The Voter - League of Women Voters of North Orange County

The League of Women Voters of North Orange County
The Voter
October 2014
714-254-7440
P.O Box 3073
Fullerton, CA 92834
www.lwvnoc.org
Serving the cities of Brea, Buena Park, Cypress, Fullerton, La Habra, La Palma, Placentia, Yorba Linda
LWVNOC Kick-Off a Huge
Success! by Cheryl Quadrelli-Jones
On Saturday, September 20, the LWVNOC hosted the 2014 KickOff and Silent Auction at the Embassy Suites in Brea. The annual
event ushered in the League’s activities for the year, just ahead of the
Pros and Cons and Candidates Forums that will mark this off-year
election period leading up to the November 4 election.
Pearl G. Mann, League Co-President, presided over the event. She
welcomed the members and their guests, and Marilyn Buchi introduced
the event’s featured speaker, Ted Lempert, President of Children Now, a
national research and advocacy organization, and founding CEO and
cofounder of EdVoice, a California education reform organization. Mr.
Lempert spoke eloquently about the implications of the Common Core
State Standards, the educational reform initiative of interest to anyone
Ted Lempert
concerned about the quality of public education. After an informative
presentation, Mr. Lempert responded to questions by members,
stimulating a lively discussion.
Of equal success was the silent auction, organized by the Auction Committee. Jodi Balma, Frann Shermet,
and committee chair Cheryl Quadrelli-Jones, joined by student intern, Maurice Cunningham, and other college
students, worked for over six months to gather the donations which became the 40 silent auction offerings. Over
[See Kick-off, next page]
Inside This Issue
Tributes Voter Services Water Forum
Calendar of events
OC on The Cusp
League Excursion
Smart Voter
Lunch with League
Read with League
No on Measure E
LWV Recommends
Officers and Directors
Membership Application
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Goods and services worth more than $3500 were donated for the silent auction which
earned more than $2,200 for LWVNOC.
LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
Kick-Off, from page one
45 community and League members donated more than $3,500 in goods and services that made up the silent
auction items. At the end of the auction, LWVNOC earned more than $2,200, which will be used to support
the League activities for the next fiscal year. As one member observed, the event “really went well! And, the
silent auction was absolutely terrific!”
The League of Women Voters would like to thank and acknowledge all the donors listed below, whose
generosity helped us exceed our fundraising goals. They are the “wind beneath our wings.”
Anaheim Brewery
Body Centre, Fullerton
Bowers Museum, Santa Ana
Brea Improv Comedy Club
Buca di Beppo Italian Restaurant
Buffalo Wild Wings, Brea
California Pizza Kitchen, Brea
Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
ChaCha's Latin Kitchen, Brea
Cheryl Quadrelli-Jones, LWVNOC Member
COSTCO Wholesale, Fullerton
Diane Taylor, LWVNOC Member
Dominic's Ristorante Italiano, Cypress
Flight Deck Air Combat Center, Anaheim
Frann Shermet, LWVNOC Member
Hank Chikahisa, LWVNOC Member
Heroes Restaurant, Anaheim
Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens, San Marino
Knott’s Berry Farm
La Mirada Theatre
Laguna Art Museum
Laguna Playhouse
Lazy Dog Café, Brea
Lomeli's Italian Restaurant, Brea
Long Beach Symphony Orchestra
Los Alamitos Race Course
Mal and Kay Bruce, LWVNOC Members
Mary Fuhrman, LWVNOC Member
Mission San Juan Capistrano
MUZEO, Anaheim
Norm and Susan Fried, Friends of the LWV
Pearl G. Mann, LWVNOC CO-President
Pieology, Fullerton
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum
Salon LuJon, Fullerton
San Diego Zoo Global
Sandra Graham-Jones, Friend of the LWV
Sprouts Farmers Market, Fullerton
Stage Door Rep Theatre, Anaheim
Summit House Restaurant, Fullerton
The Twisted Vine Wine Bar & Shop, Fullerton
Titan Shops at CSUF
Trader Joe's, Brea
USS Midway Museum, San Diego
Tributes
Tributes can honor a person for an exceptional event, help to observe a
special occasion, salute to a deserving friend or a colleague, or serve as
a memorial for a loved one. For publication in the Voter, send your
words of tribute along with a check to the LWVNOC Ed Fund, Patti
Chikahisa, Tribute Coordinator, 406 Del Monte West, Fullerton, CA
92832. For more information call Patti Chikahisa at (714)
906-4649 or visit our website at www.lwvnoc.org.
