(1/2) Leaving @CommonCauseCA at the end of Dec. Moving over Jan 1 to @MoveCAFWD to direct public affairs. Its been fun being the watchdog.
— Phillip Ung (@Philrung) December 2, 2013
(2/2) Time 4 me to focus on improving CA govt in other aspects. Big state still has big problems. @MoveCAFWD has the solutions. #grateful
— Phillip Ung (@Philrung) December 2, 2013
Just today via Twitter (above), the Sacramento Bee and The Nooner, California Forward’s hiring of California Common Cause veteran Philip Ung as its new Public Affairs Director was announced. He will start on January 1.
Ung spent the last two and a half years as the lead policy advocate for California Common Cause focusing on campaign finance, transparency, government ethics, election reform, redistricting, and lobbying/special interest reform.
“The Golden State has received positive headlines lately from health care to the budget surplus. Despite the good news, this big state still has big problems to tackle and I truly believe California Forward has the solutions. I’m honored to be part of the team paving the way for California’s comeback,” Ung said.
California Common Cause made headlines earlier this year for its work with the Fair Political Practices Commission in building successful litigation against an anonymous, illegal $11 million last minute donation funneled meant to influence election results in California.
“He has developed a deserved reputation as a respected, insightful and thoughtful advocate for the public interest,” Jim Mayer, President & CEO of California Forward, said of Ung. “We are pleased that he will join our team to advance our reform agenda with key policymakers.”
The Bee called Ung “[o]ne of the capitol’s most active political ethics and campaign-finance watchdogs and in his daily email The Nooner, Scott Lay said that California Forward “has been building a very strong team and its biggest plays in Golden State politics lie ahead.”
Prior to his endeavors with Common Cause, Ung was an intern with Obama for American, a Legislative Aide in the California State Assembly and a policy advocate for the Conservation Strategy Group.
He will be working closely with all project directors at California Forward as well as with the Communications team to expand the scope, scale and impact of the organization’s reform efforts and influence in Sacramento and throughout the state.
