Pacific Progressive

OC Fair Board uses Political Vendetta to Eliminate Jobs and Kill Small Businesses at OC Market Place

After a mutually-beneficial 42-year partnership, the Orange County Fair Board, led by Chairman David Ellis, voted 6-3 to give 18-months notice to the Orange County Market Place to cease operating on the fairgrounds in a clear case of retribution and political vendetta. The OC Fair Board’s claim that the OC Market Place was a failed business model fell flat when the Market Place announced that revenue was up by four percent compared to the same number of open days last year. After the Board’s legal counsel admitted that the OC Market Place had done nothing to default on its lease, it became clear that some on this Fair Board still hold a grudge over the fact that OC Market Place owner and operator Jeff Teller helped community activists expose the scheme of some Board members to snatch the fairgrounds from the public and turn it into their own private playground. Public outrage over political appointees abusing their power in an effort to hijack this public property rightly embarrassed some Board members and resulted in current Governor Brown cancelling the sale prompting some on the Fair Board to enact an elaborate cover up of their scheme. Today’s action is retaliation for the exposure of their scheme.

With the exception of Director Kristina Dodge and recent Brown appointees Nick Berardino and Gerardo Mouet who voted against the action taken, the millionaire political donors appointed to the OC Fair Board under former Governor Schwarzenegger gleefully exacted their vengeance on the OC Market Place this afternoon, with the result that the hundreds of OC Market Place vendors who are small business owners fighting for survival in this economy and their growing customer base looking to stretch their consumer dollar served as little more than cannon fodder in the eyes of some members of the OC Fair Board. Ironically, while Governor Brown was developing his jobs plan to support private sector jobs in California earlier this month, some members of one of his own state boards – the Orange County Fair Board – were hatching a plan to kill private sector jobs through this reckless retribution plan. 

“It is pathetic that these Schwarzenegger appointees would use their political positions of power to exact a political vendetta and put hundreds of families’ livelihoods at risk in the process,” said Jeff Teller, owner of the Orange County Market Place. “For 42 years the Orange County Market Place has been an incubator of business in Orange County and it’s sad that political appointees can be so callous and have the power to put thousands of hard-working business owners and their families out of work because their effort to take over the fairgrounds failed. In the end, we believe in America and we are confident that justice will prevail.”

 

Private Contractors Cost More Than Federal Workers in 33 of 35 Cases, Study Finds

Laura Clawson for Daily Kos Labor

A new study by the Project on Government Oversight (POGO) finds that those overpaid federal government workers we hear so much about actually save the government money compared with private contractors doing the same work:

POGO’s study analyzed the total compensation paid to federal and private sector employees, and annual billing rates for contractor employees across 35 occupational classifications covering over 550 service activities. Our findings were shocking—POGO estimates the government pays billions more annually in taxpayer dollars to hire contractors than it would to hire federal employees to perform comparable services. Specifically, POGO’s study shows that the federal government approves service contract billing rates—deemed fair and reasonable—that pay contractors 1.83 times more than the government pays federal employees in total compensation, and more than 2 times the total compensation paid in the private sector for comparable services.

Additional key findings include:

• Federal government employees were less expensive than contractors in 33 of the 35occupational classifications POGO reviewed.
• In one instance, contractor billing rates were nearly 5 times more than the full compensation paid to federal employees performing comparable services.
• Private sector compensation was lower than contractor billing rates in all 35occupational classifications we reviewed.
• The federal government has failed to determine how much money it saves or wastes by outsourcing, insourcing, or retaining services, and has no system for doing so.

In fact, in many of the occupational classifications, federal compensation rates are not just lower than contractor rates but are lower than private sector ones. Naturally, the Heritage Foundation isn't letting this get in the way of some cherished beliefs:

James Sherk, a policy analyst with the Heritage Foundation and the author of [Heritage's] federal salary study, said he was skeptical of the POGO findings. “It’s not a real apples to apples comparison,” he said. “When the federal government hires contractors, it’s for the short-term. When they hire for the public sector, they are on the hook for the salaries and compensation for years.”

[POGO General Counsel] Mr. Amey counters that the government usually pays contractors for multiple-year jobs, not just short term.

Doubtless there are cases where using an expensive contractor is necessary—for instance, if the government needs highly specialized legal expertise it may make more sense to pay a high rate to an outside lawyer for a time rather than keeping such a lawyer permanently on staff. But cemetery administration services? Security guards? Government jobs should offer decent middle-class wages, but the rates private contractors draw for the same work, often double or more that of federal workers, deserve another look in the right's rush to privatize government functions.

