Negotiating 101 and the California Budget: It Isn't Supposed to be Metaphysical

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Frank D. Russo

Seems to me that some of the basic rules of negotiating have not been adhered to in negotiations over the California budget in Sacramento. I hope, and surmise, that the budget will finally get agreed upon today and sent to the Governor, but victory has been snatched from the jaws of victory here a number of times on this saga and I am prepared to be disappointed again.

So, Speaker of the Assembly Nunez had this to say, yesterday, while in the middle of negotiations:

Reporter: "What did you come here expecting to do?"

Speaker Nunez: "This afternoon we had Big Five meeting at 4:30 and agreed to a budget deal. And from the time that I left the Big 5 meeting to the time I walked outside, five minutes later, Dick Ackerman walked outside, something happened. And maybe he had a metaphysical reaction that the rest of us somehow … we are unable to communicate at that level – myself, Sen. Perata, Assemblyleader Villines, something happened, from that point from the time he walked out. And it even got worse as time went by, I think by the time he had a Republican caucus, it just got worse for him. Assembly leader Villines – he and I both want to get this done. We got it done a month ago. At this point, the only thing I can tell you is that we need to hope for a better today tomorrow and it requires a bit of guts on the part of all members of leadership. We’ll see where it goes." [Emphasis added]

From my many years as an attorney and a mediator, settling thousands of cases, and also from my years inside the Capitol involved in some of the high stake negotiations on legislation, there is a right way and a wrong way to resolve disputes--if that is one's aim.

Put simply: In negotiations, one should have a clear idea of what one's bottom line is, have authority from a client or group one is representing, and communicate an offer to settle clearly to the other side. Once having made a commitment, it is usually advisable not to bring in additional matters not raised earlier, and it certainly is an unorthodox style to take more extreme positions as negotiations drag on.