According to an audit by Controller Wendy Greuel, the City Department of Transportation (LADOT) "wasted at least $855,000 of taxpayer dollars" on GPS devices for parking enforcement vehicles. (The devices are known as Automated Vehicle Locator Systems, or AVLS.)
The California Department of Finance wants to "drill baby drill" off the Golden State's coastline, and they're willing to undermine 70+ years of checks and balances to do it. Will we let them get away with it?
In late January, I joined California Controller John Chiang in a two-to-one vote of the California State Lands Commission (SLC) to reject what would have been the first new oil lease in California waters in more than 40 years. As chair of the SLC, I take my responsibility as a steward of the environment very seriously, and I did not think the proposal was in the best interests of the state. Beyond the inherent environmental risks posed by all new drilling projects, I did not think assurances included in the proposal to decommission oil platforms decades down the road were enforceable.
Unfortunately, the Department of Finance is unable to take "No" for an answer. California needs your help over the flip...
Abel Maldonado and his toady Brandon Gesicki have been all over the news pushing the frame that Controller John Chiang is wasting a million dollars on office furniture:
The same day the governor vetoed the Democrats' budget proposal, the Controller's office requested $924,500,000 worth of new office furniture from this fiscal year! How is that acceptable? Here is an elected official who is in the press every day talking about cutting services, stopping checks to welfare recipients and issuing IOUs to hardworking Californians. But at the exact same time, he is requesting new office furniture. This disgusting and disingenuous behavior has to end.
This is, quite frankly, bullshit. The money was approved by then-Controller Steve Westly, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the State Legislature in December 2006 not for "furniture" but to bring the C Street office complex up to code. From a presentation the Controller's office sent out today:
• The current workstations were out of compliance with ADA, OSHA and SAM requirements.
• Current stations were 10-20 years old (80% were 20+ years old and replacement parts are no longer
manufactured).
• DGS confirms that there was not (and is not) enough used modular furniture available.
•In 2005, wires melted and smoked in one bank of cubicles, causing evacuation of the building, raising health and safety concerns.
So the office remodel isn't being done for vanity, but to reduce a hazard AND the risk that the state of California will face lawsuits that will rack up legal bills. And the whole plan actually saves Californians money:
Bottom Line: $3,982,000 savings from purchasing efficiencies
$1,500,000 savings from less expensive rent, in future years
How did Maldonado vote when this funding came up in summer 2007?
August 21, 2007, Senate approves C Street BCP contained in SB 77 (Budget Act for FY 07/08) [vote was] 27-12, Maldonado votes "aye"
Abel Maldonado is a dishonest and self-interested politician who only wants to cut budget deals that advance his career - even when they cost the state $5.5 million.
The California Democratic Party (CDP) Convention will be in Sacramento, April 24 - 26. Delegates will elect new Party Officers. With all the wrangling and agony we're having regarding the California budget, it amazes me that the CDP, as the home base for Democrats, has had very little visibility and is letting the media paint the budget problem as a 'spending problem' rather than what it is, a revenue problem. The fault, we are told, lies with the "legislature" not the Republican legislators, which we all know is the true case.
We need a State Party on the forefront of this and other issues. California has arguably the strongest grassroots activist and donor base in the nation (maybe the world) yet the CDP has little relationship with the thousands of volunteers and small dollar donors who will be needed to power a Democrat to win the Governorship and other offices in 2010. Hilary Crosby, seeking election as the Party's Controller, has the right finance skills and relationship to the Democratic grassroots to help bring the CDP to the 21st Century. Here is some information from her website (http://hilary4controller.org/):
Our Seat at the Table for Critical Party Decisions
As Party Controller, Hilary Crosby will be our seat at the table to make sure our grassroots voices are heard and our knowledge and experience are factored into critical decisions. Successful Party fundraising and implementation of the 58-County Plan will depend on both sound financial management and on a strong partnership between the Party and its grassroots. Hilary is the candidate with the right finance skills and perspective to strengthen and build the California Democratic Party.
