I cover Ventura County politics from Park Boards to School Boards. Sometimes I am serious but sometimes I want to use my blog for local politicians and activists to have a good time. Besides being fun I want the fun contests to remind all of us that what we have in common is bigger than what divides us. Maybe when we laugh with each other we can focus on our policy differences more than personality clashes. That's the plan anyway.

Do you remember the cutest dog competition? I am proud of how many people participated by sending in pictures.

What about the video contest Team Sojka won? Kyle Quiroz told me he is actually getting paid a very small amount by Youtube for that video.

This time I am sponsoring a Planking Competition.

Awards will be given for a variety of categories including most creative, most on message, and best picture. Elected officials, activists, and others can enter by emailing me their pictures. You can have us guess where the picture was taken or include that information for me to post.

Here is the first entry:

Moorpark City Council Member Mark Van Dam is planking in a mysterious spot. Any guesses where he is at?

State Assembly Member Jeff Gorell teased me that he might send in a picture of him planking in Afghanistan. Would you like him to send in a picture? Vote in my online poll.

I unlocked the poll so you can vote as many times as you want.

Here is the information:

Now Accepting Applications for Summer Internships in Assembly Member Gorell's Capitol and District Offices

The office of Assembly Member Jeff Gorell is now accepting applications for creative, hard-working interns. If you are a college or graduate student interested in broadening your knowledge of state and local government and exploring a career in public service, then you should apply.

Interns in Assemblyman Gorell's office will learn the inner workings of state government, gain firsthand experience in a District and/or State Capitol Legislative office, and provide assistance to families in California's 37th Assembly District.

Internships are currently available in both the Westlake Village District Office and the Sacramento Capitol Office. Part-time and full-time unpaid internships are available during the summer as well as throughout the school year.

Course credit for internships may be available through your college or university. Prospective interns should discuss academic credit eligibility and requirements with their academic advisor or campus coordinator.

Interns work with Assemblyman Gorell's professional staff on a variety of projects and are also assigned clerical tasks. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to, preparing reports, researching specific issues and compiling information to respond to constituent inquiries, assisting with community outreach efforts, handling incoming mail, introductory communications work, media archiving and performing general office duties.

Applicants are asked to call (805) 230-9167 or email amanda.broggie@asm.ca.gov.

I don't always agree with State Assembly Member Jeff Gorell but he is a decent man. Please pass on this information to people interested in getting a start in politics.

The Los Angeles Times has released an internal document of the items being negotiated between Republicans and Democrats in Sacramento.

Here is the section on education:

Which Republicans locally are in negotiations?

State Assembly Member Jeff Gorell has been deployed to war and State Senator Tony Strickland has clearly stated he isn't interested in any negotiations that put the tax extensions on the ballot. I received a robocall asking me to contact State Assembly Member Cameron Smyth recently.

This is an impressive list of reforms. I don't accept the argument that some Republicans, like George Runner, are promoting that their party shouldn't be open to negotiations. The reform to teacher tenure alone would be huge.

I'm not the most partisan blogger. I want Republicans to negotiate for some of the items on the list including limiting pension spiking and reforming education. What good ideas did you find in the document?

State Assembly Member Jeff Gorell is scheduled to depart for active duty in Afghanistan this week. As I have written in the past I will not be critical of his service while being a lawmaker.

I know many people think an elected official is too important to go off to war but that argument doesn't move me. Many of our armed forces leave behind their closest family members not knowing if they will hug them again.

Being a State Assembly Member is important but so is duty to family. Just because he is a public figure doesn't make his role here more important to the people that depend on him than the countless parents, business owners, employees, siblings, and children we have been sending to the war.

Jeff, before you go check in with Gov. Jerry Brown again and to determine if there are any compromises to be made that will benefit our state. Maybe a colleague will switch their vote to what you would have wanted in honor of your service.

Stay safe and I am hoping for your safe return.

State Assembly Member Jeff Gorell has been asking for ideas on how to help the reduce the burden of regulations and to help balance the budget.

I took his challenge and posted a status update on my Facebook Blog page linking to my blog post announcing his upcoming cardtable event.

On my Facebook page for my blog a group of us posted ideas for the state budget with the caveat that they must be solutions that could attract bipartisan support. State Assembly Member Jeff Gorell posted that he would review our ideas and this is his response:

Brian,

Thank you for posting my solicitation for public input on the state budget. There were some thoughtful responses and below are my initial responses. Please consider posting this.