Marguerite Lyon and Frann Shermet honor the memory of James Ballard, a fine supporter of the LWVNOC.
Stan and Anita Smiley celebrate the birth of their grandson, Zachary Benjamin Sherman, who weighed 6 lbs.
12 oz. at his birth on September 2, 2014. Zachary and his brother, Ethan Michael, are the children of proud
parents, Scott and Lori Sherman.
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LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
Upcoming Voter Service Events
The North Orange County League will be hosting a series of candidate
forums in October to educate voters about the candidates. Tell your friends
and family who live in the cities and school districts served by our League
about the forums and encourage them to attend. The candidate forums all
start at 6:30 p.m.
CANDIDATES FORUMS
DATE
CITY/SCHOOL DISTRICT
10/2/14
Fullerton City Council
City Council Chambers
303 W Commonwealth, Fullerton
10/7/14
Buena Park City Council
City Council Chambers
6650 Beach Blvd, Buena Park
10/8/14
Fullerton Joint Union High School District Board Room
1051 W Bastanchury Rd, Fullerton
10/9/14
Centralia School District
Walter Knott Education Center
7300 W. La Palma, Buena Park
10/15/14
Placentia-Yorba Linda
School District
Board Room
1301 E Orangethorpe, Placentia
10/16/14
Brea City Council
City Council Chambers
1 Civic Center Circle, Brea
10/23/14
La Palma City Council
PROS AND CONS FORUM
ADDRESS
La Palma Community Center
7821 Walker St., La Palma
The League is holding a pros and cons forum to explain each statewide
ballot measure on Saturday, October 4, 2014, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm. It
will be held at the Mackey Auditorium, Ruby Gerontology Center, at
California State University Fullerton located at 800 N. State College
Boulevard, Fullerton. The forum is open to the public.
A member of the League will explain each statewide measure on the
November ballot. Arguments for and against, along with probable fiscal
impact of each measure will be offered. The information will be presented
factually and without bias, so that attendees can make their own decisions.
There will be time for questions.
Our Pros and Cons presentation will also be featured at our next Lunch
with League, which will be on Thursday, October 23, 2014, from 11:30 until
2:00. See page 7 for more details.
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LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
LWVNOC
OCTOBER
08 Wednesday: Exec Board Meeting 14 Tuesday: Read with League 15 Wednesday: Board Meeting 23 Thursday: Lunch with League NOVEMBER
11 Tuesday Read with League 12 Wednesday Exec Board Meeting 19 Wednesday Board Meeting DECEMBER
10 Wednesday Exec Board Meeting Holiday Party TBA
10:00 AM-12:00 PM TBA
1:00 PM- 3:00 PM TBA
10:00 AM-12:00 PM FJUHSD Office
11:30 AM- 2:00 PM Meridian Club
1:00 PM- 3:00 PM TBA
10:00 AM-12:00 PM TBA
10:00 AM-12:00 PM FJUHSD Office
10:00 AM-12:00 PM TBA
Water Forum
by Sen. Bob Huff
In June, I hosted a water forum in Brea
to give constituents a better understanding
of our water system, the drought, our
need for conveyance and storage, and
proposed solutions to these challenges.
Because of the success of the first meeting,
we decided to host a second water forum
in Los Angeles County. The same group of
water experts has been invited to join me
again at a Water Forum at the
Industry Hills Expo Center, 16200
Temple Avenue, City of Industry on
Friday, October 17th at 10:30am.
There is no cost to attend. As the
severity of California's drought increases,
so does the responsibility to be good
stewards of our natural resources. I hope
you will join me for this important
discussion!
To attend the Water Forum or for
more information, please call my Brea
office at (714) 671-9474.
League of Women Voter of Orange County ILO
Orange County
On the
Cusp of Change
Speaker: Hugo Romero
Once a rural, agricultural region, Orange County has be-­
come a vibrant, diverse metropolitan area. Yet a dominant narrative of wealth and affluence in the county obscures the existing inequality, which varies from city to city and leads to economic and social disparities among residents. The re-­
port Orange County on the Cusp of Change dismantles these stereotypes of Orange County by providing stark data that reflects the many struggles Orange County residents face. It concludes with a series of recommendations on im-­
proving the conditions in the county."
