Example of proposed 25 ft gate signs with LED screens and lighting.

Contact OCFEC and the Costa Mesa Planning Commission to Put a Hold on This Project

Jason Jacobsen from OCFEC is in charge of the project. Ask him to withdraw the project from the Costa Mesa Planning Commission agenda. He can be reached at 714-625-2958 and [email protected]

OCFEC CEO Kathy Kramer can also withdraw the project from the Costa Mesa Planning Commission agenda. She can be reached at 714-708-1510 and [email protected]

Ask the Costa Mesa Planning Commission to place on hold Public Hearing 2 Zoning Application 19-23 for a Planned Signing Program for the Orange County Fair and Event Center Located at 88 Fair Drive because the project is being brought forward without the OC Fair Board having approved the plans, in addition to other problems with the project. You can email the Costa Mesa Planning Commission

Attend the Costa Mesa Planning Commission meeting on Monday, October 14, 2019, at 6:00 pm in Costa Mesa City Hall and ask the commissioners to place the project on hold.

About the Project

OC Fairgrounds (aka OCFEC) staff want the Costa Mesa Planning Commission to allow six new gate signs over two stories tall to be built along with three new lighted wall signs. Link to the Costa Mesa Planning Commission Agenda with all of the documents. New gate signs have LED screens, lights at the top, and include the City of Costa Mesa logo to deceive the public into believing the City of Costa Mesa owns, operates, or somehow manages the state owned OC Fairgrounds. These new signs are incompatible with the existing homes around OCFEC and will interfere with the quiet enjoyment of homes. 

Jason Jacobsen is in charge of the project and did not bring the plans dated January 2019 to the Board or public prior to pushing the item through to the Planning Commission. The public learned of this project when signs stating there was a planning commission hearing about an LED signage project popped up about 10 days ago at OCFEC. The first time the public saw the plans was when the Planning Commission agenda was posted on October 10, 2019. Neighbors have not received notification of the project and no outreach has been conducted. OCFEC staff continue to be indifferent to public input and needs of the neighbors.

It is unclear why new gate signage would be built when OCFEC is undergoing an infrastructure analysis in preparation for another attempt at a new master site plan and is in the midst of a rebranding effort. Any of these projects can change the need for gate signage and how that signage appears and is used. This project needs to be put on hold until other projects which may impact signage are completed. 

OCFEC staff made no attempt to fit into the Costa Mesa sign code except make the signs share the same hideous design in order to qualify as a "Planned Signing Program".  Here's the table from the Costa Mesa Planning Commission staff report detailing how out of line with city code this project is:

The OC Fairgrounds is also known as the Orange County Fair and Event Center, OCFEC, 32nd District Agricultural Association, and 32nd DAA.

• Traffic routing and road closures created headaches for Fairgrounds neighbors traveling to and from their homes because changes were made during the day. Neighbors found themselves stuck in the traffic they were trying to avoid.
• Eastside Costa Mesa was parked bumper to bumper with cars left by people walking to the OC Fair. Trash was left in the neighborhood by the fairgoers.
• Merrimac Way was used as a cut thru from Harbor Blvd.
• Maxed out parking at the OC Fairgrounds and Orange Coast College (OCC) caused fairgoers to find other places to park. 

• Are "No OC Fair Parking" signs and parking enforcement needed for your neighborhood? Where are the signs and enforcement needed?
• Does your neighborhood need OC Fair Ambassadors to pick up trash? If there are OC Fair Ambassadors in your neighborhood, are more needed?
• Do neighbors need to be given traffic routing maps including restricted turns and street closures? Should neighbors be told when traffic routing changes to plan for trips to and from their homes?
• Should offsite parking with shuttle service be offered during the weekday evenings of the OC Fair? Hollywood Bowl and Ventura County Fair have been offering shuttle service during the weekdays for a number of years.
• Is more weekend offsite parking with shuttle service needed?
• Is there a better way for the OC Fair to let fairgoers know parking is maxed out other than signs on the 55 Fwy and Fairview Rd? How could fairgoers be told before getting to Fairview Rd that parking is maxed out? Where should fairgoers be routed to when parking is maxed out?

You can copy [email protected] on the emails to help us track issues experienced in the neighborhoods and resolution of the issues.