I consulted legislative staff, caucus policy advisers, committee policy consultants, and other subject matter experts. It's a pretty steep learning curve here.

Some of the most detailed responses to the post came from "Conejo Joe". One very central theme of Joe's post is that with greater transparency we should be able to identify more waste and inefficiency in government. I agree so strongly with that goal that it is one of the key reasons for the very first bill I introduced, AB27. This bill, "The Priority-Based Budgeting Act of 2011" will change the way state agencies ask the legislature for money, requiring that their budget requests be prioritized and justified so that legislators can more easily fit our state government's nearly unlimited collection of "wants" into the reality of an austerity budget.

In Joe's post he also stated that he wants to see detailed justification for all agency budgets exceeding 90% of the prior year's allocation. This is another area that I have addressed in AB27, with the difference being that I set the cutoff point at 80% of the prior year's budget in my proposed legislation. (My legislation to date can be found here: http://arc.asm.ca.gov/member/37/?p=myLeg)

Joe was also looking for further information about the benefits that state employees receive. The Department of Personnel Administration's website (http://www.dpa.ca.gov) does have a breakdown of the benefits packages available to state workers. Any specific questions beyond the data they provide on the website can be addressed by calling or emailing the department. Specific audit requests can be submitted by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, but these are costly and time consuming, so I will use this tool only when there is clear evidence of (need to conduct such an inquiry.)

I am optimistic about Governor Brown's desire to dig into the state budget with the goal of eliminating redundancies. The governor has already begun this in his own office, and I have offered a bill to clean up one if the biggest redundancies in our state government, which is the three-agency taxing structure that our officials have been unsuccessfully trying to consolidate since the 1940s. AB77 will merge the taxing authorities of the Board of Equalization, the Franchise Tax Board, and the Employment Development Department into a single administrative entity, which will save taxpayers time and money. I am meeting with Governor Brown on Tuesday specifically about this bill.

I would like to point out another good resource for anyone researching state contracting. The governor's transparency website at http://www.transparency.ca.gov lists all of the state's contracts, in addition to all state agency and department audits, every statement of economic interest, and all travel and expense report forms.

Brian, you offered some unique ideas as well. Your idea to stop sending out hard copy report cards is very much like current businesses that are realizing cost savings by offering their customers online and emailed bills. However, in a nod to Governor Brown's efforts to realign state authority back to the locals, this is a good decision that should probably be made by the local school boards. Some schools, especially in rural areas and in some poorer urban areas, have no choice but to mail out their report cards because many in the community do not have access to the internet or cannot afford to purchase internet in their homes. This was an issue raised by the some policy staff that I thought had merit.

Your idea of merging the STAR and High School Exit Exam has merit and has raised some interest here, especially if it can be shown that the purpose of the High School Exit Exam can be fulfilled entirely by testing which is already being done. Considering how many school districts have been cutting back on the number of instructional days on their calendars, this could also return a couple of days lost to testing back to classroom instruction. These tests are mandated by the Federal Government, and California could only make the change with a federal waiver. For this reason, I have drafted a formal request to the California Board of Education directing them to explore what it would take to get a federal waiver for these types of mandates. This information will prepare us to apply for such a waiver if this ultimately makes sense to pursue. Brian, I will let you know the response I get from the Board.

Even if we did get a federal waiver that allows schools to consolidate their mandated exams there will be no savings to our State general fund budget due to the Proposition 98 guarantee. However, I would hope that any savings would be directed to classrooms for frontline instructional use.

I appreciate the feedback and ideas. More to follow.

Jeff
Jeff Gorell
Assemblyman, 37th District
California State Legislature
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814
Capitol Office (916) 319-2037
District Office - (805) 230-9167

Thanks Jeff! I have high expectations that you will be that rare legislator that can bring people together across party lines to move our state forward.

To clarify, I think an opt out program for hard copy report cards would work best. That way families with online access can help save the schools money, but families that need a hard copy will continue to receive them.

I don't want to eliminate any state or federally mandated tests but I would like to merge them to reduce the amount of money and days spent on them. Families and taxpayers deserve accountability from our local schools, but I think it can be done efficiently. Any student that passes their high school English sections of the STAR exam with the highest possible scores shouldn't also be forced to take a basic skills test on the same subject to graduate.

I didn't get this post up before the event but I am posting it now because I support our elected officials meeting with the public in scheduled and open events. Our local delegations to Sacramento and DC all do it except for Elton Gallegly, who does not see the value of open and scheduled townhall meetings.

