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Our Proposal For a More Open, Transparent
Valley Transportation Authority

• Background
• Our Proposal
• VTA's Response & Other Independent Analysis
• Making Your Voice Heard On This Issue

Background

SCVTARU member Richard Zapelli recently brought up on our mailing list the idea of having "Sunshine Laws" enacted at the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA).  A "Sunshine Law" at VTA would make the agency more open, more transparent, and more accountable to YOU.  

The need for a "Sunshine Law" at VTA was heightened when it was also revealed that fellow member Margaret Okuzumi caught VTA potentially violating the Brown Act - California's open meeting law - at their February 7, 2008 Board meeting. (Adobe Acrobat PDF)

Our efforts are similar to those that have been proposed by the City of San Jose, to make them more open, transparent, and accountable.

Our Proposal

Our Sunshine Law proposal for VTA, discussed on our mailing list, is basic and is currently as follows:

• Notices of ALL VTA-sponsored meetings must be advertised on ALL VTA buses and light rail vehicles, instead of only posting meetings regarding fare increases or service adjustments.  Such notices need to be posted at least 10 days in advance.
• At VTA Board and Committee meetings, "closed session" meetings should be taped and records made public when the reason for secrecy is past.
• VTA records and e-mails should be public unless there's a very specific reason releasing them would harm the public interest.  This is already being done at the City of Palo Alto, which has all emails from City councilmembers, staff, and management publicly available and searchable.

Our proposal will be presented at the March 6, 2008 VTA Board meeting as part of Agenda Item #10 (the Policy Advisory Committee report).  

VTA's Response & Independent Analysis

VTA Staff responded to our proposal (Adobe Acrobat PDF) as Agendia Item 21 during the April 17, 2008 Administration and Finance Committee meeting.  Several questions should be asked of their analysis:

• If VTA meetings of their Board of Directors and Committees are tape recorded, why are the recordings not published on the agency's web site?  If space is an issue, there are many free podcasting sites available - some of which provide unlimited bandwidth and disk space.
• If advertising space and cost to announce Board and Committee meetings is an issue, how is it that VTA uses more than the 15% allotment of advertising space?  VTA Watch has evidence that VTA uses more than the 15% advertising space on its vehicles.

Make your voice heard on this issue.  Details are below.

Making Your Voice Heard On This Issue

There are several things you can do to make your voice heard on this issue:

• Speak up at the May 1 VTA Board meeting in San Jose to support this issue on Agenda Item #10 (the Policy Advisory Committee report).  The meeting is at the County Supervisors' Chambers, 70 W. Hedding Street in San Jose.  You can get there by taking the 61, 62, 66, 180, and 181 bus lines, and it's near the Civic Center light rail station.  The formal meeting will start around 6:00pm.  Never been to a VTA Board meeting?  Learn how to make your voice heard by VTA at their Board meetings.
• Can't attend the Board meeting to support this issue?  Contact the VTA board member for your city.  Urge them to have Sunshine Laws to make the agency more open and accountable to YOU.

.SCVTARU will have more on this issue as circumstances and facts warrant.

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