 

We’re Not Broke: We Could Pay All Our Bills Without Borrowing a Cent

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

By Michael Linden, Michael Ettlinger 

Really, we’re not broke.

The notion that the United States is “broke” is a popular talking point for conservative lawmakers. They use the claim to justify cuts in government services for middle-class Americans and those with whom they have ideological quarrels. Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner (R-OH), for example, likes to say that the United States is “broke, going on bankrupt,” which is why he says we absolutely have to slash government services such as poison control centers, meat inspections, law enforcement funding, afterschool programs, and disease research.

But we’re not broke. Not at all. If we were, it would mean that we were out of money, unable to pay our bills, or meet our financial obligations. We are none of those things. A recent article by David J. Lynch of Bloomberg News points out that, actually, the United States continues to meet every one of its financial obligations with no trouble at all. The federal government is able to borrow funds at historically low interest rates. And those historically low rates apply to both short-term borrowing and long-term borrowing, indicating that lenders not only don’t believe the United States is broke right now, but also don’t see bankruptcy anywhere on the horizon.

And one reason why the federal government is still able to borrow at such fantastic rates is because, far from being out of money, the U.S. economy boasts the absolute most money in the world. True, we are currently dedicating a very low share of that money to pay our federal bills. Instead, we have chosen right now to use borrowed money to cover much of those costs.

Murdering Monahan Tends Bar on Biggest Night of His Year While His Employee Has Last Night of His Life

Yesterday, a young man jumped to his death in Costa Mesa after being given an unnecessary layoff notice.  The layoff notices were caused by a highly biased PERS presentation created by City staff, not Cal PERS people or actuaries, that shows the City running out of money due to pensions.  Righeimer and company then declared that there's a huge fiscal emergency and all of the public employees must go.

Employees, family and community gathered at City Hall to try to make some sense of what had happened. Councilmember Wendy Leece was there, as was former Councilmember Katrina Foley (now on Newport-Mesa School Board.)  Also there was former Mayor Sandi Genis.  Sandi hasn't been Mayor for at least 10 years, but she came out to show support and to find out how to help.  Newport Rib Company sent over food for the mourners.

Councilmembers Jim Righeimer and Steve Mensinger weren't  there because he had to be escorted off the property by Costa Mesa Police after getting into a fistfight. They were told to leave for his own safety.

And where was current Mayor Gary "Skosh" Monahan?  Getting his Irish on at Skosh Monahan's, the bar he owns.  (This is the bar where FMW worked out the deal for the Fairgrounds on a napkin.)  Monahan told reporters that he was sorry, but well, he's gotta tend bar!  St. Patrick's Day is the busiest day of the year for him, and he needs to keep his priorities straight.

Newport Rib Company, which has a long history of supporting the Costa Mesa community, sent over a large amount of food, for free, to the mourners. Mayor Gary Monahan, who runs his bar in the same building that did a big catering business when Newport Rib had the property, didn't send over food. If Monahan was too busy tending bar on the biggest night of the year for him, he could have at least handed his credit card to one of his employees (who get hired and fired on such a regular basis that Monahan doesn't feel it any more) and had them call a restaurant and pay for food to be sent over. 

And remember this was caused by financial presentations that were crafted to create a crisis.  Costa Mesa lies and a man dies.

 

St. Patrick's Day In Memoriam in Costa Mesa - 213 Employees Laid Off

 



As Mayor Monahan enjoys big profits from the crowds packing into his bar, 213 Costa Mesa employees will be wondering where their next job will be coming from.  On St. Patrick's Day, Costa Mesa will decimate the City's workforce by laying off about 213 employees.  This action is a result of claims that the City's pension obligations will skyrocket, according to projections done by city staff, who are not actuaries or pension fund managers.  

This represents a pinnacle of achievement for Mayor Pro-Tem Jim Righeimer, who has waged war on public employees since 1998 when he had Prop 226 put on the ballot. Righeimer wants private companies to pick up the City contracts instead of having public employees.  If wholesale outsourcing comes to pass, taxes are not going to go down (Costa Mesa has limited taxing authority), but the money will go to a few well connected individuals (moguls)  who will have incentives to maximize profits while lowering services and wages.  

