The Sound of Silence

The agency overseeing the toll roads needs more feisty board members like Irvine Mayor Christina L. Shea and Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who have pushed for more openness in the discussion of financing. This is a quasi-public authority that has wielded enormous clout while too often conducting its affairs out of the sunshine.

Recently, Shea refused to follow not-so-subtle advice that she toe the party line. Late last month, she accused the agency of “not acting legally or appropriately” in its discussions about a $1.2-billion bond refunding. With doubts already existing about the financial well-being of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency--a result of ridership that was less than hoped for--the public is understandably wary of secretive deals. In the aftermath of the bankruptcy, the county is right to be on guard for any approach to public financing that suggests that things will be handled backstage and quietly.

To their credit, both Shea and Spitzer reportedly balked at going into a closed session to discuss the refinancing and they also opposed efforts by senior staff members to require the 12 board members to sign a “confidentiality certificate” that would bar them from talking to anyone about the refinancing.

The agency’s legal counsel had sent each board member an opinion justifying the closed meetings and the confidentiality agreements, arguing that secrecy was needed because premature disclosure of the bond refinancing plans could run into trouble with federal security law.

Shea said that her discomfort with the staff’s attitude led her to visit the agency vice president to discuss how the agency was working. She said she was told to think about resigning if she was not comfortable with the way business was done.

The agency later would not comment on that meeting. But one thing is clear amid the sound of silence: The board ultimately should decide how the executives carry out policy and not the other way around.