In This Issue: 

• Lack of Planning for 405 Freeway & OCC Construction Expected to Compound OC Fair Traffic & Parking Problems
• Is a Fair Share of OC Fairgrounds Sales Tax Revenue Coming Back to Costa Mesa & OC?
• Did the OC Fairgrounds Pass Up on a Share of $18 Million in Grant Money to Improve Emergency Readiness?
• Over $129,000 of State Money Spent on Personally Motivated Investigations 
• OC Fairgrounds Sent $75,000 to LGBT Opponent While Trying to Hide Behind Rainbow Flag

Lack of Planning for 405 & Freeway Construction Expected to Compound OC Fair Traffic & Parking Problems
OC Fairgrounds staff did not get ahead of problems arising from the demolition of the Fairview Rd bridge and construction at Orange Coast College. No plans are in place to have more parking lots with shuttle bus service or expanded OCTA Fair Express bus service. Expect traffic to be worse and more Fairgoers to attempt to park in Costa Mesa neighborhoods.

Is a Fair Share of OC Fairgrounds Sales Tax Revenue Coming Back to Costa Mesa & OC?
We started asking questions when we saw that sales tax revenue received by Costa Mesa from the OC Fairgrounds was flat since since 2004 despite OC Fairgrounds revenues nearly doubling since 2004. Sales tax revenue is a major source of funding for local governments. A new law enacted in 2018 makes it easier for sellers to report sales made at the OC Fairgrounds.  Preliminary numbers show an increase from the 2004 numbers and we continue to work on this issue.

Download 32nd DAA Historic Revenue Chart

Download Fairground Flat Sales Tax

Did the OC Fairgrounds Pass Up on a Share of $18 Million in Grant Money to Improve Emergency Readiness?
The OC Fairgrounds is a key part of the emergency readiness plans for Orange County and can be used as a shelter site for people and animals in addition to a staging site for emergency and rescue equipment. Gov. Newsom has made emergency readiness a priority and $18 million in from Proposition 68/SB 5 has been allocated to be used to improve emergency readiness infrastructure at fairgrounds. We are digging to find out if the OC Fairgrounds applied for a grant.

Over $129,000 of State Money Spent on Personally Motivated Investigations 
CEO Kathy Kramer targeted two Board Directors and the Chief Financial Officer for investigation for reasons which are unknown.  The bill has climbed to $129,270 with no end in sight.  If there are real problems to be investigated, law enforcement authorities such as the California Highway Patrol, Attorney General, State Auditor, Orange County Sheriff's Department, and other agencies should be brought in. The Fair Board has the legal authority to stop the investigations and has not stopped drain on the public coffers from the nefarious investigations. 

OC Fairgrounds Sent $75,000 to LGBT Opponent While Trying to Hide Behind Rainbow Flag
At its monthly meeting on May 23, 2019, the Fair Board voted to fly a Rainbow Flag over the Fairgrounds.  This despite the fact that the same Board has refused to order Fairgrounds CEO Kathy Kramer to cancel a sponsorship agreement she entered into with Vanguard University that has resulted in over $75,000 in public funds being transferred to the University.

Download Pride Resolution  

Download Contract 32nd DAA Vanguard

Vanguard University, which is affiliated with the Assemblies of God, takes a hard-line fundamentalist Christian position regarding homosexuality. Engaging in a even a chaste romantic same-sex relationship or publicly questioning any of the University's policies on homosexuality are grounds for expulsion.  The Orange County Fair and Event Center (a state agency) entered into a sponsorship agreement with Vanguard in 2018, but apparently did not include state required non-discrimination language in its contract. State law (Cal. Gov't. Code §11135-11139.8) prohibits the state from contracting with groups such as Vanguard University which discriminate.  

CEO Kramer has also given thousands of dollars in free OC Fair admission and concert tickets to Vanguard University in addition to allowing the school to rent OC Fairgrounds facilities on terms not available to the general public.

Did You Know?

• OC Fairgrounds employees are not paid overtime. All hours worked are paid at the regular pay rate. Download Morales v. 22nd Dist. Agricultural Assn
• Free admissions to the OC Fair are around 25% of the paid OC Fair admissions.
• Fair Board Directors can buy an unlimited quantity of general admission OC Fair tickets for $1/each. Former Fair Board Directors receive a lifetime admission credential and can buy up to 30 general admission OC Fair tickets for $1/each. Download Board Director Tickets
• Spouses and dependent children of current Fair Board Directors receive free admission credentials.
• A Board Concierge who is a state employee arranges the dinners and concert tickets for Fair Board Directors, their friends, and business associates. Former Fair Board Directors can use the Board Concierge to book concert tickets.
• CEO Kathy Kramer wants to raise admission prices for the 2020 OC Fair.