The whole "hurry up, the house is burning down" process pushed by Righeimer has been questioned by many.  Councilmember Wendy Leece has repeatedly questioned the wisdom of these sonic boom processes and asked for a rehearing, which was shot down by the other members of the council.  

The fiction of a budget crisis is working and people are seeing thru it.  The Voice of OC has an excellent article that points out the contractors who would be picking up the City contracts were ready to testify at the public hearing but Council had not asked for reports from the departments being outsourced or asked them to testify.  Care Ambulance was ready to go but city's paramedic coordinator reported that the fire department had not been asked to weigh in on the issue.

A request has been made for the "records, data, source documents, worksheets, computer files, emails and related documents pertaining to preparation and calculations of PERS Rates and Unfunded Pension Liability Review presented at  City Council Study Session on February 8."  You would think that given how important those numbers are to the 213 people being given the bums rush out the door that the City would have a binder of documents and CD's of backup that could easily be offered up to support their numbers. The request was made on March 3, 2011 and documents aren't ready yet.  Councilmember Leece has also asked for and not received the same data.

 If you want to make a public records request (and you should) try this website.  Follow the instructions and drag the letter into your wordprocessor to clean up. Ask for the PERS projection backup. Ask for who on Council is getting lifetime medical benefits for them and their family. Ask which Council members opted-in CalPERS (didn't know Council can get CalPERS - they can!).  Ask about expense reports, outsourcing reports, campaign finance records, anything you have a question on about how Costa Mesa has  made a decision as ugly as the one they have made now.  

 

OC Fairgrounds - Our County's Evacuation Site, Still Up for Sale

First off - Gov. Brown still hasn't decided to sell or not sell the Orange County Fairgrounds. We're all in limbo over this decision, especially in light of what is happening in Japan right now.

The Orange County Fairgrounds serves as an evacuation site in case of a San Onofre accident. But the property is being sold to a private firm, Facilities Management West (FMW) that was vigorous in pushing back against Costa Mesa City Council during the summer of 2010 on the issue of community uses that would be allowed. FMW wanted the community uses to be limited to what is currently done now. They also wanted to restrict the timing of the community uses to when it wouldn't impact their business.

So what happens if San Onofre blows and FMW owns the Fairgrounds? Will they let the public in? Will they kick them out for scheduled events?

Right now, the 150 acres of the Fairgrounds is a critical part of the safety net of Orange County.  During the heavy rains, horses and large animals were evacuated from their flooded out barns and stables to the Equestrian Center.  The parking lot is used to stage emergency equipment. If needed, the parking lots can also become homes for displaced residents in tents, trailers and RV's. Additionally, people can be sheltered in the exhibit buildings, which have running water and bathrooms designed for large numbers of people.  

The recent events in Japan with their natural disaster show what can be in store for our area.  More and more questions are being asked about the safety of nuclear power plants, particularly those in earthquake zones like San Onofre.  The recent OC Register article tries to assure the public that the problems in Japan won't happen in Orange County because our plant has a higher sea wall and can withstand a 7.0 quake.  The Japanese nuclear power program is well funded, well supported and highly engineered, perhaps to a higher level than ours.  And, most people don't know this, many of  the nuclear power plants in the Western World have been designed and had their components manufactured by a small group of companies.  So, if there is a problem in one, expect that problem in others.

So, should the public let the Fairgrounds be sold to FMW, and wait to see if the gates are locked when we all need to seek emergency shelter?  Or should Gov. Brown cancel the sale and let Orange County keep their emergency evacuation center?  I vote for the emergency evacuation center.

 

The High Costs of Immigration Enforcement: State and Local Laws Are Unconstitutional and Discriminatory

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

By Philippe Nassif 

Léalo en español

A handful of communities across the country have attempted to and in many cases successfully enacted a series of immigration controls that stoke fear in Latino and immigrant communities. But a report from the Center for American Progress found that these communities spend millions of dollars defending these unconstitutional statutes in court. This drains strained budgets, depresses local economies, and divides communities along racial and ethnic lines.

A combination of factors have left immigrants as vulnerable scapegoats and spurred several communities to take federal immigration law into their own hands, including the fallout from the economic crisis and ensuing unemployment rates as well as inaction at the federal level on immigration reform.