Hugo Romero is an economics major from California State University, Fullerton and a proud alumni of Fullerton Community College where he found his passion for social justice and immigrant rights. As an undocumented immigrant he has been involved with immigrant rights. His research interests include: labor, immi-­
grant, and voting rights. Currently, he serves as the Project Coordinator for the UCI Community and Labor Project.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2014
10 AM
SISTERS OF ST. JOSEPH
480 S. BATAVIA, ORANGE, CA 92868
CLASSROOM #3
RSVP 714-921-1308
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LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
The Orange County Inter-league Organization will
tour O.C. Groundwater Replenishment System
The GWRS is the largest water purification
project of its kind in the world and it has a current
production capacity of 70 million gallons (265,000
cubic meters; 215 acre-feet) of water per day and a total
production of 23.5 billion gallons (89 million cubic
meters; 72,000 acre-feet) per year. The GWRS takes
highly treated wastewater, that otherwise would be
discharged into the Pacific Ocean, and purifies it to
near-distilled-quality water, thereby creating a new,
safe and reliable water supply to replenish the
Orange County groundwater basin and to prevent
seawater from contaminating the county's
groundwater supplies. The system cost $481 million
to design and construct. It produces enough water
for nearly 600,000 people while using less than half
the energy required to pump imported water from
Northern California to Orange County and other
parts of Southern California. It uses less than onethird the energy that it takes to desalinate ocean
water.
It is one of the most celebrated civil
engineering and water reuse projects in the world;
the GWRS has received more than 35 local,
regional, national and international awards,
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including the 2008 Stockholm International Industry
Water Award and the American Society of Civil
Engineers 2009 Outstanding Civil Engineering
Achievement Award.
The OCILO is sponsoring a tour of the Orange
County GWRS on Friday, November 7th at 1:00 p.m.
at the Orange County Water District facilities at
18700 Ward Street in Fountain Valley. Take the 405
FWY; exit at Euclid; turn right onto Ellis; turn left
onto Ward Street. Water resource management is
one of the LWV’s current areas of emphasis. Join
the ILO for an informative tour to learn about an
important part of our county’s water resources. The
guided tour includes a walk through the facilities and
an overview of its operation. LWV members, their
guests, and prospective members are welcome. On
the day of the tour, park in the visitors’ lot in front of
the Administration Building, and check in with the
receptionist.
To reserve a place on the tour, please call
Marguerite Lyon at 562-431-0371 or email
melyon1@verizon.net
LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
Smart Voter
NextGen Update
As many of you already know, Smart Voter and MapLight have teamed up to bring California a new
comprehensive, nonpartisan online guide to elections called Voter's Edge. The Voter’s Edge pilot, designed for
California’s June primary and November elections, is a partnership approach to accelerating Smart Voter’s
NextGen vision. It is intended to set Smart Voter on a course to modernize, leverage its unique value, increase its
impact, and expand its mission to engage and educate voters with nonpartisan information.
The partnership marries Smart Voter's powerful coverage of election contests and candidates with
MapLight's deep expertise in public data and technology. The site features the Smart Voter name and
LWVCEF color scheme along with MapLight’s logo and will provide the following:
•an address lookup tool to build individualized ballots and provide the voter’s polling place
•candidate and ballot measure data down to the local level supplied by Smart Voter
•federal, state, and campaign finance data supplied by MapLight.
Development delays, caused by technological complexities, made it unfeasible to redirect voters from Smart
Voter to the new Voter’s Edge in June. Progress has continued through July, and developers on the Smart Voter
and Voter’s Edge teams are working to resolve various issues. The current plan is to have a single, fullyintegrated and co-branded site available to voters for the November election.
You Can’t Vote If You Aren’t Registered. . . . .
There are 6 million Californians
who are eligible to vote, but are not
registered! This means they cannot
participate in the 2014 election unless
they register to vote. California is
near the bottom of all states in the
percentage of eligible voters who are
actually registered to vote, ranking
45th. in the country. 49% of 18-24
yrs. are eligible but unregistered. 31%
of African Americans and over 40%
of Asian Americans and Latinos are
eligible but unregistered.