Contact the Fair Board
Chair Robert Ruiz [email protected]
Vice Chair Sandra Cervantes [email protected]
Ashleigh Aitken [email protected]
Barbara Bagneris [email protected]
Doug La Belle [email protected]
Andreas Meyer [email protected]
Gerardo Mouet [email protected]
Newton Pham [email protected]
Natalie Rubalcava-Garcia [email protected]

The OC Fairgrounds is also known as the 32nd District Agricultural Association, 32nd DAA, Orange County Fair and Event Center, and OCFEC.  

The OC Fair Board (aka 32nd District Agricultural Association or 32nd DAA or Orange County Fair and Event Center or OCFEC Board) will meet on March 28, 2019, to consider taking action regarding the 2016 audit of the OC Fairgrounds conducted by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), the parent state agency of the OC Fairgrounds. The audit found an employee paid over $75,000 in cash and benefits to not show up for work for about eight months, which was deemed to likely be an illegal contract by CalHR, the human resources department for state employees. An unredacted copy of the audit is available for download. An audit timeline prepared by CEO Kathy Kramer and her staff was presented at the February 2019 Fair Board meeting. CEO Kramer and her staff have attempted to create confusion and obstruction around the audit all while stalling Board action on the audit for nearly two years. 

Download CDFA Unredacted 2016 Audit   

Download Audit Staff-Reports-Combo1 

Understanding the facts about the the audit and why the Fair Board needs to clean house immediately can be broken down into four separate issues:
Issue 1: The propriety of the actions that resulted in the conclusion by CDFA and CalHR that the 32nd DAA entered into an illegal contract with a former employee.
Issue 2: The handling of the audit and interactions with CDFA and CalHR.
Issue 3: The disclosure of the audit to the Board and the failure to keep the Board in the loop regarding the audit.
Issue 4: Failure to accept the findings of the audit and address the issues raised.

CEO Kramer wants to confuse and conflate these four issues so that everyone will focus on Issue 1, and ignore the circumstances regarding Issues 2, 3, and 4, and what they say about her management of the OCFEC.

Issue 1: The propriety of the actions that resulted in the conclusion by CDFA and CalHR that the 32nd DAA entered into an illegal contract with a former employee.
CEO Kramer continues to try to re-litigate the propriety of her and staff's actions and characterize them as a mistake involving state employment procedures. This is a false narrative, intended to confuse the Board and others.

• CEO Kramer made the same arguments to CalHR and they rejected them. CalHR has concluded that the contract is likely an illegal gift of funds.
• CEO Kramer claims that prior outside counsel approved similar agreements, but has not provided such agreements to demonstrate that they were approved or comparable. Despite this, the Board accepts her unsupported claim that similar prior arrangements had been approved. Given the seriousness of these allegations, the Board should demand documentary proof of the defense.

CEO Kramer has attempted to portray paying an employee to not show up for work as a minor administrative matter, which the issue is not. This is a matter regarding misappropriation of public funds. Misappropriation of Government Funds is a felony in California (Cal. Penal Code §424), if done with knowledge of, or gross negligence regarding, the illegality of the appropriation or the lack of authority of the person making the appropriation to do so.

• CEO Kramer was grossly negligent in that she did not take the least action to verify that this separation agreement was legal. She never sought the opinion of CalHR, or of the Attorney General's office, either one of which could have been done with a five minute phone call.
• The separation agreement resulted in a cost to the 32nd DAA which exceeded Kramer's delegated authority, i.e., she knowingly made the misappropriation despite the fact that she knew she lacked the authority to do so.

Issue 2: The handling of the audit and interactions with CDFA and CalHR.
There is a substantial and unexplained gap in the timeline of this audit. CEO Kramer attempted to stiff-arm and delay the audit. Only when she know longer had any choice was the audit completed. This is not the behavior of a CEO who is cooperating with state officials.

The Board needs to get an explanation for gaps in the timeline and receive and review all communications or the lack thereof, between CDFA and the 32nd DAA to determine if CEO Kramer's interaction with the CDFA was in keeping with the standards that the Board would expect of the 32nd DAA's CEO.