The report makes clear that these local enforcement measures come with substantial costs that quickly add up. Arizona will see a loss of $388 million in economic output due to lost conferences and business meetings over the next two to three years due to its immigration law, S.B. 1070. The state is expected to lose $133 million in lost wages over the next two to three years due to the law. Farmers Branch, Texas has incurred more than $4 million since 2006 in legal fees to defend its anti-immigration statute, and Hazelton, Pennsylvania has spent $2.8 million defending its immigration control ordinance.

Right Road for Costa Mesa is Against City-Council Mandated Suffering

The residents of Costa Mesa who oppose the gutting of Costa Mesa for purely idealogical reasons are on the right road. These people want a city that is livable, vibrant, and constantly attracting new residents and businesses. They want the summer concert in the park with their kids and neighbors, enjoying the ocean breezes as the sun sets.  They want to walk to the OC Fair every year, eat too much, stay too late and go back the next day and do it again because it's just fun!  They want their sense of community, history and pride.

And the current City Council hates that. They want the majority of residents to suffer so the well connected minority can benefit.  They want to put people out on the street by cutting their jobs and then turn around and give a fat check to businesses lining up for the work. Did anyone notice that no city staff gave a report on the work performed by the departments up for outsourcing? There was no report from the Fire Department about EMS or paramedic services, but the representative from Care Ambulance was cued up and ready to go.  The Voice of OC has a great article about how the meeting and process was highly biased.

The residents of Costa Mesa are on the right road in pushing back against the City Council who is working against them.  They need to follow the money and find out who is going to benefit from the outsourcing. They should also find out if any of the City Council members are taking any of the benefit package (health care, CalPERS) that they so decry and want to deny the workers.  If they are, they need to be called out for it.  

And, the residents should not be shy about talking about how the City Council is on the wrong road. They should share this openly and talk with the friends and neighbors about how to get back on the right road.  They should support their City employees during the upcoming battle, because it's the employees who are going to bear the day in, day out brunt of abuse from the higher ups at City Hall.  And, residents need to ride herd on any legal bills coming out of this fight.  Stay on the right road, Costa Mesa.

 

 

Ambulance Moguls vs. Fire Department in Costa Mesa

Frank Mickadeit's column in the OC Register sums up the Costa Mesa battle over paramedic service outsourcing:  Ambulance Mogul Looks to Cut Costs.  In the online edition, the article is titled 'Private Paramedics Get Paid (a Lot) Less'.    Ambulance mogul tells you everything you need to know about what is going on in Costa Mesa.

Private ambulances and paramedics do not work for free or to break even, they work to make a profit for the owner of the business (the Mogul).  To make that profit, residents will be charged much more than the $185/call they are now charged by Costa Mesa. According to city staff, the $185 is billed to insurance companies and Medicare and the City accepts whatever payment made as payment in full. Residents are not 'balance billed', the highly controversial practice where a medical provider starts collection activities against the insured for the difference between reimbursement and what the provider thinks the service should cost.  Costa Mesa writes off fees for residents who can't pay.  Private providers can't do that and need to pursue collection activities to get their money.

Costa Mesa City Council has invented a new and unique form of ambulance chasing - picture the for-profit company  outracing the fire department to get to the patient first so they can load them up into their vehicle to claim the higher payment due to them.  There's going to be a financial Russian roulette going on here - do you get the low cost, high quality Fire Department or do you get the high cost private service?  The injured and bleeding public won't know until they get the bill. 

Ambulance moguls don't like fire departments because fire departments can provide fast, cost effective services to people without discrimination and without first checking for a financial pulse first.  And that gets in the way of being a good mogul.

Wisconsin in Costa Mesa: What's Really Going On

Tonight, Costa Mesa City Council wants to give layoff notices to 250 city employees (about 1/3 of the staff) and begin finding ways to outsource their jobs.  Also on the table is outsourcing paramedic ambulance services.  City Council says this is to save money and close a budget gap. Dig deeper.

Some one is going to make a lot of money off the outsourced jobs.  When the golf course was outsourced, wages went down, green fees went up, and the new owners made a lot of money. Expect the same here. Each service being outsourced is needed and the new providers can extract a premium from the public for their services because Costa Mesa City Council will be granting monopoly rights to the new providers.  In a monopoly, the new one company holding the market hostage can extract a higher price for lower service from customers. The profit motive rules under the monopoly, with business owners wanting to maximize profits.

