One section of TIN CUP badly in need of elimination is the convoluted regulations government slate mailers.

One hallmark of a good law is that it is easily understandable to the average citizen. Here's the section of TIN CUP related to slate mailers:

Sec. 1-6-8.    Slate Mailers.  (Previously Sec. 1-6-24)

    (a)    The provisions of Government Code Section 82048.4 are not incorporated in, and shall not be used in the interpretation of, the Orange County Campaign Reform Ordinance.

    (b)    If a slate mailer is produced and/or distributed other than at the behest of a County Candidate, then it is an independent expenditure, and is not subject to the contribution limitations of this division.

    (c)    The following provisions shall apply only to slate mailers in which more than twenty-five (25) percent of the surface area of the slate mailer (exclusive of the area used for address and postage) expressly advocates or opposes the election of an individual County Candidate.

(1)    If a third party has provided funds to the slate mailer organization that are used for the production and/or distribution of a slate mailer at the behest of a County Candidate, then:

(A)    The attributable cost of production and/or distribution of the slate mailer is a contribution from the third party to the County Candidate to the extent the attributable cost of production and/or distribution exceeds the amount, if any, paid by the County Candidate or the controlled committee of such a candidate, up to the total of the funds provided by the third party, and this contribution is subject to the contribution limitations of this division, and

(B)    The attributable cost of production and/or distribution of the slate mailer that exceeds the total of the funds provided by the third party and any funds paid by the County Candidate or the controlled committee of such a candidate is a contribution from the slate mailer organization to the County Candidate, and this contribution is subject to the contribution limitations of this division.

(2)    If a slate mailer is produced or distributed at the behest of a County Candidate, without any contribution from a third party, then the attributable cost of production and/or distribution is a contribution from the slate mailer organization to the County Candidate to the extent the attributable cost of production and/or distribution exceeds the amount, if any, paid by the County Candidate or the controlled committee of such a candidate to the slate mailer organization, and this contribution is subject to the contribution limitations of this division.

(3)    If a slate mailer expressly opposes the election of a County Candidate, and the slate mailer is produced and/or distributed at the behest of an opposing County Candidate ("the opponent"), then:

(A)    If a third party has paid the slate mailer organization to oppose the County Candidate, then:

(i)    The attributable cost of production and/or distribution of the slate mailer is a contribution from the third party to the opponent to the extent it exceeds any payment to the slate mailer organization from the opponent or the controlled committee of such opponent up to the total amount paid to the slate mailer organization by the third party to oppose the County Candidate, and this contribution is subject to the contribution limitations of this division, and

    (ii)    The attributable cost of production and/or distribution of the slate mailer that exceeds the total of the payment made to the slate mailer organization by the third party to oppose the County Candidate and any payment made to the slate mailer organization by the opponent or the controlled committee of such opponent is a contribution from the slate mailer organization to the opponent, and this contribution is subject to the contribution limitations of this division.

(B)    If no third party has paid the slate mailer organization to oppose the County Candidate, then the attributable cost of production and/or distribution is a contribution from the slate mailer organization to the opponent to the extent the attributable cost of production and/or distribution exceeds the amount, if any, paid by the opponent or the controlled committee of such opponent to the slate mailer organization, and this contribution is subject to the contribution limitations of this division.

    (d)    "Attributable cost of production and/or distribution" is computed by multiplying the total cost of production and/or distribution of the slate mailer by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of square inches of the mailer that expressly advocates or opposes the election of a County Candidate, and the denominator of which is the number of square inches of the mailer devoted to all candidates.

    (e)    A slate mailer is produced and/or distributed at the behest of a County Candidate:

(1)    If the County Candidate, or the County Candidate's controlled committee, or the County Candidate's or committee's agent or consultant pays any of the costs for the slate mailer, or provides any information or photographs used in the mailer, or consults or confers with the slate mailer organization in any manner regarding the content, timing, or distribution of the slate mailer, or

(2)    Under any of the circumstance described in section 18225.7(a) and section 18225.7(b) of Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations, as those sections exist as of June 1, 2002, or

(3)    A nonrefundable deposit made to a slate mailer organization shall not be considered a payment within the meaning of subsections (e)(1) or (e)(2) above, if (A) the deposit is made by, or on behalf of, a County Candidate who is not opposed in the County election, or (B) if the deposit is made as consideration for a written agreement whereby the slate mailer organization obligates itself to not produce a slate mailer in which more than twenty-five (25) percent of the surface area of the slate mailer (exclusive of the area used for address and postage) expressly advocates or opposes the election of the County Candidate by, or for whom, the non-refundable deposit is made.

Can anyone claim the preceding is comprehensible to the average person? Or even to a sophisticated person?

Why is this section even in TIN CUP? Because Shirley Grindle didn't like how Chris Norby benefited from being on Measure W mailers back in 2002, when he scored an upset victory of Sup. Cynthia Coad.. And so the then-Board of Supervisors, which was more in Shirley's thrall, amended TIN CUP with another arbitrary provision making it harder for challengers to take on incumbent.

TIN CUP 2 retains this cartoonish provision. If the Board of Supes votes down TIN CUP 2, a successor reform will hopefully 86 the the slate mailer regulation,