Issue 3: The disclosure of the audit to the Board and the failure to keep the Board in the loop regarding the audit.
It is unacceptable that an audit uncovered a provisional finding of a major impropriety and this was not brought to the immediate attention of the entire Board. This calls into question the fitness of the former Board chairperson, who still sits on the Board to hold the position.

The Board needs to understand why two Board Chairs did not share this information with the entire Board membership and correct policies and guidelines to ensure that such critical information is not, in the future, hidden from the Board. 

The Board needs to find out why CEO Kramer did not disclose the final findings of the audit to the entire Board prior to her annual performance review. Willful failure to disclose such highly relevant information to the Board is suspicious and calls into question the ability of the Board to rely on the CEO to provide them with ALL information that they need to perform their oversight function.

Issue 4: Failure to accept the findings of the audit and address the issues raised.

The failure of CEO Kramer to accept the findings of CalHR and to continue to argue the propriety of the finding is indicative of someone who lacks the ability to recognize failures and take corrective action.

While all of the focus has been on the misappropriation of public funds, the audit made a fourth recommendation:
The 32nd DAA should comply with FAC 4051 by establishing written policies and procedures over its contracting processes.

Cal. Food & Agr. Code §4051 directs the 32nd DAA Board to establish and maintain written procedures for contracting. There is ample reason to recognize that current procedures are inadequate or not being applied:

• There are multiple examples of expenditures of funds by the CEO and her staff which violate the established delegation of authority.
• There have been identified examples of unilateral and retroactive changes to contract terms by the CEO without Board direction or knowledge.
• The CEO has initiated and supported agreements that do not appear to be in the best interest of the state or which violate state policies or state law.
• The amount of charges o the state authorized credit card (more than $2.3 million in 2018) raises serious questions as to whether state rules of the use of the card are being followed.

State law grants the Board authority over the affairs of the association and can make all necessary bylaws, rules, and regulations for the government of the association. (Look up Food and Agriculture Code section 3965)  It is time to clean house. 

A Master Site Plan proposal for the OC Fairgrounds (also called Orange County Fair and Event Center or OCFEC) created by a team of Johnson Consulting, HPI Architecture, and landscape architects SWA relies upon a $170 million bond issue to fund projects including doubling the size of the Administration Building, moving the Main Entrance about 200 ft closer to the 55 Freeway, demolishing the Equestrian Center, and reviving a parking garage next to a residential neighborhood cancelled in 2015 after loud neighborhood opposition, among other changes. The $170 million bond funding proposal was glossed over in two slides which are deficient in material facts, at the most charitable. As you consider these matters, remember that over a quarter of a million dollars has been paid to the consultants to create this work product in addition to countless hours of staff and Board Directors involved with the Master Site Plan process.

OCFEC was founded in 1949 by a grant of land from the former Santa Ana Army Air Base (SAAAB) for use as a public park, fairground, and recreation. Download the deed and most recent title report  

Since 1949, construction has been financed without going into debt. This has allowed OCFEC to weather economic problems better than other fairgrounds.  For unknown and unclear reasons, Johnson Consulting, HPI Architecture, and SWA propose a high priced set of projects of little real value which could bankrupt OCFEC or force a major change in operations while causing long term and irreversible harm to the surrounding residential neighborhoods. This process cost over a quarter of a million dollars in consultant fees, uncounted staff time, and took over a year to conduct.  More scrutiny is needed of what has transpired before the Master Site Plan process can move ahead. 

The two slides about bond finacing presented by Johnson Consulting, HPI Architecture and SWA follow and can be downloaded here  Download Financials_CHJC-OCFEC-Board-Presentation-April-2018

Bond Payments are Missing from the Financial Projections

The phased build out of the Master Site Plan proposal takes more than a decade and relies on $170 million in bond financing. No analysis of the impacts of bond financing or supporting information is presented in the April 2018 proposal. The hard consequences of the massive debt issue are ignored, at the most charitable. Payments for the bonds are missing from the financial projections prepared by the consultants.  Estimated payments on a one time capital infusion of $170 million at 6% is about $15 million per year for 30 years.  Johnson Consulting, HPI Architecture, and SWA slides show project phases being paid for and revenues generated by the phases but do not show the $15 million per year deduction needed to pay for the $170 million in bond debt.  

When asked about this during the April 2018 Board meeting, representatives from Johnson Consulting seemed surprised that this was an issue. 