There has been a budget gap since 2007. See the chart here showing the budget history and see the gap. Download 2011_MidYrBudgetReview  This gap was there when Mansoor was Mayor, when he spent over $560,000 on a lawsuit against an immigration rights activist, when he emphasized locking up and harassing people allegedly over their immigration status, when he insisted that a basketball league was forced to change their name before being able to use a city owned gym.  Mansoor didn't care about being fiscally responsible and let problems fester so they could be solved on Righeimer's shift.

Targeting employees for layoff makes them fearful and causes many to leave. The plan to outsource has been announced, morale has dived, and people need to start thinking about finding a new job in a bad economy.  Employees start to leave.  Morale among the "survivors'" is low because they don't know what's next. This is what's behind the give layoff notices to many.  Appointed Councilmember Mensinger says this is just like when school districts give notices to many but only layoff a few, but Mensinger fails to understand that state law requires that notice requirement to give teachers time to find another position before schools open for the fall. In Costa Mesa, it's looking like a way to scare people.

Costa Mesa City Council meets tonight at 6 PM, 77 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, CA.

 

 

Wisconsin in Costa Mesa: 250 Employees Scheduled to be Laid Off Tomorrow so Their Jobs Can be Outsourced

Costa Mesa City Council, under the leadership of Mayor Pro-Tem Jim Righeimer, is scheduled to give 250 employees lay off notices tomorrow night so their jobs can be outsourced at will.  Tomorrow night's action is a long-standing goal of Righeimer, who was one of the authors of Prop 226, which would have severely restricted the ability of labor unions to collect political contributions from their members.  Righeimer also helped found the Education Alliance, an anti-public education group which has controlled Capistrano Unified, Orange Unified and the Orange County Board of Education at various times. Righeimer is also on the board of the Family Action PAC.

Download Agenda2011-03-01  Agenda for March 1 City Council Meeting

Download CCStaffRpt-OutsourcingCitySvcs_3-1-11 Staff Report on Outsourcing of City Services

The plan to lay off almost all the city employees as fast as possible was initially rejected by now-leaving City Attorney Kimberly Hall  Barlow.  There is speculation about why Barlow is suddenly leaving and what is happening at Costa Mesa City Hall. See A Bubbling Cauldron for the stories.

Like Scott Walker in Wisconsin, Righeimer and crew are using the budget as a reason to bust the union.  Here is the budget briefing given at the February 8, 2011 meeting.  Download 2011_MidYrBudgetReview   Go to the page that is titled "12 Year Historical - Revenues vs. Expenditures."  Expenditures have been higher than revenues since FY 07-08 and Costa Mesa needs to fix the problem this week by firing every city employee?  When Allan Mansoor was Mayor, there was never a problem spending more than what Costa Mesa took in.  This problem started under Mansoor and was caused by his failure of leadership during a budget crisis.  Mansoor was concerned about locking up allegedly undocumented workers and forcing businesses relocating to Costa Mesa to change their names before they could open up shop.

What to do:  Go to the City Council meeting tomorrow night at 6 PM, 77 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, CA. Get their early, there may be a crowd. Get a card and speak about Item 4 - Outsourcing of City Services under New Business.   Let Righeimer and company know you are watching them and know exactly what they are up to.  And be ready to help out the workers and residents any way you can.  

Unconstitutional and Costly: The High Price of Local Immigration Enforcement

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

By Gebe Martinez

Read the full report (pdf)

Download the executive summary (pdf)

Download to mobile devices and e-readers from Scribd

A handful of local communities across our nation enacted unconstitutional, discriminatory, and costly immigration controls in recent years in an effort to chase away undocumented immigrants and their families and friends, many of whom are American citizens. This growing backlash against Hispanic immigrants in particular was driven by fear, economic uncertainty, and cultural differences in these localities: small towns in New Jersey, Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Texas, and one county in Virginia.

Against the backdrop of a slowly recovering economy, high unemployment, falling state and local tax revenues due to the Great Recession, and a host of problems ranging from crime to overcrowded schools, Hispanic immigrants proved to be handy scapegoats for the white majority of citizens in these communities. Never mind that these immigrants—legal and undocumented—are neither the root cause of any of these problems nor a major factor in any of them.

Fair Board Cancels New Year's Day Meeting to Deed Over Fairgrounds Property

The January 1, 2011 meeting of the Orange County Fair Board has been cancelled.   "This meeting has been cancelled after consultation with the Office of the Attorney General" was posted on the meeting notice section of the Fairgrounds website.  "The agenda included the 32nd  District Agricultural Association (DAA) deeding over the Fairgrounds property to the 32A DAA to facilitate a quick sale to Facilities Management West once the temporary restraining order is lifted.  

