| March 14, 2014 |
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Volume 2 Issue 10 |
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| OCTA Ends Contract with Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates at Urging of Lalloway and Spitzer |
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 On Monday, the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) ended its lobbying contract with Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates, at the urging of OCTA Vice Chairman Jeff Lalloway and OCTA Director Todd Spitzer. OCTA had contracted with Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates as their lobbyists in Sacramento to help advance Orange County’s transportation needs in the state legislature.
“The firm put OCTA in a horrible situation, and I cannot support continuing to contract with Kevin Sloat or with Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates,” Director Spitzer said. “There are a plethora of other skilled advocates in Sacramento who can represent OCTA on state legislation.”
On February 20, the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) fined Sloat and his firm a record $133,500 for arranging gifts of sporting tickets and for hosting fundraisers in Sloat’s Sacramento home where he provided state senators and assemblymembers with alcohol and cigars. The fine is the largest ever levied upon a lobbyist by the FPPC.
“I personally don’t want to have a relationship with Sloat after these serious violations,” said Vice Chairman Lalloway, who is also Mayor Pro Tem of Irvine. “It sends a bad message to the public if we’re going to continue doing business with a firm that committed the largest FPPC fine in history.”
OCTA will put their lobbying contract out for bid to replace Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates.
Verizon, Accenture, and the San Francisco 49ers have also ended their contracts with Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates in the wake of the FPPC fine. |
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| Supervisor Spitzer Co-Hosts First-Ever Orange County Visionary Leaders’ Conference |
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| (Portions courtesy of Orange County United Way) |
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Last week, Supervisor Todd Spitzer, Orange County United Way, and the Association of California Cities – Orange County (ACC-OC) convened county, city, and educational leaders at Angel Stadium for the inaugural Orange County Visionary Leaders' Conference.
“Nothing like this has ever been attempted in our County’s history,” Supervisor Todd Spitzer said. “We must harness the momentum gained today to jump start discussions – and ultimately buy-in – among leaders and policy makers at the County of Orange, in 34 cities and in school districts throughout the county.”
Honorary co-chairs of the event were Julie Miller-Phipps of Kaiser Permanente and Susan Samueli of the Samueli Foundation and Anaheim Ducks, both of whom attended and spoke at the event. Arte Moreno, owner of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, was also an honorary co-chair, and addressed the conference via video from the Angels’ Tempe, Arizona spring training facility. Ambassador and former Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez shared his inspirational perspective on the changing demographic needs in Orange County and the opportunity elected officials had to create lasting community change. The event was underwritten by Orange County United Way, the Samueli Foundation, the County of Orange CEO’s office, and Edison International.
The purpose for the event was to present and discuss education, income, health, and housing challenges facing many Orange County’s residents. Conference attendees shared best practices while discussing ways to work together to tackle these challenges and make a significant, long-term impact on their communities.
Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait, Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido, Anaheim Councilwoman Gail Eastman, Santa Ana Councilwoman Michele Martinez, Lake Forest Councilman Scott Voigts, Orange County Superintendent of Schools Al Mijares, Rancho Santiago Community College District Trustee Arianna Barrios, and ACC-OC CEO Lacy Kelly were also featured speakers.
“We were pleased with the enthusiastic response we received from the city, county and educational leaders who attended Orange County’s Visionary Leaders’ Conference,” said Orange County United Way’s President and CEO Max Gardner after the event. “The cooperation we witnessed today serves as a small-scale model for the countywide partnerships that need to be established in order to meet our shared goals for a stronger community.”
During the afternoon, conference attendees participated in four breakout discussions on education, income, health, and housing. The conference re-convened with reports out from the breakout sessions that included recommended strategies to achieve goals and key action steps for these four areas.
At the end of the conference, it was announced that a smaller task force will be convened, with participants representing the County of Orange, United Way, ACC-OC, the elected leaders of each breakout session for the day as well as representatives from the business community, in order to determine next steps in applying many of the concepts discussed during the session.
“What took place today at the Visionary Leaders’ Conference was incredibly helpful for city leaders looking for additional tools to help them tackle the many challenges facing their residents,” explained Lacy Kelly, ACC-OC CEO. “It’s the type of ground up public policy making that’s the essence of what we do at ACC-OC; we look forward to partnering with United Way and the County of Orange in taking the next step in this process.”
