Speak Up for California
SUMMARY REPORT
The Economic Development Collaborative-Ventura County
“There is an idea of California—and it’s an idea people still believe in.”
- Voices of reform on the Central Coast
More than 60 civic-minded leaders
from three unique coastal counties
gathered in Santa Barbara on June 16
to discuss their ideas for reforming
California’s governance system—
and to focus not on what makes
them different, but on what they
have in common.
“We’re here today because together we
share three major concerns: One, we
share a belief that California can and
will again be the best place to live and
to do business in America,” said Harold Edwards, chair
of Ventura County’s Economic Development Collab-
orative and the CEO of Limoneira, a local agribusiness
company. “Two, we share a belief that things won’t get
better if we don’t engage and participate in a process
to improve them. And three, we share a growing
recognition that at least part of the answer is based in
the emergence of strong regions within the state.”
June 2010
A Regional Dialogue co-hosted by:
Community Environmental Council of Santa Barbara
California Forward
The one-day meeting, co-hosted by California
Forward, gave regional leaders from San Luis Obispo
to Ventura an opportunity to share their thoughts on
how the state’s deadlocked government can become
more efficient and more responsive. While more than
half of the participants identified the still-stagnant
economy as the most pressing issue facing the state—
with over 40 percent saying they believe the state’s
budget and fiscal system, in particular, needs a major
overhaul—the group’s mood remained remarkably
optimistic. In a survey conducted during the meeting,
nine out of every ten participants said they were either
“very hopeful” or “somewhat hopeful” that Californians
can positively change the future of the state.
9 out of every 10 participants said they
were either ‘very hopeful’ or ‘somewhat
hopeful’ that Californians can positively
impact the future of the state.
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Much of the discussion during the day focused on
what good government looks like—and how the
state’s current governance system, built nearly a
century ago, can be reformed to reflect the shared
values of today’s Californians. A few common
themes emerged:
• Accountability and transparency—Many
participants expressed a desire for a smaller,
more understandable government. As one
speaker put it: “What is government account-
able for? “Results—tangible results, and those
results need to be publicized in messaging
that’s clear and concise.”
• Continued engagement with voters—Many
• Clarifying government’s roles and responsibili-
ties—There was widespread support for making
regions and municipalities more autonomous,
more financially independent, and more fiscally
responsible. Said one participant:
Top Responses from the Discussion
What are characteristics of government
that works?
“We need to end local government’s
dependency on cranking up the sales tax
as its only source of revenue. Car dealerships
and shopping malls are not a growth plan.
There needs to be a new fiscal strategy for
stable, long-term municipal finances.”
participants agreed that will be the key to any
such changes. Improved access to the political
process and increased voter participation were
at the top of the list. “We’d like the government
to be more responsive. We want it to be more
accessible,” as one participant put it.
• Smaller, more local. “Bring decision makers
closer to local communities.”
•M
 ore transparent, honest, competent and
understandable. “[Government should be]
understandable. Not just transparent, but
really understandable. So when you’re tackling
a budget, the general public should be able to
understand that budget.”
• More connected, more inclusive, more
responsive. “Why do board meetings take
months to make decisions? We have a new
technology environment that’s emerging;
voters need to be able to stay connected and
provide input.”
• Less
 partisan. “Legislation is supposed to be
enacted for the common good. I don’t think
there’s a good faith attitude on the part of the
Legislature to make things happen.”
•M
 ore strategic. “Government should be
fiscally responsible, realistic and grounded.
What can we do and what can’t we do?
Let’s define that better.”
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Top Responses from the Discussion “We need the public to recognize the problems with the state, at the
If we make changes informed by California Forward’s same they have optimism about our ability to solve them.”
four principles, what would government look like?
- Voices of reform on the Central Coast
•M
 ore regional, more local. “[We need to] better
clarify the roles and responsibilities of government
and get local agencies working together on WHICH SECTOR DO YOU HAVE MOST EXPERIENCE WITH?
decisions, rather than independently.” “Regional
levels [might work better] than having the state
WHO WAS THERE? 7%
42% 29% Public Sector

[government] all in Sacramento.” More than 60 community leaders from across 22%
Private Sector
Civic/Non-profit
Other
• Stronger local governments. “Local govern- the Central Coast participated in the discussion
ments should have more responsibility and at the Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center. The diverse
accountability, and they should be more group included:
responsible for how money is spent.” “[State] HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR POLITICAL VIEWS?
• Sharon Siegel, staff member,
government should act as stewards for 19% 12%
Representative Lois Capps’ office Very Liberal
environment and resources…[they] should Somewhat Liberal
28% 42% Middle of the Road
do big things like infrastructure, health, and • Kathy Long, Supervisor, 3rd District, Somewhat Conservative
Very Conservative
education—and allow local governments to County of Ventura
tackle some of their own problems.”
• Maricela Morales, member,
• Data-driven performance. “Government should
Port Hueneme City Council WHAT ISSUE IN CALIFORNIA IS MOST CONCERNING
be driven by the taxpayers’ bottom line. What YOU RIGHT NOW?

do they want and what are they looking for?” • Mark Buchman, member, Board of Trustees, 10% 7% 2%
Economic Prosperity & Jobs

“[We need to make] data-driven decisions. San Luis Coastal Unified School District 29% 55% Education
Environment
[Even if it is just] understanding why we need a Health & Human Services
Public Infrastructure
new dogcatcher. [Is it] because we need one or
because we have more dogs?”