Jeff Gorell will likely be shipping out to Afghanistan soon but if this is the type of elected leader he continues to be I will be glad.

Here is my suggestion for Jeff Gorell:

I would like to see standardized testing be condensed. I don't want to remove accountability from schools but if the STAR exam and the High School Exit exam were merged it could result in more instructional days and a significant cost savings. This move could free up resources for other programs and could draw broad based support.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 7, 2010 CONTACT: Adam Haverstock GORELL SEEKING PUBLIC INPUT ON BUDGET

Assemblyman to Meet with Media and Public at Moorpark Restaurant
Please meet our new Assemblyman Jeff Gorell and offer your input on the state budget. As the legislature works to address this significant challenge, Jeff is seeking public input. Please come by and meet with him in person on Friday, December 10, at:

Grinder Restaurant
1 W. Los Angeles Ave
Moorpark, CA 93021
The Grinder Restaurant Deli & Catering is located on the corner of Moorpark and Los Angeles Avenues in the Ralphs Shopping Center in Moorpark. For complete directions you can visit GoogleMaps at: http://goo.gl/maps/c6cD Jeff will be holding a card table format from 10:00 am until 12:00 noon. For additional information, please call Jeff's district office at (805) 230-9167.

Republican State Assembly candidate Jeff Gorell has received orders to deploy to Afghanistan. Here is the Ventura County Star news story with the details.

If this had come up earlier in the campaign it would be a serious issue for discussion. But at this date all I have to add is my hopes for Jeff Gorell, his family, and other members of our armed forces. The war in Afghanistan is full of difficult questions. This election should remind us of the consequences of our choices.

Jeff Gorell and Ferial Masry have run a classy campaign against each other. I have high hopes for the winner of this race and look forward to Jeff Gorell returning to Ventura County.

Click here to read the details from his campaign.

Click on continue reading for Jeff Gorell's announcement and the reaction from his opponent, Ferial Masry.

VC Star Reporter Timm Herdt reported that Jeff Gorell has been endorsed by a major labor union group. Add that to his endorsements from conservative groups and I am not seeing many options for Ferial Masry to beat him in November.

What suggestions would you have for her campaign team? You don't need to register to comment but keep it classy.

Ferial Masry's campaign has not sent me in the HTMl for a Fanbox. I will post it for candidates when they send it in.

Fellow Ventura County Star Blogger Eric Eric Ingemunson posted that Jeff Gorell swept Kern County by claiming the only vote in the Republican Primary. That was so funny I went to the elections page and found out that Democrat Ferial Masry also earned the only vote in the Democratic Primary.

Being that these two candidates have tied in Kern County I suggest that Eric and I travel with the candidates to hold a debate for these voters. Sure it wouldn't normally be a wise use of campaign time but I am confident it will attract media attention.

The news article was on the race between State Senator Tony Strickland's consultant Mike Stoker and flower grower Daniel Goldberg. But the photo focuses on Jeff Gorell's huge campaign sign.

Send in any interesting photos of campaign signs you want me to post.

A new candidate has emerged in the Republican primary to replace termed out State Assembly Member Audra Strickland. Robert Howell is running to push the Republican Party further to the right, especially on social issues like gay rights. His opponent Jeff Gorell doesn't mention social issues at all on his website.

With all of the problems California is facing I don't see why someone would make denying legal equality to gay people a priority. But I guess we will see if that helps Robert Howell in the primary. As of now Jeff Gorell has the money, momentum, resume, endorsements, and campaign organization to win the primary. I don't expect to see an upset in the next few months. Republicans of Ventura County will most likely nominate someone closer to being a social moderate.

Click on continue reading for his press release. I have asked his campaign for an interview this Thursday or on a following Thursday night. That may be surprising after you read my critique of this campaign but if you have been following my blog it shouldn't shock anyone.

I include my commentary at times and that isn't going to change. Although I try to be fair to all of those involved I am not just reporting news. That's why candidates from the left to the right have come on my blog to be interviewed. I have interviewed many conservative candidates including Tom Campbell, Steven Hintz, and Mike Stoker. I am looking forward to continuing interviews with a variety of candidates. I am currently trying to schedule Jim Dantona, Susan Jordan, and Daniel Goldberg.

Gif maker

From the comments section I took your suggestion that Republican State Assembly candidate Jeff Gorell looks like Christian Bale.

Here's our next challenge:

Which celebrity looks most like Jim Dantona? Include a link to the picture I should use.

Keep the suggestions and your comments classy.