Nearly Half a Billion Dollars Paid Out to Build What Amounts to Parking Lots

Interest more than doubles the $170 million bond to $450 million (30 years X $15 million/year = $450 million). Paying nearly half a billion dollars to build what amounts to a few more parking places is insane. This proposal was a non-starter and should have been shredded instead of being brought forward. 

Project Locked In & Cannot Be Changed Under Bond Financing

Bond financing locks in a project once the bonds are underwritten. The underwriting process sets the cash flows which must be obtained to maintain solvency and to meet debt covenants entered into as part of the bond underwriting process. It is difficult if not impossible to change a project once the bonds are sold. A future Board would face a high if not impossible hurdle to changing a project funded by bonds.  Representatives from Johnson Consulting did not mention this during the April 2018 Board meeting and it is not clear if OCFEC Directors understand that bond financing locks in a project. 

No Good Choices Come from $170 Million in Bonds: Bankrupt OCFEC or Quadruple Annual Revenues to Pay Debt Service 

Annual payments on the $170 million bond issue are $15 million per year for 30 years at 6%. Each and every year a $15 million check needs to be written to pay off the debt of building what amounts to parking lots. Current OCFEC operations have revenues of around $45 million per year and around 10% in net proceeds in 2017 which is about $4.5 million. How is that going to pencil out? 

Choose to Declare Bankruptcy: Once the $15 million annual debt payment starts, current reserves of about $45 million only last a few years until an over $10 million deficit occurs each year because the $4.5 million in annual net proceeds is not enough to pay the $15 million in debt payment.  At that point, OCFEC faces long term insolvency of their own making. A private company could declare bankruptcy to restructure the debt but it is not clear what happens to a state agency which becomes bankrupt caused by actions of the state agency.

Choose to Quadruple Annual Revenues to Avoid Bankruptcy: Quadrupling annual revenues from $45 million to about $180 million can produce annual net proceeds of $18 million, if everything goes just right. Annual revenues of $180 million pay the annual debt bill due but do not provide enough cash flow to re-build depleted cash reserves. Going to five (5) times annual revenues which is about $225 million per year allows debt to be paid and reserves to be re-built.

Achieving annual revenues of at least $180 million will bring heavy year round use of OCFEC such as that experienced by the residential neighborhoods during the annual OC Fair. Traffic will clog public streets, lights and noise will continue into the night every night of the year and it is unclear if the drive to book events for the sake of booking events will be kicked into hyperdrive to make more money to stay solvent. Who knows what events will be booked to make at least $180 million a year in revenues.

The current buildings may not be enough to bring in $180 million in annual revenues. New buildings may be needed to have more events to make the minimum required $180 million in annual revenue. New buildings will need new debt financing because OCFEC does not have significant reserves at this time because OCFEC is barely keeping up with what they owe. More debt needs more revenue and the debt death spiral of OCFEC becomes obvious. OCFEC destroys College Park, Mesa del Mar, and Vanguard neighborhoods along with themselves with self-created problems arising from their greed.

Johnson Consulting, HPI and SWA did not discuss the financially destructive nature of the proposal brought forward by their firms.  The Public is owed answers from Johnson Consulting, HPI and SWA regarding these matters. 

Bond Financing Proposal Shows Why Audits of Fairgrounds Operations are Needed

The April 2018 Master Site Plan should have never seen the light of day and was treated like a homework assignment that had to be handed in to be checked off in a grade book.  Consultants and staff handed in their homework and expected a star sticker in return but were met with well earbed negative responses and hard questions regarding the plans. Over a quarter of a million dollars has been paid to consultants who did not seem to notice that their proposal would offer OCFEC a choice between bankruptcy or destroying OCFEC along with the quality of life in the surrounding neighborhoods. Board Directors who wanted to press forward on the Master Site Plan process without having a workable, buildable plan which is supported by the Public in hand are not serving the interests of the Public who own OCFEC and whom the Directors represent.  

A Board Director who touts her financial credentials did not question the impact of the bond payments on OCFEC solvency and wanted to hurry the process along for the sake of moving things along. A Director such as this is not needed and may find themselves to be happier outside the scrutiny of the Public and with more free time to use as they choose. We thank you for your service and wish you well on your future endeavors. 

What Needs to Happen to Regain Public Trust
Work on the Master Site Plan needs to stop.  An audit of the Master Site Plan process is needed to find out where the money went, how two sets of Master Site Plan proposals which were not acceptable to the Public and destroy the nature of  OCFEC were brought forward and who could benefit from these proposal, among other questions to be answered. 