• More representative—more trusted. WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING

DO YOU THINK NEEDS TO CHANGE THE MOST?
“Government should spend less time in gridlock Budget & Fiscal Systems

2% Initiative Process
and more time in responsive dialogue.” “We need 24%
Accountability Between
41% Levels of Government
to get back to representative democracy. If you 22% Partisan Gridlock
4% 7%
have people you can trust, you can accomplish Public Participation
in Government

a lot more.” Other/Don’t Know

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WHAT HAPPENED?
The dialogue began with a bit of history.
In his opening remarks, Fred Keeley, a member
of California Forward’s Leadership Council—
and former Speaker pro Tempore of the California
State Assembly—made the case that the state’s
conundrum today is not so different from the
one it faced a hundred years ago, when reformers
also had to overcome dominant special interests
and a dysfunctional Legislature to solve the
state’s problems.
The challenge was much simpler then. After years
of watching the railroad barons twist government to
their own narrow ends, voters flexed their political
muscle in 1911 by approving a series of measures
that radically modernized the tools of government,
using the referendum and initiative process to wrest
back control of the state.
“Local government should have more responsibility
and accountability. Local governments should be more responsible
for how money is spent.”
- Voices of reform on the Central Coast
With these principles as a guide, Hamilton asked the
group three questions over the course of the meet-
Those same tools of government are now widely
ing to draw out their ideas about what can be done
viewed as part of the problem, Keeley acknowl-
to the fix the state:
edged, but there are still important lessons to be
learned from California’s early reformers. “The idea
• What are the characteristics of a government
here is to do the same thing they did,” Keeley said. that works?
“There is a genuine desire for the state to succeed,
and what you are part of today has a long, proud • If we make changes informed by the principles
tradition that goes back to when our state of California Forward, what would government
was founded—to a time when people realized look like?
their government was broken, the tools needed to
• If we’re going to hold government accountable
be modernized, and the people of the state
for results, who is government accountable to—
wanted to tone down the partisanship and ratchet
and what does accountability look like?
up the optimism.”
Following Keeley’s remarks, Virginia Hamilton, CA Forward’s Four Principles
the project director of California Forward’s civic
engagement effort, spoke about the specific • Invest in the future
challenges facing the state today, from stagnant
job growth and backsliding graduation rates to the • Promote a viable, inclusive, and
huge percentage of the state’s budget that goes to responsive democracy
prisons. She outlined four principles that serve as the • Improve government performance
foundation of California Forward’s vision for reform. • Move government closer to the people
(See box.)
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 “At the local level, government is often viewed as the enemy. Top Responses from the Discussion

We need to change that attitude. The government is us and we’re If we’re going to hold government accountable for
results, what does accountability look like?
a part of it.”
•M
 ore trust. “Deliverables are easy: Clean
- Voices of reform on the Central Coast
streets, clear laws. Process is a bit harder.
[Government] should be just and fair. Less big
government, more small government. It should
Over the course of several hours partici-
also build trust using things like technology.”
pants quickly identified where they would
like a governance reform effort to start. • Responsibility. “Accountability means
government responsibility, personal
More than half (55 percent) said the responsibility, and also corporate
issues concerning them most in the state responsibility—it goes across all groups.”
were economic prosperity and jobs.
• Engagement. “Keeping people involved past
Over 70 percent of the group said
the initial election period [is important].
education was either their first or second
By December, it’s the holidays, no one’s even
priority, followed by environmental issues
thinking about who’s elected. We need to
and health and human services.
keep people engaged with the government
Participants were also very clear about and government engaged with us.”
which parts of government they are most
• Results. “What is government accountable for?
eager to reform. Nearly half (41 percent)
Results—tangible results, and those results
said the state’s budget and fiscal systems
need to be publicized in messaging that’s clear
need to change. One in four people in the room
and concise.”
expressed a desire to increase public participation
in government, and 22 percent said their top priority
was ending partisan gridlock.

Meanwhile, in the small-group discussions,

participants talked about the shared values they
hope will shape any effort to reform the state’s
governance system.

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 “We need to get back to representative democracy.
If you have people you can trust, you can accomplish a lot more.”
- Voices of reform on the Central Coast

WHAT DO WE DO NOW?
In spite of the meeting’s optimistic tone, several
participants did offer some words of caution.
“A lot of policy changes that have damaged the
public interest have been made in the name of
these same ideas.”

The state’s elected officials are often villainized for

California’s shortcomings, but California Forward
believes the problem is not our politicians—but our
system of state government itself. Californians are
calling for change. They know our government
can do better. And we want to find a way to help
get us there.

In the months ahead, as we begin to incorporate

input from these dialogues into a more detailed set
of policy ideas for changing the state, we hope to
keep hearing more ideas about how we can improve
the state’s government. So please join us, and help us
begin to move California forward.

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