The Big One

We received some news yesterday that we wanted to pass along. As you may know, Assembly Majority Leader Alberto Torrico is a candidate for California Attorney General in 2010. Assemblymember Torrico has long been a friend of SJPOA and received our wholehearted endorsement over the summer.

Now, he has been honored with the endorsement of PORAC, a statewide organization of public safety unions, of which SJPOA is a member. This is a huge step for Mr. Torrico's campaign. and it's clear from reading the email below — which he sent to supporters yesterday — that he appreciates the significance.

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Dear Friend,

The 62,000-member strong Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC) voted Saturday to endorse my campaign for Attorney General.

I’ve always made protecting the public my highest priority. Many of you know my brother is a veteran officer with the San Jose Police Department, so this powerful endorsement is more than a political victory. It is a very personal validation of years of work standing with law enforcement to make California safer.

PORAC President Ron Cottingham was very kind in his remarks:

“Alberto Torrico has made protecting the public his top priority. He is the best choice for California’s top law enforcement official.”

I want to personally thank the men and women of law enforcement for their confidence and for this endorsement.

This is just the most recent success for our campaign. We reported the strongest cash-on-hand position among Attorney General candidates in July. And we are back on the road today – spreading the word and gaining even greater momentum.

Please stay in touch as the campaign continues to grow. You can join me on Facebook, sign up on my website or follow me on my new Twitter account. And please help us maintain our strong financial position by making your donation here.

Respectfully,
Alberto Torrico

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You can click here to read an article Mr. Torrico wrote for Protect San Jose back in June.

Fixing a Broken System

By Alberto Torrico

On June 3, the state Assembly acted to protect police officers from those who would scapegoat public safety employees for the financial woes faced by cities and counties statewide.

The Assembly passed Assemblymember Tony Mendoza’s AB 155 by a 47-25 vote. I am the principal co-author of this bill, which would stop union foes and their attorneys from wielding the threat of bankruptcy – or an actual bankruptcy declaration itself – as a hammer to break hard-won labor contracts.

Vallejo’s bankruptcy filing last year set off a chain reaction that will see no winners, except perhaps a number of high-priced attorneys. Our recession left Vallejo with sagging sales and property tax revenues. But the city’s problems were compounded by years of financial mismanagement and an anemic economic development plan.

Vallejo’s firefighters and police officers did what you would expect dedicated employees to do: they conceded benefits and salaries in an attempt to ease the city away from the financial brink.

But rather than work with the unions and accept their concessions, Vallejo’s city council, in the words of the local paper, “seemed hell-bent on finding some way – any way” – to break the contracts. Unfortunately, leaders are risking the city’s fiscal stability with their pre-ordained conclusion that bankruptcy is the sole answer to this crisis.

Now other cities may be tempted to use the threat of bankruptcies as a quick way to gain savings without dealing effectively with their own budget shortages.

This is why I support AB 155. It’s a reasonable, measured response to what’s happening in Vallejo and what may occur elsewhere. It says a local public entity may only file under federal bankruptcy law with the approval of the California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission.

The goal is to allow an independent set of financial experts to explore all options to avoid bankruptcy. While bankruptcy could provide short-term relief, the long-term negative effects will harm both cities and the state. Interest rates will increase, hurting taxpayers and the services they demand. The effects on Vallejo provide just one example. Employees are leaving, morale is low and the community is badly divided.

AB 155 will prohibit cities from filing for bankruptcy without first working with the CDIAC to research all alternatives. It ensures bankruptcy will only be used as an absolute last resort. Twenty-two states don’t even allow bankruptcy as an option. This bill will put California on a middle course with the 16 other states who allow bankruptcies but only after a thorough review with state oversight.

Our public safety employees, and the people who rely on them, will benefit from this smart public policy.

Alberto Torrico is the Majority Leader of the California State Assembly.