The Voice of OC has joined Director Nick Berardino in calling for a performance auditor to be hired at OCFEC to aid in staff oversight. Empowering a performance auditor is supported. Hiring a performance auditor is money well spent and needs to happen as soon as possible.

Contact Information to Follow Up on Issues

Contact the Fair Board 

Chair Barbara Bagneris [email protected]
Vice Chair Robert Ruiz [email protected]
Newton Pham [email protected]
Sandra Cervantes [email protected]
Stan Tkaczyk [email protected]
Doug La Belle [email protected]
Gerardo Mouet [email protected]
Ashleigh Aitken [email protected]
Nick Berardino [email protected]

Contact CEO Kathy Kramer [email protected]

Contact VP of Operations Ken Karns  [email protected]

Contact the Governor's Appointments Secretary Mona Pasquil Rogers at [email protected] to discuss OCFEC Director performance issues. Fair Board Directors are appointed by the Governor and may be removed for cause by the Governor at any time. (Cal. Food & Agriculture Code § 3959-3960.)

Contact Parent State Agency OCFEC is a state agency under the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA)  because OCFEC is a state run county fair created to support California agriculture. Please refer to as OCFEC as the 32nd District Agricultural Association (32nd DAA) when dealing with the state.

CDFA Secretary Karen Ross 916-654-0433 [email protected]

Fairs and Exhibitions (F&E) are under the Marketing Services Division. 

F&E Branch Chief John Quiroz 916-900-5025 [email protected]

OC Fair Board Directors will have new email addresses for the public who own the OC Fairgrounds (Orange County Fair and Event Center) to contact the Directors. This is a move in the right direction to allow Directors appointed by the Governor to hear from their constituents, who are all of Orange County. 

The new email addresses will be posted on this website and prior posts will be updated with the contact information.

Your OC Fair Board Directors are Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, and Stan Tkaczyk.

Yes and yes. The OC Fairgrounds is owned by the State of California and is formally known as the 32nd District Agricultural Association or 32nd DAA.  

District Agricultural Associations were established to assist in marketing California agricultural products by showcasing livestock, fruits, vegetables, nuts, berries, seeds, hay, straw, other agricultural commodities, and products made from agricultural commodities.  The reason the OC Fair actually exists is to show off local livestock and agricultural products. The Junior Livestock Auction is part of that core reason for being of the OC Fair as are the wine, food, flower, and produce competitions. 

District Agricultural Associations are part of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) in the Executive Branch of government and report to the Governor. Fairs fall under the Marketing Services branch which also manages dairy product production, marketing and pricing; assists in marketing agricultural commodities; and collects agricultural market information and statistics to assist California farmers in growing and selling their commodities. Fairs and Expositions is under Marketing Services and assists State owned and operated fairgrounds in management.

Remember back to 2009 when Arnold Schwarzenegger was the Governor and our OC Fairgrounds was put up for sale? Directors of the Fair Board asked for the property to be sold and a majority of Fair Board Directors formed a non-profit corporation, the Orange County Fair and Event Center Foundation, to buy the property from the Fair Board that they were on. This kleptocratic self-dealing scheme surfaced and was called out by the California Attorney General who represented the Fair Board at the time. Due to possible conflicts of interest arising from a majority of Directors being on both sides of the transaction, the Attorney General refused to represent the OC Fairgrounds in late 2009. Nearly 6 years later in 2015, the Attorney General agreed to begin to represent the OC Fairgrounds again.

The Public, who own the OC Fairgrounds, were able to fight back because the California Government Code (Sections 1090, 18000, and 19990) bars Fairgrounds Directors and employees from having financial interests in contracts with the Fairgrounds, holding employment which may conflict with their Fairgrounds employment or Director duties, and accepting extra compensation not paid by the state for their services. Conflict of interest laws are on the books to protect the Public from self-dealing self-interested kleptocrats and those laws are usually amended to strengthen the laws when the kleptos find a way around the laws currently in place. For some reason which needs serious explaining, conflict of interest laws are propose to be removed.

