V. The Process

d.) Promote accountability

Public officials, especially at the state level, must be held accountable to use their power and influence to improve the future prospects of our state.

Common Sense California will succeed only if elected officials find that action in support of common sense solutions, looking to the future of California, win praise and that failure to act responsibly draws criticism. We will stand ready to praise and criticize as appropriate.

Common Sense California could sponsor an annual event that would acknowledge elected officials for outstanding contributions to the goals of Common Sense California. In addition to the presentation of annual, well-publicized awards, the event would feature a speaker of national renown who has tackled the issues backed by Common Sense California in their own state and achieved some measure of success.

Common Sense California might also focus upon the annual message of the Governor to the Legislature on "The State of the State." It is at this time of the year that, if only briefly, the media pays attention to the larger questions facing the state, at least as articulated by the Governor. Common Sense California might exploit this annual centering of attention in several ways:

• Developing a clearly drawn set of questions that deserve attention by the Governor in his message State of the State. After the Governor's annual message, CSC could make public its assessment of the extent to which the Governor has responded to the issues that are most critical.
• Sponsoring a "Citizen's State of the State." One possible form of this effort could be to commission highly capable and articulate Californians of diverse background to prepare their own "State of the State" messages guided by Common Sense California's Critical Agenda. These citizen's messages could be publicized at both state and regional levels. Op-eds in regional papers and visits to editorial board could be orchestrated as part of such an initiative.
• Convening special events where participants in our Dialogue process meet directly with state officials who bear responsibility for taking action.