|
 August 2025
|
|
|
CARS Scrum Team 1 – Campaign Registration and Disclosure Filing
In this and upcoming newsletter features, we are introducing and celebrating our CARS development teams. First up is Scrum Team 1, which is working on features supporting campaign filing. Our Political Reform Division (PRD) colleagues and Prime Vendor technical staff have done a fantastic job executing CARS development throughout the current Program Increment 1 (PI-1).
Team 1 is the largest of our eight scrum teams, with 23 staff from the CARS Prime Vendor and PRD, including excellent insights and expertise from our PRD Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and Prime Vendor Business Analysts.
Since completing work on the numerous features supporting candidates and slate mailer organizations for registrations and disclosures, Team 1 is now divided into two tracks responsible for developing functionality for all campaign filing.
Team Member Spotlight
 |
|
Sheri Matsuda, Scrum Master, is a seasoned Project Manager with over 20 years of experience in information technology, systems development, and enterprise project delivery for the state of Hawaii and other public sector clients. |
 |
|
|
Jim Mason leads the Prime Vendor Business Analyst team for both campaign finance and lobbying. He has provided live previews of CARS features/functions to PRD executives, external stakeholders, the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC), and the Secretary of State.
|
|
 |
|
Hyla Wagner is an attorney assisting the Political Reform Division on the CARS project. Former General Counsel of the FPPC, she works with the team on legal aspects of campaign and lobbying reporting in CARS, contributing to both tracks. |
 |
|
Sean Jensen is the PRD Campaign Manager and brings 12 years of experience from his various duties within PRD. He is thankful for all of the hard work from PRD Staff, the Prime Vendor, and other individuals to collaborate on making this new system a reality. |
Track 1 – Recipient Committees
 |
|
Lee McNish, Team 1, Track 1 Product Owner, has a Ph.D. in Political Science and was previously a lecturer at Chico State. He is now PRD’s resident expert on all things campaign finance.
|
 |
|
Troy Ramon, PRD Program Analyst with the Training and Outreach Team, serves as a SME and has been with the Secretary of State’s Office since 2011. Troy also contributes to work on Track 2.
|
 |
|
|
Regina Geremia is a Program Specialist and Primary SME for Team 1 and has been with the Political Reform Division since 2006, accumulating knowledge to share with the masses.
|
|
|
Track 2 – Major Donors and Independent Expenditure entities
|
 |
|
John Maves is a Product Owner with Team 1, Track 2. He started at the Secretary of State’s Office as a student assistant and was quickly recognized as an indispensable expert on finding missing registrations. He joined PRD as a full-time employee in 2023. |
 |
|
|
Ruqayya Al-Attiyeh, a SME and graduate of UC Davis, joined SOS in 2022 after stints with the California Fire Foundation and city of Sacramento.
|
|
 |
|
|
Julianna Rodriguez joined PRD in late 2024 and has been quickly learning and supporting Team 1. As a former editor for the Sac Hornet, she is using her excellent editorial and analytical skills.
|
|
 |
|
Glen Taylor, Team 1 SME, started with the Safe at Home program in 2013 and moved to PRD in 2018, primarily reviewing and processing Major Donor forms. |
The CARS Project is very fortunate to benefit from the great work of Scrum Team 1.
The Scope of PI-1
The system requirements under development in PI-1 comprise 70 percent of requirements for the entire project, so the work accomplished to date by all teams has been unrelenting and intense. PI-1 encompasses the development of the initial CARS functionality, with end-to-end workflows and functions that address registration, amendment, and disclosure activities.
Developing the CARS application is a thoughtful process of turning system requirements into user-friendly screen designs that support the needs of PRD staff, campaign and lobbying filers, and the public. This meaningful work happens through close daily collaboration between Team 1 members from PRD and our dedicated Prime Vendor partner.
Team 1 deserves a big thank you from all of us for advancing PRD’s strategic vision for the CARS Project. Your continued dedication is making a meaningful impact.
|
|
-
CARS Monthly External Stakeholder Meetings – This series of meetings occurs on the second Wednesday of each month to keep stakeholders informed and answer questions about the CARS Project. The next meeting is on 8/13 from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. and will include a functionality preview.
-
Third Party Software Vendor Meetings – These meetings are generally conducted every other Tuesday to share updates, foster collaboration, and strengthen our partnerships. August meeting dates are 8/12 and 8/26, Tuesdays from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
-
Program Increment I – This month, PI-1A is nearly complete. System testing is complete and User Acceptance Testing (UAT) activities for PI-1A are ongoing throughout August. PI-1B began in July and will continue through 12/10.
|
|
|
I’ve heard about a new “simplified output” feature but what does that mean?
We have always talked about filings in terms of form numbers – Form 410, Form 601, and so on. The implementation of CARS changes that. After CARS goes live, when you look up details of registrations and financial activity reports, the output will no longer look like the standardized FPPC forms and formats you may be used to. Only the information reported by the filer will display, eliminating blank fields, blank pages, and instructions.
This simplified presentation emphasizes the substance of the filing over the structure of the form. This modernized approach to viewing data advances the broader goal of increasing transparency in campaign finance and lobbying.
|
|
|
Effective change begins with comprehensive planning, with courageous conversations, and small, intentional shifts in looking at the future. In the CARS Project, every step forward is a collaborative commitment to building something better – together.
|
|
|
What would you like to see included in the next CARS Stakeholder Bulletin issue? Email PRDCARS@SOS.CA.GOV to provide your ideas and feedback.
|
|
The CARS Project Monthly External Stakeholder Meeting Series (MS Teams), PowerPoint Presentations, Q&As, FAQs and additional project information may be found on the CARS Homepage.
|
|
|
|
|
