Orange County Register

Each week, The Watchdog asks this question of one elected official:

If you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

OUR DISCLAIMER: The Watchdog does not agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by said elected officials; we simply serve as the conduit between you, the people, and the folks you have elected to represent you. As the saying goes, the people get the government they deserve!

Background on Irvine Mayor Pro Tem Sukhee Kang:

• Born in South Korea; graduated from Seoul’s respected Korea University; came to America in 1977.
• Began his professional career with Circuit City’s sales and customer service; was promoted to senior management positions.
• Was elected to Irvine City Council in 2004 and re-elected in 2006.
• Is running for Mayor in November against Irvine Councilmember Christina Shea (whose if-you-could-cut-the-budget post criticizing Kang’s health care initiative he rebuts here).
• Served on the Irvine Finance Commission; was the Governor’s appointee to the California Workforce Investment Board; and president of the Korean American Scholarship Foundation’s Western Region, which covers 13 states.
• Wife, Joanne and two grown children: Alan, UC San Diego grad, a research scientist at Johnson and Johnson; and Angie, a UC Berkeley School of Law grad, associate attorney at Latham & Watkins.

WATCHDOG: Sukhee Kang, if you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

KANG: I would cut unnecessary feasibility studies that yield no useful results. Since 2003, Councilmember Shea has been responsible for wasting more than $200,000 on two feasibility studies of her proposed Venta Spur/Jeffrey pedestrian bridge. The project would place a pedestrian bridge over Jeffrey Road next to The Groves senior citizens’ community in Northwood.

In 2003, City staff recommended not moving forward with the project. Despite strong opposition from residents of The Groves, Shea proposed another feasibility study for the project in 2006, which also yielded no useful results.

Meanwhile, Shea rails against the Irvine Children’s Health Program Initiative (I-CHP), calling it a waste of taxpayers’ money. She not only misunderstands the program, but misinforms readers about its intent.

I believe children’s health is one of the foundations of a community’s well-being. There are nearly 2,000 children in Irvine without health insurance. My goal is to make sure that every child in Irvine has decent and affordable health care. Read the rest of this entry »

 Each week, The Watchdog asks this question of one elected official:

If you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

OUR DISCLAIMER: The Watchdog does not agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by said elected officials; we simply serve as the conduit between you, the people, and the folks you have elected to represent you. As the saying goes, the people get the government they deserve!

Background on Irvine City Councilmember Christina Shea:

• Attended Glendale College before moving to Irvine in 1977, where she raised three children; earned a degree from Irvine Valley College, studied political science at Cal State Fullerton.
• First elected to council in 1992; has served as mayor and councilmember; now running against Sukhee Kang for mayor in November.
• Works as a Realtor and notary public, and runs Shea Consulting Group, which provides business development, government relations and political consulting services.
• Has served on the Orange County Republican Central Committee.
• Active in the American Cancer Society, Irvine Child Care Project, Human Options.
• For fun: reading, entertaining friends, exercising, and spending time with her seven grandchildren.

Q. WATCHDOG: Christina Shea, if you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

A. SHEA: I would cut the I-CHP program (Irvine Children’s Health Program Initiative) proposed by Mayor Pro Tem Sukhee Kang. It costs about $200,000 (over two years), and pays consultants to go door-to-door to help lower-income people get their children signed up for almost-free healthcare from the state’s Healthy Families and other programs.

To spend money on this - in a year when we had to borrow $6.5 million from our reserves to balance the budget - just doesn’t seem right. And we might have to borrow again next year to balance the budget.

Healthy Families is one of the state’s great health care programs for lower income families. But people can go to a local agency in Santa Ana to fill out their own paperwork. Government, in my mind, should not be paying to have people filling out forms. I mean, when are we going to go out to our community and start fixing people’s washers and dryers? There has to be an element of personal responsibility. We shouldn’t be filling out their paperwork; this is the individual’s responsibility and would save the city $200,000. This is a waste of taxpayer money.

Each week, The Watchdog asks this question of one elected official:

If you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

OUR DISCLAIMER: The Watchdog does not agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by said elected officials; we simply serve as the conduit between you, the people, and the folks you have elected to represent you. As the saying goes, the people get the government they deserve!

Background on Chair of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, John Moorlach:

• Was derided as “Chicken Little” while running for county treasurer in 1994 against Bob Citron, for predicting doom in the county investment pool. 
• Has sported license plates saying DULLCPA and - after his predictions on the investment pool came true and $1.64 billion was lost - SKYFELL.
• Represents the second district (including Costa Mesa, Cypress, Fountain Valley,
  Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Seal Beach and
  Stanton).
• Graduated from CSU Long Beach, 1977;  Certified Public Accountant, 1978; completed studies for Certified Financial Planner, 1987.
• Was Vice President of Balser, Horowitz, Frank & Wakeling, an Accountancy Corporation; administrative partner of its Costa Mesa office.
• Appointed county treasurer in 1995, after Citron was forced out; reelected twice.
• Won seat on Board of Supervisors in 2006.
• Has had extra training in public finance and employee pensions.
• Active in  Old Courthouse Museum society; Orange County Historical Society; Christian Business Men’s Committee; Noble Viking Charities of Orange County; Defend the Bay; Orange County Freedom Committee.
• Married, three children.

WATCHDOG: John Moorlach, if you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

MOORLACH: Let me tell you a nightmare story that hasn’t hit the papers yet. Our retirement system, in the month of June, had a net decrease in asset value of $293 million. We contribute $306 million a year to the plan - so whatever we’re contributing has already been lost.

So when they lose that amount of money, how is it made up? They’re at a negative for the year to date, minus 3 percent earnings. They have to be positive 8 percent to make everything work. So we’re 11 percent behind. That adds to what the county will have to pay to fully fund pensions for retirees.

