Category Archives: News

Good News for Transparency in Government

By Dawn Whitney, ECOS Executive Committee

SB 1439 became effective in January of 2023. It is a good advancement in laws prohibiting “pay to play” contributions made by developers and lobbyists. This recent amendment to the Political Reform Act of 1974 extends preexisting prohibitions on campaign contributions made to appointed officials to include local elected officials. It applies only to contributions made after the law was passed.

It expands the period of disclosure for contributions of $250 or more, made by project applicants and lobbyists, to 12 months before and 12 months after a decision to grant a permit or other entitlement.

The changes made by SB 1439 are straight forward prohibitions on “pay to play”: If an official has accepted a contribution of $250 or more at any time in the twelve months prior to a decision to grant a permit or other entitlement, the official can return the money and vote on the application, or simply recuse and keep the contribution. It is not a huge departure from accepted practice. Eighteen major and large cities in California already have such a law on their books.

In February of this year, developers, trade groups, Sacramento County Supervisor Pat Hume, and Rancho Cordova City Councilmember Garrett Greenwood filed a suit in Sacramento County to throw out SB 1439. They claim that this legislative amendment does not comply with the amendment requirements of the original ballot initiative of 50 years ago; however, the initiative explicitly permits amendments passed by two-thirds of the legislature. SB 1439 was passed unanimously by both houses of the California legislature.

The plaintiffs in the suit also claim the new law violates their First Amendment rights, arguing that unless a prohibition addresses actual quid pro quo transactions, it violates constitutional rights.

The Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC), the defendant in this case, argues that such a very narrow interpretation is not legally correct, and does not promote the purpose of the Political Reform Act.

The Sacramento Court is set to rule on May 25, 2023, whether SB 1439 stands as written, must be repealed, or needs a change somewhere in between. In the meantime, the FPPC has announced it considers the law to be in full effect and will proceed to draft supporting regulations.

Watchdog groups should monitor contributions over $250 to elected officials made by permit applicants and supporters of permit applicants. These contributions must be disclosed not only by the elected officials, but also the applicant and developer.

For more info, see:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220SB1439
https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2023/02/campaign-finance-law-california/

SacBee, March 13, 2023: “Local electeds are suing to stop transparency” https://www.sacbee.com/article272963050.html

California Natural Resources Agency Screening California’s Watershed: Healing in Sacramento 4/21

The Chronicles Group documentary California’s Watershed: Healing screening at the California Natural Resources Agency headquarters showcases local efforts to restore and preserve the ecosystem. A must-see!
Address: California Natural Resources Agency 715 P Street Sacramento, CA 95814

Timetable

Friday, April 21, 2023 | 4:30PM | Introduction by Director and Founder of The Chronicles Group James Thebaut.

4:40PM | Screening

5:30PM | Experts panel, moderated by Wade Crowfoot, Secretary California’s Natural Resources

  • Angela Avery, Executive Officer, Sierra Nevada Conservancy
  • Andrew Fecko, General Manager, Placer County Water Agency
  • Don Hankins, Plains Miwok fire expert and professor at California State University, Chico
  • Nichole Morgan, Board Member, State Water Resources Control Board

6:00PM | Light refreshments reception

RSVP here

The Exceptionally American Problem of Rising Roadway Deaths

By Emily Badger and Alicia Parlapiano | November 27, 2022 | The New York Times

The U.S. has diverged over the past decade from other comparably developed countries, where traffic fatalities have been falling. This American exception became even starker during the pandemic. In 2020, as car travel plummeted around the world, traffic fatalities broadly fell as well. But in the U.S., the opposite happened. Travel declined, and deaths still went up. Preliminary federal data suggests road fatalities rose again in 2021.

Click here to read the article.

Vote No on Measure A

Dear ECOS Community,

Please share this message with your neighbors, friends, and colleagues. Measure A, on the ballot this November, is presented as a “citizens’ initiative” and therefore requires only a 50.1 percent majority to pass. It is critical that you vote NO on Measure A.

Measure A circumvents the Sacramento BLUEPRINT, California’s climate targets, and federal transportation planning law. It contains roadway capacity expansion projects and a new rural expressway that will induce car travel and sprawl development and pull resources from transit and transit-based development.

Under Measure A, SACOG concluded in its May 2022 analysis, “the region would likely fall short of meeting its state-mandated 19 percent per capita greenhouse gas reduction target by nearly 2 percent,” which is a ten percent shortfall. SACOG also found that failing to meet the mandate “would jeopardize the region’s ability to compete for state transportation and housing funding programs.”

If Measure A passes, the region will take a disastrous step backward, worsening existing economic inequalities and prospects for climate adaptation.

The Measure A proponents falsely say the measure will combat climate change.

• Bill Magavern, Policy Director of the Coalition for Clean Air summed it up: “Don’t be fooled. Despite promising to reduce congestion and improve air quality, Measure A will have the opposite effect by spending taxpayer dollars on the construction of numerous highway expansions throughout the region. The Coalition for Clean Air opposes Measure A because it is a threat to the air quality of the Sacramento region, which already suffers from unhealthy levels of air pollution, and would also result in increased congestion, global warming impacts, and sprawl.”

• In CARB’s October 10, 2022 letter to Elk Grove Mayor Bobbie Sing-Allen, Steven Cliff, the CARB Executive Officer, wrote “The combined set of projects in this $8.5 billion measure would be inconsistent with the statewide effort to lessen the impacts of climate change.”

• Mike McKeever, former Executive Director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG), commented, “The most recent mailer from the Measure’s proponents, which claims that Measure A fights climate change, is the exact opposite of the truth. Measure A proponents are so desperate for their $8.5 billion tax that they are spending millions of dollars to spread falsehoods.”

The League of Women Voters, Sierra Club, Sacramento Taxpayers Association, United Latinos, Sacramento Sister Circle, Save the American River Association, and dozens of other organizations oppose Measure A. For more information and a complete list, see MeasureANotOK.org.

VOTE NO ON MEASURE A

Additional references:

• Oct. 27, 2022: Backers of a Sacramento sales tax hike are lying to voters. They should reject Measure A. By Marcos Breton of The Sacramento Bee’s Editorial Board. https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/article267915392.html

• Oct. 20, 2022: How special interests exploited a loophole and put a Sacramento County tax hike on the ballot. By Yousef Baig of The Sacramento Bee. https://www.sacbee.com/article267335212.html

• October 10, 2022: Essay: Sacramento journalist breaks down why Measure A would fund new suburban highways, increase greenhouse gases and super-charge sprawl. By Sacramento News & Review Staff, Brad Branan

• Oct. 10, 2022: Sacramento County voters must reject Measure A, an $8.5 billion gift to special interests. By Sacramento Bee Editorial Board. Also Video on Measure A with former SACOG CEO Mike McKeever, Sierra Club Sacramento Chair Barbara Leary, Sacramento Taxpayers Association President Bruce Lee. https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/election-endorsements/article266980846.html

Sincerely,

Susan Herre

President of the ECOS Board of Directors