The current budget as signed relies on revenue growth TWICE (5.8%) the rate of last year (2.4%). This budget is relying on something nonexistent. According to the monthly controller's report we so far are taking in .4% LESS revenue than at this time last year. Making our current budget deficit $5.837 billion covered by internal borrowing
In his bid to replace Steve Westly as the State Controller, John Chiang picked up a little national attention in the form of an endorsement from the Campaign for a National Majority. They only endorse a handful of candidates each year, so this is quite an honor for Chiang. A little from their press release:
While this race is marked by decidedly different perspectives on the role of government and fairness in taxation, it is ultimately about the financial challenges facing California. Both candidates are deeply concerned about the state's annual multi-billion dollar deficits, but only Chiang emphasizes the importance of pursuing policies that ensure the support necessary to sustain high-quality public schools, health care for the disadvantaged and top-notch police and fire protection services. Chiang argues that state not only can, but that it also must meet those twin challenges with innovative financial leadership.(CNM)
Listen, this race isn't on the radar of most Californians, but we really have a stark choice. John Chiang will bring sensible ideas to the office. Tony Strickland, former Assemblywoman, husband of current Assemblywoman Strickland, is the president of the California Club for Growth! You know, the guy that extracts all those "No Tax Hikes Ever" pledges from every candidate, even if there is a serious reason why we need them.
Strickland supports the Bush plan on economic reform, including his ridiculous tax cuts in a time of war. Never in our history have we reduced taxes in a time of war, until GWB. We are building massive deficits with no plan to conquer them. Similarly we are building deficits in California, and Arnold has no plan to reign those in. Strickland is cool with that. In fact, he pushes for that in his role with the Club for Growth. That's just plain ridiculous; why would we trust him to watch our money?
It's not a race that has been talked about much. However, both the GOP and the Dems have competitive primaries. It's true, check out how much money the 2 Dems, Joe Dunn and John Chiang, have raised. The 2 GOP candidates, Strickland and Maldanado, should also be up there. However, for some reason, Strickland isn't up. Maldanado, however, is trailing both Dems in fundraising...by a lot.
But the news today is from the GOP primary race, and it's funny! From the SacBee's Buzz:
In a heated GOP primary battle for state controller, former Assemblyman Tony Strickland last week claimed his opponent, state Sen. Abel Maldonado, can't keep track of his own money.
Strickland's staff plugged Maldonado's name into the controller's database of unclaimed private property and found Maldonado has about $2,000 he hasn't collected. Or, as Strickland put it in a news release, Maldonado is on "the list of people who have carelessly lost track of their money."
On the contrary, said Maldonado's staff. They said the senator has known "for over a year" that he has unclaimed property. ...Maldonado has been teaching people how to find their property in the controller's database and has left his own money in the pool so he can type in his name and show them how it comes up, Kise said.(SacBee 4/17/06)
I suppose if I was really interested in this race I could follow this up by trying to find an instance of Maldanado actually "teaching" people. Personally though, even if I were a Republican, I wouldn't be that concerned about this. Mostly because the Controller's job isn't to actually do the accounting work himself, but rather to set priorities for the staff (some of whom, you would hope, are competent CPAs). But if the Republicans really want to bash each other over this, I'm all for it. I'm all for negative attacks amongst GOP candidates, not so supportive when it's Dems attacking Dems...got that Angelides and Westly?
That being said, there is a lot for the GOP candidates to fight about. Strickland has been paying himself, and his wife (who took his seat after term limits struck). (Thanks CarlsbadDem and SDPolitics...see comment below)
Over a little more than five years, Tony Strickland and his wife, Audra, who replaced him as a member of the state Assembly, paid more than $138,000 raised by their supporters to businesses owned by them and a staffer living in their Moorpark home. An additional $20,000 in campaign money was deposited into a nonprofit organization run by Tony Strickland.
The Ventura County couple say they did nothing improper and that investigators have cleared them of wrongdoing.
Strickland, who as controller would manage and audit the state's finances, produced a June 2004 letter from Ventura County prosecutors saying they looked at the transfers and found no evidence of criminal activity. The district attorney's office review was set in motion by a citizen complaint.
***
The Stricklands' political opponents say a dependence on donors not only to win the campaign, but also to increase their income, is a clear conflict of interest, even if not illegal.
"How could people be so arrogant to blatantly transfer money like this?" asked Jere Robings, a Republican activist from Thousand Oaks. "It is obvious they are trying to circumvent the law," he said.(LA Times 4/13/06)
And perhaps that's what those GOP candidates should be concerned about, not some $2,000 left unclaimed.
