How “Release Time” causes Taxpayers to fund Government Unions

By Edward Ring
07/17/2019
Based on an estimated total membership of 1.1 million and average dues per member of around $700, California’s public sector unions collect and spend approximately $800 million per year. The impact of the June 2018 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in the case Janus vs AFSCME may have chopped around $50 million off that annual total, by eliminating the union’s...

TAGS: government unions, irvine, Janus, K-12, orange county, release time, Unions

Formerly bankrupt Stockton is fiscally healthy again, but offers warning to others

By Steven Greenhut
06/12/2018
Sacramento Two mid-sized California cities, Irvine and Stockton, have topped a national list of financially healthy governments compiled by an influential watchdog group. Irvine’s top ranking shouldn’t surprise anyone, given that the affluent Orange County city has long been a model for prudence, despite some high-profile spending miscues over the years. But the second-place ranking...

TAGS: irvine, Stockton

Orange County Fire Authority’s Hefty Overtime Bill a Bad Deal for Irvine Taxpayers

By Marc Joffe
01/31/2017
Irvine’s City Council has directed city staff to explore the possibility of leaving the Orange County Fire Authority in 2020. The Council wants to find a more cost effective way to provide fire protection services to city residents. If Irvine can find an alternative that constrains firefighter compensation – especially overtime pay– it may be on the right track....

TAGS: irvine, Orange County Fire Authority

Surprise! The Nation’s Most Fiscally Fit Cities are in California!

By Marc Joffe
01/18/2017
California has a reputation for fiscal mismanagement, so I was surprised to see several Golden State cities at the top of a city financial strength ranking I recently compiled for The Fiscal Times. The fact that California has some judicious public agencies does not necessarily negate the fact that, taken as a whole, the state’s...

TAGS: irvine