockIn talking with legislative staff, there are some practical tips that were shared with me for those working with staff of legislators in the California State Capitol. While some of these recommendations may seem obvious, many of them bear repeating.
The state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Always Wanderlust, via Shutterstock)When preparing to lobby legislative committees, the focus is on legislative staff and then legislators. There are two types of staff for our purposes: committee and member. Committee staff, referred to as committee consultants, are those who work directly for the legislative policy or fiscal committees. Member staff are those who work directly for an Assembly member or senator.
An electric vehicle powers up in San Francisco. (Photo: Dan Schreiber)OPINION: Even though 2015 was a record sales year for automakers, the percentage of ZEV sales decreased eight percent year over year in California. The Northeast states lag in ZEV sales behind California – presently accounting for less than half of one percent of the regional market – despite some states’ offering consumer incentives and efforts to build convenient refueling stations.
The CalPERS' governing board during a meeting several years ago at the pension fund's headquarters. (Photo: CalPERS board)A tentative CalPERS proposal would limit the board president and committee chairs to four consecutive one-year terms, a policy that could end the long-running presidency of Rob Feckner in 2017. He has presided over times good and bad at the nation’s largest state public pension system.
Fans enter the Staples Center prior to a Clippers game. (Photo: Eric Broder Van Dyke, Shutterstock)OPINION: A piece of legislation that would blur the line between gambling and giving is sitting on Governor Jerry Brown’s desk. Senate Bill 549 would grant an advantageous exemption from existing raffle laws to an exclusive set of nonprofit organizations affiliated with major league sports teams. The bill would allow only these nonprofits to conduct raffles where half of raffle proceeds are awarded to a winner.
Voters in Ventura County cast ballots during a recent election. (Photo: Spirit of America, Shutterstock)OPINION: Inside the I-80 Beltway, aka Sacramento, there is no shortage of political writers and pundits, pollsters, candidates and campaign consultants that try to “explain” election results. They draw sweeping conclusions after analyzing turnout, cross-tabs from as many polls as possible, candidates’ mail and messaging, and all the money spent on behalf of, or against candidates by “independent expenditure committees”
State Capitol, Sacramento. (Photo: David Monniaux)ANALYSIS: Senate Leader Darrell Steinberg of Sacramento and Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez of Los Angeles are both Democrats, but the two are hardly friends. The events of the last week captured the uneasy, though often productive, working relationship between the two leaders.
The Vallejo city council last week voted to close a $5.2 million gap in the current budget, showing no alarm that in a five-year forecast the gap reopens, mainly driven by rising pension costs. Moody’s, a Wall Street credit rating agency, said earlier that Vallejo and two California cities currently in bankruptcy, Stockton and San Bernardino, risk returning to insolvency without pension relief.
A shift in power at the Orange County Transportation Authority board in part reflects a dispute over power in the largest town in OCTA’s jurisdiction – Anaheim. Major issues are at stake, as OCTA is a significant entity in O.C. ruled by a politically savvy, 17-member board.
OPINION: In mid-October, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed announced he was taking steps to put a measure on the November 2014 ballot to give local politicians the power to break their promises to teachers, firefighters, police officers and other public employees to provide them with a secure retirement.