Today’s report from the Turlock Journal has the details: The Turlock City Council voted to implement contracts with the City’s police and fire unions after negotiations reached impasse. … According to City […]
Agency relies on flawed study to justify massive pay raise
Excellent letter-to-the-editor from a resident who correctly questions the validity of setting public pay by comparing to other public agencies: Mariposa County Supervisors have unfortunately relied on a flawed compensation study as […]
Voters Deserve the Truth on Pension-Driven Tax Hikes
By: Robert Fellner Washington Examiner — Jan. 22, 2020 Soaring public pension costs are driving a wave of tax hikes across California, but many officials are reluctant to admit that fact. Instead, […]
Oakland taxpayers must fund disability pensions for those in “excellent physical condition” working full-time elsewhere
Oakland taxpayers are required to fund so-called disability pensions for former law enforcement officers who are working full-time in law enforcement elsewhere, Transparent California has learned. In 2014, Oakland made national headlines […]
Union rules, not wildfires, behind soaring firefighter overtime pay
By: Robert Fellner Los Angeles Daily News — 1/14/20 Overtime pay for Los Angeles firefighters is making national headlines again, thanks to eye-popping payouts that allowed several employees to pocket over $400,000 […]
LA Times misleads on upcoming tax hike
The Los Angeles County Fire Department will ask voters to approve a property tax hike in March. The department has cited an increase in medical calls, as well as the need for […]
Court ruling in CalPERS lawsuit threatens to gut California’s public records law
This commentary was first published by the San Diego Union-Tribune It is going to be much easier for California governments to hide their affairs from the public if the legal standard put […]
FBI special agent still collecting CalPERS disability pension
In an op-ed for today’s San Diego Union-Tribune, I describe how the recent court ruling in our CalPERS lawsuit will be used to undermine governmental transparency across the state. I also take aim at […]
California’s 100k club grows as tax hikes mount
Our recent report on California’s exploding $100K club has generated quite a bit of coverage, perhaps none better than the recent Orange County Register editorial, “California’s 100k club grows as tax hikes mount.” The editorial […]
Central San gives up its crown
In 2015, we wrote about the unfairness of a proposed rate hike by Central San, while the district was simultaneously spending ratepayer money on things like “Rolls-Royce-style health, dental and vision insurance […]