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Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait |
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Orange County Superintendent of Schools Al Mijares |
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Lake Forest Councilman Scott Voigts |
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Rancho Santiago Community College District Trustee Arianna Barrios |
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| Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Orange County Chapter Holds Awards Luncheon |
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Supervisor Todd Spitzer with Julie Schilling and Dave Doucette, both of the California Office of Traffic Safety, before Supervisor Spitzer led the Pledge of Allegiance. |
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Yesterday, the Orange County chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) held their annual awards luncheon at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda.
“I have made it my commitment to continue working with our community partners such as MADD, Auto Club, and the Orange County Health Care Agency in the area of DUI prevention efforts,” Supervisor Todd Spitzer said. “In working with these partners, I am committed to the 4 Best Practices in DUI Prevention as outlined by the Orange County DUI Task Force: checkpoints and saturation patrols, educational efforts, responsible beverage service, and the social host ordinance.”
Devastating CHP and DMV statistics have shown that the numbers of Orange County underage youth drinking alcohol and driving have reached epidemic proportions. In one year in Orange County, there were almost 1,000 underage misdemeanor DUI convictions and 150 Orange County minors who caused serious bodily injury or death in a DUI incident. 52% of underage minors are consuming alcohol at a friend’s home.
“I would also like to thank the officers who were honored by MADD for all of their continued efforts in the area of DUI prevention, and I would like to thank MADD for their support in DUI prevention efforts through programs and education,” Supervisor Spitzer said. “ DUI Prevention is a collaborative effort, and I hope the community can come together to make a difference in the future and prevent such senseless tragedies from occurring.”
MADD Orange County also observed the twentieth anniversary of the death of 16-year-old Allison Saliture. She was planning to spend an evening with a friend going to dinner and a movie, but her life ended in an instant when a drunk driver, who had been drinking at a restaurant and then at a private home, killed Allison while driving at exorbitant speeds. Allison and her friend were stopped at a stop light. They were hit from behind, and never even saw this coming.
“I prosecuted this case; I put my whole heart into the prosecution of this case; and I have remained close with John and Haze Saliture over the last 20 years,” Supervisor Spitzer said. “John and Haze were tragically deprived of their daughter and the life they should have shared with her because of that DUI driver.”
John Saliture spoke with his family by his side at the luncheon to speak about the twentieth anniversary of Allison’s death, and several other speakers paid their respects to the Saliture family during the awards ceremony. |
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| OC Crime Victims’ Monument Design to Be Unveiled Saturday, April 12 |
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Supervisor Todd Spitzer encourages the public weigh in on the five finalist designs competing to be selected for the OC Crime Victims’ Monument, which will be built at William R. Mason Regional Park in Irvine.
“This monument will be an important site in the County,” Supervisor Spitzer said. “I urge all Orange County residents to examine the designs and provide their input.”
The contest was announced in April 2013. There were 59 entries submitted by the September 30 deadline. Supervisor Spitzer announced the five finalists in November. The finalists then submitted more detailed designs, which were publicly unveiled last week.
The finalists’ detailed designs are now on display at the Old Orange County Courthouse, 211 W. Santa Ana Blvd., Santa Ana, CA 92701. The displays will be available until Thursday, March 20. The public can view those detailed designs and submit comments online or in person at the Old Orange County Courthouse until that date.
The selected design will be announced on Saturday, April 12 as part of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week.
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Click on the image above to view a PDF version. |
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| June Primary Election Ballot Line-Up Set |
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 The lineup of candidates and ballot measures for the Tuesday, June 3, 2014, election ballot has been set (barring court action). The deadline for candidates to file for most offices was Friday, March 7. A handful of offices had the deadline extended to Wednesday, March 12, because the incumbent did not file for re-election.
“Seeking elected office is one of the most challenging things that I have ever done,” Supervisor Todd Spitzer said. “I applaud anybody who puts their name on the ballot and is willing to take the slings and arrows that come with being a candidate.”
Every voter in Orange County will see at least 22 offices on the June 2014 ballot. Voters in the Third Supervisorial District will see either 22 or 23 races while voters in other parts of the County may see as many as 25 races.
All Orange County voters will see statewide offices, Board of Equalization, Representative in Congress, Member of the State Assembly, and Countywide offices. Some voters will see State Senate seats on the ballot (the 34th and 36th Senate Districts are on the ballot in 2014; the 29th and 37th Senate Districts will be on the ballot in 2016). Voters in most of Irvine and small portions of Tustin will also see a special election for a six-month seat on the Irvine Unified School District Board.
