In Search of Heroes

By Edward Ring
08/02/2017
California is not just any “blue state.” By many measures, California is a blue nation. It boasts the world’s sixth largest economy, isolated from the rest of the nation by mountains and deserts that were virtually impassable before modern times. It is blessed with diverse industries, abundant natural resources, and the most attractive weather in...

TAGS: Charter schools, Civic Openness in Negotiations, COIN, Palm Lane Elementary School, pension reform

Los Angeles Could Use a COIN Ordinance – But That Will Only Come When Its Voters Demand It

By Craig Alexander
09/03/2015
We in Orange County have seen several versions of the COIN Ordinance (Community Openness In Negotiations). COIN ordinances provide for more and earlier disclosure to the taxpayers during and in the run up to the final approval of a contract between the public entity employer and a government employee union. This allows the citizens to...

TAGS: Civic Openness in Negotiations, COIN

Secret Sheriff Union Negotiations Endanger Orange County’s Financial Future

By Mark Bucher
07/14/2014
The Orange County Board of Supervisors has tentatively approved a transparency ordinance, known as COIN (for Civic Openness In Negotiations) that would require negotiations with government employee unions to be open to the public. Boy, do they need it. The current negotiations between the sheriffs’ union and the Orange County Board of Supervisors are a...

TAGS: Civic Openness in Negotiations, COIN, unfunded pension liability

Fullerton Councilmember Responds: New COIN Ordinance Has Teeth

By Jennifer Fitzgerald
06/30/2014
This website recently posted articles criticizing Fullerton’s newly passed COIN ordinance, the Fullerton Transparency and Accountability in Labor Negotiations Ordinance. The author used Supervisor John Moorlach’s earlier writing to guide his criticism of our achievement. For the sake of clarity, I use the same template to correct the record. Supervisor Moorlach’s essential elements are, in...

TAGS: Civic Openness in Negotiations, COIN

Union Influenced Fullerton City Council Guts Proposed COIN Ordinance

By Barry Levinson
06/19/2014
This is my first opportunity to compare an excellent law, the Costa Mesa Ordinance on Civic Openness in Negotiations (C.O.I.N.) vs. the Fullerton Draft C.O.I.N Ordinance. Costa Mesa’s Civic Openness in Negotiations ordinance was designed to make public employee salary and benefit negotiations open and transparent to the public and to all members of the city council as...

TAGS: Civic Openness in Negotiations

Civic Openness in Negotiations Ordinances Hold Elected Officials Accountable

By John Moorlach
06/18/2014
Eight years ago, then Orange County Register reporter Norberto Santana opened his piece, “The Art of the O.C. Deal (Orange County Register, August 6, 2006),” with the following observation: “When people see the board of supervisors vote on a labor deal, what they don’t know is that most often, an agreement has already been reached...

TAGS: Civic Openness in Negotiations, COIN, Costa Mesa, John Moorlach