AB 2396 introduced by Assembly Member Bigelow (AD 05) wants to remove conflict of interest laws for the OC Fairgrounds and all other state owned fairgrounds (District Agricultural Associations).  State conflict of interest codes are found in the California Government Code sections Sections 1090, 18000 and 19990. Self-dealing in government contracting and employment is legalized under AB 2396 Bigelow.  Under this bill, Fairgrounds Directors and employees can set up companies and funnel contracts to those companies. This can be done because Fairgrounds employees and Directors make the purchasing decisions without oversight from the state. This is a bad sequel to the carnival of corruption which played the OC Fairgrounds from 2009 to 2015. There is no good reason for this bill to exist other than to further self dealing, corruption, and graft. 

This bill allows the OC Fairgrounds to be privatized and leaves the Public with no real tools to stop the privatization. OC Fair Board Directors and employees would be allowed to form a company to manage the OC Fairgrounds, be employed by said company, and have the OC Fair Board enter into a contract to manage the OC Fairgrounds on whatever terms the Directors and employees negotiated for themselves.This would be hard or even impossible to stop because it would be legal. Annual revenues around $45 million with a profit margin of around $8 million a year make legalized kleptocracy lucrative. This bill does not serve the interests of the Public.

Job #1: Kill the Bill

The bill is in the Assembly and we need to contact Assembly Members to have the bill killed. The Assembly email system does not allow you to email anyone but the Assembly Member representing your district, but you can call their offices. Email your Assembly Member using the emails on their page found at the Assembly Member list.

Call Assm. Frank Bigelow (AD 05) at (916) 319-2005  and ask that AB 2396 be killed. Assm. Bigelow represents the area around Yosemite.

Call or Visit Local Assembly Offices

Call, visit and write letters to our Assembly Members to ask them to oppose AB 2396. 

Travis Allen (AD 72)

Sacramento Office 916) 319-2072

District Office 17011 Beach Blvd, Suite 1120, Huntington Beach, CA 92647 (714) 843-4966

William Brough (AD 73)

Sacramento Office (916) 319-2073

District Office 29122 Rancho Viejo Road, Suite 111, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (949) 347-7301

Phillip Chen (AD 55)

Sacramento Office (916) 319-2055

District Office 3 Pointe Drive, Suite 313, Brea, CA 92821 (714) 529-5502

Steven Choi (AD 68)

Sacramento Office (916) 319-2068

District Office 3240 El Camino Real, Suite 110, Irvine, CA 92602 (714) 665-6868

Tom Daly (AD 69)

Sacramento Office (916) 319-2069

District Office 2400 East Katella Avenue, Suite 640, Anaheim, CA 92806 (714) 939-8469

Matthew Harper (AD 74)

Sacramento Office (916) 319-2074

District Office 1503 South Coast Drive, Suite 205, Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (714) 668-2100

Sharon Quirk-Silva (AD 65)

Sacramento Office (916) 319-2065

6855 La Palma Avenue, Buena Park, CA 90620 (714) 521-6505

Job #2: Contact the OC Fair Board & Ask Their Help to Kill the Bill

Please contact the OC Fair Board to ask them to oppose this bill and to do everything in their power to kill the bill. As one of the largest fairs in the western US, the OC Fairgrounds can influence fairs legislation. Directors did not give clear direction during the February 2018 Board meeting to take action to kill AB 2396 Bigelow and need to hear from the Public, who own the OC Fairgrounds, to kill the bill. 

OC Fair Board Directors are: Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Douglas La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Nick Berardino, Robert Ruiz, Sandra Cervantes, Stan Tkaczyk 

OC Fair Board Directors choose to not have official emails so you have to mail a staff member and ask the staff member to forward your email. Email Summer Angus [email protected]. 

You can do a public records request to check if your email was forwarded to the Board. [email protected]

If You Don't Like State Conflict of Interest Laws, Then Find a New Position

There is no excuse for what you are doing by proposing to ending conflict of interest laws for state owned fairgrounds. If you do not like conflict of interest restrictions placed on you as a Director or an employee, no one is forcing you to be a Director or an employee. 

The Master Site Plan selection will be revealed on Thursday, April 26, 2018, Download Master Site Plan Notice _February_Board_Packet during a meeting which starts at 9 AM when most people have work, school, or other commitments. Despite repeated asks for evening meetings, the Fair Board chooses to meet at a time when it is hard for people to attend their meetings. The meeting time is by the choice of the Fair Board and nothing in statute says the Fair Board must meet during the day. Oversight of the planning was done by a member of the building trades whose employer can benefit from the project. 

The proposed schedule is: