<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><img height="400" width="564" apple-width="yes" apple-height="yes" src="cid:3305ADA8-2A05-40E7-BE36-65F0361BE130"><br><br><div><br></div><div><a href="http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/6/2/1533845/-Eye-on-Sacramento-calls-on-Darrell-Steinberg-to-fully-disclose-details-of-relationship-with-MWD">http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/6/2/1533845/-Eye-on-Sacramento-calls-on-Darrell-Steinberg-to-fully-disclose-details-of-relationship-with-MWD</a></div><div><br></div><div><br><div style="color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "><br></div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="6">Eye on Sacramento calls on Steinberg to fully disclose details of relationship with MWD</font></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">by Dan Bacher</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">Eye on Sacramento (EOS), a group championing the adoption of “meaningful transparency and ethics reform” in the City of Sacramento, on Thursday called on Mayoral Candidate Darrell Steinberg, the former Senate President Pro Tem, to “fully disclose” the details of his contractual relationship with the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) of Southern California. </span><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "><br></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">The Sacramento Bee first exposed the contractual relationship in an article published online on May 31 after obtaining a copy of the controversial contract. Steinberg’s law firm, Greenberg Traurig, has been collecting $10,000 per month from MWD for Steinberg’s services since July of last year. (<a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/local-election/article81023337.html#storylink=cpy" href="http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/local-election/article81023337.html#storylink=cpy" target="_blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(234, 113, 6); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">www.sacbee.com/...</a>)</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">The politically powerful Metropolitan Water District has played a key leadership role in promoting Governor Jerry Brown's plan to build the massive Delta Tunnels, designed to export Northern California water to agribusiness interests on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California water agencies. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">Local County and City governments oppose the Delta plan, along with a broad coalition of fishermen, environmentalists, Indian Tribes and family farmers, because of the enormous environmental damage it would inflict on fisheries and the ecosystem of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, the largest estuary on the west coast of the Americas.</p><div class="table-wrapper" style="box-sizing: border-box; overflow-x: auto; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">MWD was also a key backer of the controversial water bond/water policy package that Governor Arnold Scharzenegger and Steinberg pushed through the Legislature in November 2009 , as well as Governor Jerry Brown’s Proposition 1 Water Bond that was approved by the voters in November 2014. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">In the contract, Steinberg is tasked “to provide strategic advice on approach, outreach and messaging for matters related to Metropolitan’s public policy to ensure effective communications with stakeholders in Northern California.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">Two of Steinberg's key duties are to “assist in the development of strategy and outreach plan for a multi purpose project in the Yolo Bypass” and to “identify and pursue outreach opportunities with elected officials in Delta counties to build relationships for advancing common ground.” </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">The contract, at Steinberg’s request, states, “Consultant will not engage or advocate on matters specifically related to new Delta conveyance,” the term often used by state and federal officials to describe the Delta Tunnels/California WaterFix plan. </p><p class="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">The contract between MWD and the Greenberg Traurig law firm involving Mr. Steinberg’s consulting services to MWD may be viewed on the EOS website via this <a data-cke-saved-href="http://eyeonsacramento.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3842618ae74a6ebffeb770562&id=7b8aadea48&e=66a5595f36" href="http://eyeonsacramento.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3842618ae74a6ebffeb770562&id=7b8aadea48&e=66a5595f36" target="_blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(234, 113, 6); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">link</a>. <br style="box-sizing: border-box; "></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">Steinberg said he entered into the Metropolitan Water District contract last summer before choosing to enter the mayor's race and said he will end his full-time position with MWD when the contract expires at the end of June. </p><p class="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">In a written statement from his campaign, Steinberg said, “As I’ve made clear from the day I announced, if I’m fortunate enough to be elected mayor, my full-time energy and attention will be focused on doing that job to the best of my abilities for the people of Sacramento, and I will relinquish my full-time role with my current employer.”<br style="box-sizing: border-box; "></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">“I get innuendo,” Steinberg told the Bee. “As long as the work is consistent with my values and the interests of my city, I don’t see a problem. (<a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/local-election/article81023337.html#storylink=cpy" href="http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/local-election/article81023337.html#storylink=cpy" target="_blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(234, 113, 6); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">www.sacbee.com/...</a>) </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; ">In a press release, Craig Powell, President of Eye on Sacramento, disagreed with Steinberg's claim that his work for MWD is consistent with the city's interests.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "><span style="box-sizing: border-box; ">“Sacramentans learned for the first time yesterday from a Sacramento Bee story that Darrell Steinberg, while actively seeking the support of Sacramento voters for his mayoral bid, has been covertly providing strategic consulting services to the politically powerful Southern California-based Metropolitan Water District (MWD) whose interests are very much at odds with the interests of the City of Sacramento and its residents on just about every major water issue facing our region,” said Powell.</span></p><div class="table-wrapper" style="box-sizing: border-box; overflow-x: auto; text-align: left; color: rgb(60, 55, 54); font-family: 'Open Sans'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; "><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">“We are troubled that Sacramento voters who have already voted via absentee ballot (now fully half of all Sacramento voters) did so without the knowledge that one mayoral candidate was effectively on the payroll of the MWD. While nothing can be done at this late date to cure that significant informational failure, there are some immediate steps that Mr. Steinberg can and should take to fully explain the nature and extent of his relationship with MWD for the benefit of voters who will be casting their ballots on Election Day,” Powell stated.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">The group compiled a list of questions they believe Steinberg should answer. These include: </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• When did he and MWD first begin discussing a consulting arrangement? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• How much of his time over the past year has he devoted to providing “strategic advice” to MWD as called for in the contract? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• Has he been maintaining time records of his services? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• Will he publicly disclose such records? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• Has he provided any “deliverables” to MWD, such as reports and other documentation? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• Will he and MWD now disclose such documents? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• What public officials in our region did he meet with in the service of MWD’s goal of building relationships with North State stakeholders? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">• Will he and MWD voluntarily release copies of their e-mail communications with one another, without the need for submitting formal public records requests? </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">Powell noted that Steinberg was providing “consulting services” for MWD, not legal services that would have been protected from public disclosure under the attorney/client privilege.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">”The voters of Sacramento deserve to know if Mr. Steinberg, in providing consulting services to MWD while campaigning for Sacramento mayor, has been acting appropriately, ethically and loyally as both a Sacramento resident and an aspirant to the mayor’s office or has he acted in a manner that is at odds with the long-term best interests of Sacramento and its residents,” he stated. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">“By promptly and fully disclosing these matters to the Sacramento public, Mr. Steinberg will go a long way towards allaying legitimate public concern over the role he is playing with MWD. If Mr. Steinberg fails to provide such disclosures, we would encourage the Sacramento County Civil Grand Jury to consider initiating an investigation into Mr. Steinberg’s relationship with MWD to uncover the facts. One way or the other, Sacramento voters deserve to know the facts and implications of Mr. Steinberg’s dealings with MWD,” Powell concluded. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">Steinberg is running against the current Sacramento Vice Mayor, Angelique Ashby, in the current mayoral election. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">Ashby told the Board of Directors of ECOS, the Environmental Council of Sacramento, at a recent meeting that she completely opposes the Delta Tunnels plan. At the same meeting, Steinberg didn’t discuss his position on the Delta Tunnels plan.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">According to the Bee, Steinberg said in 2013 he was “not ready to sign off on any particular-size tunnel, but I think the idea that we both have to restore the ecosystem of the Delta and at the same time provide water reliability conveyance for the entire state by going around the Delta is true, and accepted. And I accept it, and I’m ready to work with the governor to figure out the details.” <br style="box-sizing: border-box; "></p><p class="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">Delta advocates believe it is crucial that Steinberg take a definitive stand against the tunnels.</p><p class="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; ">"It's really important for any mayor of ‘River City’ to be committed to protecting our river,” said Osha Meserve, a Sacramento lawyer representing local environmental and farming interests on Delta matters. “Steinberg's waffling on this issue indicates he has not yet made that committment and he should.” </p></div></div></body></html>