Success in having fee recommendations adopted will often be dependent on how well you can “frame” the issues in a way that “speaks” to your audience. The goal of this article is to assist you in framing your FEE recommendations in a manner that speaks to both the individual members of the legislative body and their “influencers.” We’ll define influencers as constituents and/or financial contributors to specific members of the legislative body who are responsible for the members’ election....

California newspapers ran articles in January 2026 about the abysmal performance of the State’s recycling program. The legislature adopted fixes to the program and we are now seeing a struggle between the packaging industry, CalRecycle, the Governor and the State Legislature over whose vision is going to win. Given the expectation for new laws, new lawsuits and rapidly-filling trash sites, there are a few basic facts that I would like to put on the table. Fact 1: Although there are altruistic...

This is a “shout out” to someone that I greatly admired. I first met Ronny Coleman while doing a study for the City of San Clemente,...