Additionally, all Orange County voters will see three ballot measures:
- Proposition 41, a statewide ballot measure for veterans housing bonds
- Proposition 42, a statewide ballot measure on state reimbursements of local agencies for public records and open meetings laws
- Measure A, a countywide ballot measure to require elected officials to pay for their own pensions
Voters in the Buena Park School District will also see Measure B, a school bond.
For partisan offices, the top two candidates will advance to the November ballot, even if one of the candidates achieves more than 50% of the vote. For nonpartisan offices, the top two candidates will advance to the November ballot, unless a candidate achieves more than 50% of the vote in June, in which case that candidate will be elected in June.
Barring court action, below is a list of all Congressional, legislative, and local candidates who will appear on the June 2014 ballot for voters in at least part of the Third Supervisorial District (the Secretary of State’s office has not yet released the list of candidates who qualified for statewide offices):
PARTISAN
Member, State Board of Equalization
- 4th District (includes all of Orange County)
- John F. Kelly, Republican, Store Owner/Businessman
- Van Tran, Republican, Taxpayer Advocate/Businessman
- Shirley Horton, Republican, Development Director
- Diane L. Harkey, Republican, Assemblymember/Independent Businesswoman
- Lewis Da Silva, Republican, Accountant/Realtor
- Nader Shahatit, Democrat, Government Auditor
Representative in Congress
- 39th District (Yorba Linda and portions of Anaheim Hills)
- Ed Royce, Republican, U.S. Representative, 39th District
- Peter O. Anderson, Democrat, Retired Software Engineer
- 45th District (Most of the Third Supervisorial District)
- Greg Raths, Republican, Retired Colonel/Businessman
- Mimi Walters, Republican, California State Senator
- Al Sale-Hi, No Party Preference, Trustee, Buena Park Library District
- Drew E. Leavens, Democrat, Educator/Businessman
- 46th District (Orange west of the 55 freeway)
- John J. Cullum, Republican, Business Owner/Accountant
- Carlos Vazquez, Republican, Business Owner/Educator
- Ehab Atalla, Democrat, Businessman/Author/Consultant
- Adam Nick, Republican, Accountant/Auditor/Businessman
- Loretta Sanchez, Democrat, United States Representative, 46th District
State Senate
- 34th District (Orange west of the 57 freeway)
- Long Pham, Republican, Businessman/Engineer
- Jose Solorio, Democrat, College Trustee/Educator
- Janet Nguyen, Republican, Businesswoman/County Supervisor
- 36th District (portions of the Canyons)
- Patricia C. “Pat” Bates, Republican, Orange County Supervisor/Businesswoman
Member of the State Assembly
- 55th District (Yorba Linda)
- Ling-Ling Chang, Republican, City Councilwoman
- Phillip Chen, Republican, Small Business Owner
- Steve Tye, Republican, Councilmember
- Gregg D. Fritchle, Democrat, Social Worker
- 68th District (Most of the Third Supervisorial District)
- Donald P. (Don) Wagner, Republican, Assembly Member
- Anne Cameron, Democrat, Licensed Psychotherapist
- 69th District (Orange west of the 57 freeway)
- Sherry Walker, Republican, Small Business Owner
- Cecilia “Ceci” Iglesias, Republican, Governing Board Member, Santa Ana Unified School District
- Tom Daly, Democrat, State Assemblymember, 69th District
- 73rd District (portions of the Canyons)
- William (Bill) Brough, Republican, Businessman/Dana Point Councilmember
- Anna Bryson, Republican, Capistrano Unified School District Trustee
- Jesse Petrilla, Republican, Councilman/Military Officer
- Wendy Gabriella, Democrat, Teacher/Constitutional Attorney
- Paul G. Glaab, Republican, Small Business Owner
- 74th District (portions of Irvine)
- Karina “Karina” Onofre, Democrat, Small Business Owner
- Keith D. Curry, Republican, Businessman/City Councilmember
- Emanuel Patrascu, Republican, Orange County Business Owner
- Matthew Harper, Republican, Huntington Beach Mayor
- Anila Ali, Democrat, Middle School Teacher
NONPARTISAN
Countywide
- Superior Court Judge Office Number 14
- Thomas E. Martin, Attorney At Law
- Fred Fascenelli, Litigation Attorney
- Kevin Haskins, Assistant District Attorney
- Kenneth C. “KC” Jones, Deputy Attorney General
- Superior Court Judge Office Number 20
- Helen Hayden, Businesswoman/Corporate Attorney
- Derek Johnson, Judge of the Superior Court
- Superior Court Judge Office Number 27
- Joanne Motoike, Judge of the Superior Court
- Wayne Philips, Trial Lawyer/Businessman
- Superior Court Judge Office Number 35
- Jeff Ferguson, Deputy District Attorney
- Carmen Luege, Superior Court Commissioner
- Assessor
- Claude Parrish, Taxpayer Advocate/Businessman
- Webster Guillory, Orange County Assessor
- Jorge O. Lopez, Consultant/Appraiser/Businessman
- Auditor-Controller
- Eric Woolery, Orange Treasurer/CPA
- John Wayne Willard, Assistant Director HR
- James T. Benuzzi, Audit/Business Advisor
- Frank Davies, Deputy Auditor-Controller
- Mike “Mike” Dalati, Accountant/Tax Instructor
- Clerk-Recorder
- Steve Rocco, Retired Teacher
- Monica Maddox, Local Businesswoman
- Gary Pritchard, Governing Board Member, Capistrano Unified School District
- Hugh Nguyen, Appointed Orange County Clerk-Recorder
- District Attorney-Public Adminstrator
- Tony Rackauckas, Orange County District Attorney
- Greg Diamond, Government Accountability Attorney
- Sheriff-Coroner
- Sandra Hutchens, Sheriff-Coroner
- Superintendent of Schools
- Al Mijares, Appointed Orange County Superintendent of Schools
- Treasurer-Tax Collector
- Shari L. Freidenrich, Treasurer-Tax Collector
Irvine Unified School District (Special Election)
- Short Term, Six Month Seat (Most of Irvine and portions of Tustin)
- Bob Vu, Educator/Scientist/Entrepreneur
- Carolyn Inmon, Retired Teacher
- Ira Glasky, Irvine Businessman/Parent
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| County Property Tax Auction Sells Off 14 Properties with Delinquent Taxes |
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| (Portions courtesy of the Treasurer-Tax Collector) |
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Treasurer-Tax Collector Shari Freidenrich conducts the property tax auction. |
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The Orange County Property Tax Auction was held last week in the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room. All 14 properties put up for auction were sold; click here for results from the sale.
All participants were required to be registered bidders (registration closed 20 hours before the auction) in order to participate in the tax auction. A deposit of $5,000 in the form of cash or cashier’s check payable to the County of Orange was required at the time of registration. For information about the County of Orange’s property tax auctions or to subscribe to the email notification list about the next auction, go to ocgov.com/taxauction.
Under California law, properties become subject to the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s “power to sell” and can be sold at a tax auction after they have been in default for five or more years. The Treasurer-Tax Collector set the minimum bids based on the total amount of delinquent taxes, penalties, and selling costs. This was a “buyer beware sale,” and the properties were sold “as is.” Some liens may not have been discharged by the sale.
Last week’s auction did not include any time-share interests, and the Treasurer-Tax Collector will be auctioning off time-share interests later this year as an online auction. |
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| Pet of the Week |
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Click on the image above to view a PDF version. |
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| Events Around the District |
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Anaheim
Mobile Public Awareness through Citizen Education (Anaheim Police)
Wednesday, March 19, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Glenview Elementary School, 1775 N. Glenview Ave.
Irvine
OC Academy Art Exhibition Reception
Saturday, March 15, 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Irvine Fine Arts Center, 14321 Yale Ave.
Orange
2014 Winter Documentary Series: “Fresh”
Saturday, March 15, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Orange Public Library & History Center, 407 E. Chapman Ave.
Silverado
Owling Up Silverado Canyon
Wednesday, March 19, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
Canyon Market, 28192 Silverado Canyon Rd.
Tustin
Food Distribution Program for Tustin Residents
Tuesday, March 18, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM
Tustin Family & Youth Center, 14722 Newport Ave.
Villa Park
Clothing and Shoe Drive by Villa Park High School Grad Night
Saturday, March 15, 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Villa Park High School, 18042 E. Taft Ave.
Yorba Linda
Pat Nixon and Girl Scouts 102nd Birthday Celebration – Free Admission
Sunday, March 16, 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum, 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd.
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