On February 8, 2011, a hearing will be held on the lawsuits against the sale of the Fairgrounds.  

 

 

Will the Fair Board and DGS Risk Being Held in Contempt of Court for Violating TRO Stopping Sale?

Tom Umberg (counsel for the Fair Board and yes, that Tom Umberg) and the State Attorney General have been put on notice that the temporary restraining order stopping the sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds is being violated by the meeting planned for Saturday, January 1, 2011 at 4:30 PM to sign a deed to convey the Fairgrounds property to a special agricultural district to allow the quick closing of a sale.  

The letters address actions reportedly taken by Ronald Diedrich, Acting Head of DGS, Fred Aguiar, former head of DGS and now Gov. Schwarzenegger's deputy chief of staff, and Steven Beazley, CEO of the 32nd DAA. The Fair Board is asked to cancel the New Years Day meeting by December 27 or potentailly face further actions in court.

Excerpt from the letter to Tom Umberg at Manatt, Phelps, & Phillps addressing the actions of Steve Beazley and the Fair board in scheduling the January 1, 2011 meeting:

You no doubt are aware that actions pertaining to the sale, transfer, assignment, pledge, or any other disposal of the Orange County Fairgrounds were restrained specifically by an order of the Superior Court and are stayed currently by an order of the Court of Appeal.  The Superior Court order was in effect until 4:30, December 21st, 2010. The Court of Appeal order was entered mid-afternoon on the 21st and has been in effect ever since then.  Both orders prohibit any step being taken toward the sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds.  Clearly the execution of a quit claim deed to the 32A District is a major step towards the sale of the Fairgrounds....

Excerpt from the letter to Michael Witmer, Deputy Attorney General:

This will confirm my telephone call with you this morning.  Steve Beazley, President and CEO of the 32nd District Agricultural Association has noticed a special meeting of the Orange County Fair Board for 4:30 on January 1, 2011. .....

Whether the action directing that a meeting be held has been taken by Mr. Diedrich or other officials of DGS or by Fred Aguiar or other officials of State and Consumer Services Agency, such action violates the explicit terms of the temporary restraining order extended by the trial court until 4:30 on December 21st, 2010 and the terms of the stay ordered by the Court of Appeal mid-afternoon on December 21st.  Both orders prohibit DGS from taking any steps to further the sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds.  Directing the Orange County Fair Board to meet to transfer title subjects Mr. Diedrich and Mr. Aguiar to a motion finding them in contempt of court and imposing penalties. ...

Download Ltr to T. Umberg 122310

Download Ltr to M. Witmer 122310

Fair Board Wants to Deed Land Over on January 1, 2011 & Still Waiting on Records Request

The Fair Board is meeting on Saturday,  January 1, 2011, at 4:30 PM to quit claim the Fairgrounds property from the 32nd DAA to the 32A DAA.  To sell off the property of the Fairgrounds, the 32A DAA was created to hold the real property.  The agenda for the meeting is here. 

New members have been appointed to the Fair Board - Ali Jahangari, Alexander Vellandi, and Douglas La Belle. 

A public records request was submitted on December 9 to the Fair Board and the reply says that they will get back to me with a date for record production  "on or before December 31."  Not that the records will be produced by then, but that they will get back to me with a date by then.   A great guide to the California Public Records law can be found at the First Amendment Project.  Link to records request guide.  The Attorney General has also prepared a guide on the Public Records Act.

December 9 Records Request

What was requested:  

1.  Check ledgers from January 2010 to present

2.  Communications of board members, employees, owners, agents and other intermediaries with Facilities Management West or Orange County Events Center LLP, and  employees, owners, agents,.and other intermediaries of Facilities Management West or Orange County Events Center LLP.

3.  Communications  of board members, employees, owners, agents and other intermediaries with DGS regarding sale of property.

4.  Communications  of board members, employees, owners, agents and other intermediaries regarding employee transitions related to sale of property, including communications with the Department of Personnel Administration.

5.  Communications  of board members, employees, owners, agents and other intermediaries regarding sale/licensing of trademarks and/or intellectual property and non-real estate assets of Fairgrounds

6.   Communications  of board members, employees, owners, agents and other intermediaries with Becky Bailey-Findley from January 2009 to present. 

7.  Invoices  and supporting documentation from California Construction Authority (CCA) for any and all services from January 2009 to present .