U N R E G I S T E R E D
CALIFORNIANS MUST
REGISTER BY OCT. 20 TO VOTE
IN NOVEMBER. IT TAKES ONLY
3-5 MINUTES TO REGISTER
ONLINE. CALIFORNIANS CAN
R E G I S T E R O N L I N E I N 1 0 DIFFERENT LANGUAGES.
Register to Vote on Line
Be Sure to Register if:
1. You are a New First Time Voter
2. You Have Changed you Name
3. You have Moved and Changed your Address
4. You want to Change Your Poli cal Party
www.registertovote.ca.gov
Be informed: Know the Issues
www.smartvoter.org www.lwvnoc.org
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LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
Lunch with League by Anita Smiley Co-Chair Lunch with League
After a terrific, extremely well attended Kickoff 2014, we are back to our regular Lunch with League at
The Meridian at 1535 Deerpark Drive in Fullerton. There is a bit of important news. The price of Lunch
with League has gone up. As with everything else, The Meridian has had to raise the price of the lunch. As
you know it is a very good and complete buffet where you can go back for seconds if you wish. They have been
very kind to us, giving us additional time in the room for no charge, providing a screen when we need it, and
even giving us a free set-up of coffee, tea, etc. when it is needed. Whatever we requested they provided it for us,
once again at no charge.
The cost will now be 20 dollars.
The next lunch which will be on Thursday, October 23, 2014, from 11:30 until 2:00, will include our Pros
and Cons presentation. This presentation will be done by our current Co-President, Jan Wagner. As always
this election is important, and you don’t want to miss it. It’s so valuable to be an informed voter. Tell all your
friends!
Our guest speaker in January is the President and CEO of the OC Register, Aaron Kushner. In February
Mary Fuhrman will be giving us the national League presentation on “Money in Politics.” Anyone who plans to
attend must make a reservation! Reservations must be in by Monday, October 20th, by 12 noon.
There are 3 ways for members to make a reservation.
1. Telephone the LWVNOC answering machine at (714) 254-7440 no later than noon, Monday,
October 20. Please speak loudly and clearly. Pay at the door with check or cash. The cost is 20
dollars.
2. Make a reservation on line at lunchwithleague@lwnoc.org . Pay at the door with check or cash.
3. Please no bills over 20 dollars.
4. Mail your reservation with a check to LWVNOC, PO Box 7166, Fullerton, CA 92834
5. Prepay for a future LwL when attending an LwL by putting a check or cash into an envelope that
will be circulated among those present.
6. Members must pay for a missed lunch if they cancel after the deadline or do not attend. “A
reservation made is a reservation paid.” Sadly we are having problems with this again. I don’t want
to send you a letter to pay for an event you didn’t attend!
If a person gives or sells a paid reservation to another person, there will be no charge: however an LwL director,
(Anita Smiley or Frann Shermet) should be notified before the event to avoid confusion at the door.
Read with League by Jim Hill
From now until December we are reading books about the rich and powerful. October’s selection is
Screwed by Thom Hartman; this book unveils the covert war against the middle class, and what that means for
our democracy. We will meet Tuesday, October 11, at the home of Kay Bruce; the discussion will be led by
Arline Burgmeier.
In November we will be discussing Mark Leibowitz’s book This Town, a blistering, stunning—and often
hysterically funny— examination of life in Washington DC among the millionaire members of our ruling class.
We will meet on Tuesday, November 11, at the home of Frann Shermet; Deborah Vagts will lead.
In December we will enjoy our second annual holiday party and book exchange at the home of Penny
Brown.
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LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
Vote NO on Measure E by Kay Bruce
The Orange County Board of Supervisors placed Measure E on the ballot in the hope of contracting with
the California Fair Political Practices Commission (overseer of state campaign violations) to oversee Orange
County campaign finance. However, the state legislature recently failed to pass a bill that would have allowed
the FPPC to contract with cities or counties to monitor local campaign finance. Several Grand Juries have
recommended to the Board of Supervisors to develop a local agency such as an ethics oversight body to monitor
ethics in Orange County government. The BOS has rejected each one of these recommendations. The League
of Women Voters of Orange County Inter-League Organization (ILO) has joined with Shirley Grindle, founder
of Time is Now: Clean Up Politics (TINCUP) and other Orange County leaders to oppose Measure E. The
League of Women Voters ILO opposes Measure E for the following reasons:
•
•
The LWV is concerned about the increased influence of dark money in politics. We support efforts to
improve transparency and accountability.