In 2001, the Board of Supervisors awarded retroactive pension increases to thousands of employees. It allowed them to retire as early as age 50, with pensions that paid 90 percent of their final salaries for the rest of their lives. That decision could cost the county between $100 million and $200 million.

Before the 2001 vote, our retirement system was fully-funded. A recent estimate found that it’s now underfunded by $2.7 billion. That money would have to come out of taxpayers’ pockets. Read the rest of this entry »

Each week, The Watchdog asks this question of one elected official:

If you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

OUR DISCLAIMER: The Watchdog does not agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by said elected officials; we simply serve as the conduit between you, the people, and the folks you have elected to represent you. As the saying goes, the people get the government they deserve!

Background on state Assemblyman Todd Spitzer:

• Represents the 71st Assembly District (including parts of Tustin, Orange, Anaheim, Mission Viejo, Coto de Caza, Las Flores, Rancho Santa Margarita and Riverside County).
• Chair of the Select Committee on Prison Construction and Operation, and the Health and Human Services, Revenue and Taxation and Joint Legislative Audit committees; co-chair of the High Risk Sex Offender Task Force
• Bachelor’s in English, UCLA; master’s in public policy, Cal Berkeley; juris doctorate, UC Hastings
• Taught English in East Los Angeles; Orange County Deputy District Attorney
• Reserve police officer, Los Angeles Police Department
• Wife, Jamie; son, Justin; daughter, Lauren.

WATCHDOG: Todd Spitzer, if you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

SPITZER: If you look at government spending over the past four years, you’ll find that it has increased by 44 percent while revenues during that same time period have increased by only 40 percent. Simply put, we are spending more than we take in. It is clear that lawmakers have a spending problem; one that is systematically unsustainable. Read the rest of this entry »

Each week, The Watchdog asks this question of one elected official:

If you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

OUR DISCLAIMER: The Watchdog does not agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by said elected officials; we simply serve as the conduit between you, the people, and the folks you have elected to represent you. As the saying goes, the people get the government they deserve!

Background on state Assemblyman Van Tran:

• Republican representing the 68th Assembly District, including Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Newport Beach, Stanton and Westminster
• Highest ranking Vietnamese-American elected official in the nation
• Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on International Trade; vice-chair of the Judiciary Committee; member of the Utilities and Commerce, Governmental Organization,  and Community Colleges committees; member of the Asian Pacific Islander Joint Caucus
• His family came to America in 1975, evacuated by the U.S. Army a week before the fall of Saigon. Originally settling in Michigan, the Trans moved to Orange County while Van was in high school. He interned for Congressman Robert Dornan and for State Senator (now Congressman) Ed Royce.
• Bachelor’s in political science, UCI; master’s in public administration and juris doctorate, Hamline University School of Law in Saint Paul
• Managing partner of his own law practice, served on the Garden Grove Planning Commission, was vice mayor of Garden Grove
• Married, wife Cyndi; one child, Alex.

WATCHDOG: Van Tran, if you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

VAN TRAN: California needs a realistic state budget that cuts wasteful government spending and gets us back on track for economic success. Tax increases are not the answer to our budget problems. When then-Gov. Wilson increased taxes in 1992, state revenues declined.

Instead, Republicans have proposed a spending limit that will control state spending and create a rainy-day reserve for the future. We’ve also proposed an education budget plan that will give our schools a year-over-year increase in funding - without raising taxes or increasing the deficit.

The real issue is the refusal to cut spending despite a deficit near $20 billion. Raising taxes to pay for more government spending is the wrong approach when hardworking families continue to pay more for gas and groceries. So I would like to highlight just one of the many cuts we need to make to bring our budget in line with our revenue. Read the rest of this entry »

Each week, The Watchdog asks this question of one elected official:

If you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

OUR DISCLAIMER: The Watchdog does not agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by said elected officials; we simply serve as the conduit between you, the people, and the folks you have elected to represent you. As the saying goes, the people get the government they deserve!

Background on state Sen. Tom Harman:

• Republican representing the 35th Senate District (Seal Beach, Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Irvine, Cypress, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Laguna Beach, Dana Point; parts of Buena Park, Garden Grove, Santa Ana, and Westminster; and unincorporated Rossmoor and Sunset Beach)
• “Harman, a conservationist, is an enthusiastic and avid outdoorsman who enjoys flyfishing.”
• Married, wife Dianne, more than 40 years
• Two children, Michael and Michelle
• Bachelor of Science in business administration from Kansas State University
• Lieutenant, 4th Infantry Division, United States Army
• Graduated Loyola Law School in 1968
• Served nerly six years in state Assembly, and six years on the Huntington Beach City Council

WATCHDOG: Sen. Tom Harman, if you could cut one thing from the budget, what would it be and why?

HARMAN: While every line of the budget could possibly withstand some reduction - the need for major CALWORKS reform, holding off on almost $1 million worth of new furniture for the Controller’s office and refusing to provide $3 million in acupuncture services for those on MediCal, just to name a few - what we really need is long-lasting reform.

As we have too often seen, a cut to one area doesn’t mean that money will go toward paying down our debt but rather to another pet project. I could very easily rattle off a list of 100 cuts much like those mentioned previously, but in the end we must ask ourselves - will any of these cuts really solve our budget mess? Unlikely. But there are key reforms that can be done to avoid the chronic budget crisis that our state experiences each and every year.

To that end, Senator Tom McClintock and I jointly authored Senate Constitutional Amendment 8, which would re-enact the Gann Spending Limit and essentially prevent the state from spending more than it takes in. Read the rest of this entry »