The LWV opposed the effort by the BOS to contract with the FPPC because the details were insufficient
to ensure that the public’s right to know would be protected. Others in the Senate shared our concerns
and the legislation that would allow the proposed action has failed.
The League takes positions only on issues we have thoroughly researched and studied. We have studied
campaign finance at both the national and state level and support efforts to improve transparency and
accountability in government. That is the basis for opposing Measure E.
Since we have not studied the various proposals regarding an ethics oversight body in Orange County, we
can neither advocate nor oppose them. However, Wanda Shaffer and Mary Fuhrman will co-chair a study for
the ILO on "Local Ethics in County Government" starting in January. The outcome of the November 4th
election on Measure E will be known by then. Everyone is welcome to join this study.
Vote NO on Measure E. Measure E does not serve the citizens of Orange County!
LWV Recommendations for the
November 4, 2014, General Election
PROP 2 Rainy Day Fund—State Budget Reserves SUPPORT
PROP 47 Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act SUPPORT
Because League positions do not cover the issues in Propositions 45, 46, and 48, the LWVC is
taking no stand on these measures.
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LWVNOC The Voter October 2014
LWVNOC 2014 - 2015 Officers and Directors
Officers
Co-Presidents
Secretary
Treasurer
Pearl Mann
Jan Wagner
Karen Hill
Marilyn Buchi
Directors
Action/Advocacy
Development
Program Lunch w/ League
Membership
Voter Service
Voter Editor
Publicity Communications
Web Host
Observer Corps
Special Projects
Jim Hill
Sandy Smith
Arline Burgmeier
Dolly Israelitt
Wanda Shaffer
Cheryl Quadrelli-Jones
Mary Fuhrman
Kay Bruce
Donna Miller
Anita Smiley
Frann Shermet
Carol Bittle
Barbara Orosz
Deborah Vagts
Off-Board Directors
Read with League
Penny Brown
Tributes Patti Chikahisa
League Phone
Shirley Bloom
League Mail Box
Edith Bockian
Speakers Lois Smith
Student Outreach
Jodi Balma
Corresponding Sec. Jean Swanson
Observers
Anaheim
Brea
Buena Park
Cypress Fullerton
La Habra
La Palma
OC BOS
Placentia
Yorba Linda
Deborah Vagts
Jennifer Trafford
Mary Fuhrman
Lyman Burgmeier
Kathy Sidaris
Jan Urban
Wanda Shaffer
Carol Bittle
LEAGUE of WOMEN VOTERS of NORTH ORANGE COUNTY
Membership Form 2014-2015
Name(s) of Member(s)_______________________________________________________________
Address___________________________________________________________________________
City _____________________________________________ Zip Code ________________________
Phone _________________ Cell _________________ E-mail________________________________
Individual member
$60.00
Renewal
New member
Additional household member
$30.00
Renewal
New member
Student member
$30.00
Renewal
New member
Additional donation to League (To cover our operating expenses, etc.):
$25
$50
$75
$100
other
Donation to Educational Fund (Separate tax-deductible donation):
$25
$50
$75
$100
other
$______________
$______________
$______________
$______________
$______________
How can you serve the League? How can the League serve you?
Please complete this member survey. Circle your choices or fill in the blanks.
Our areas of emphasis this year are: Climate change, Money in politics, and Voter Rights.
I am interested in working on: _____________________________________________________________
I would also be willing to work on special events and other League projects.
Yes
No
I have special skills (for example: graphic art, computers): ______________________________________
I am currently:
Working
Retired
My job/profession: ________________________
I prefer to attend League events:
During the day
In the evening
Weekdays
Weekends
Suggestion for an activity or speaker: ____________________________________________________
I am not able to participate in League events, but wish to support the work of the League
by renewing my membership or by making a donation.
Comments: ______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send this completed form with your check to LWVNOC, P.O. Box 3073, Fullerton, CA 92834
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League of Women Voters
P. O. Box 3073
Fullerton, CA 92834
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