Public Trust Partners
Public Trust Partners (PTP)
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who We Are, Why We Exist
Public Trust Partners (PTP) is a new online community for Santa Clara residents and other City stakeholders who want to better understand, discuss, and strengthen ethics, good governance, meaningful public involvement, and public trust in local government.
We believe trustworthy government depends upon six fundamental commitments:
• The rule of law as the minimum standard—the floor, not the ceiling;
• The highest standards of public ethics—the way City government acts when it is at its best earning public trust;
• Good governance at its best;
• Deep regard for what the public thinks;
• Meaningful public involvement;
• And the public's confident reliance that their City government, both in public and in private, serves the best interests of the people and places the people's needs above all others.
Public ethics and public trust are not optional extras, add-ons, or political weapons. They are the necessary foundations of democratic self-government.
Government derives its authority from the consent of the governed, and that consent depends upon a threshold level of public trust. Given a choice, people do not vote for people who lack trust.
Public ethics is a practical, skills-based discipline that helps public officials, staff, commissioners, and residents- recognize ethical issues, work through competing obligations and values, communicate their reasoning, involve the public meaningfully, and make decisions in the long-term best interests of the public.
Most public decisions are evaluated in terms of legality, implementation, cost, feasibility, staffing, and political support. All of those considerations matter.
But two equally important questions are often overlooked:
Public Trust Partners exists because those questions deserve a place in public discussion. This website provides a forum where residents and stakeholders can learn from one another, share perspectives, examine important issues through an ethics and public trust lens, and contribute ideas that can strengthen the quality of public decision-making.
This is not a community built around complaints. It is a community built around learning, dialogue, participation, and the belief that informed citizens can help their city govern itself more wisely. Read our community standards.
2. Why Now?
Because Santa Clara is making decisions today that could shape the City's governance, ethics, accountability, public participation, and public trust for decades.
At precisely the moment these questions should be receiving the greatest attention, they are receiving very little.
Most residents are understandably focused on the visible issues of daily life: housing, traffic, public safety, parks, schools, development, and city services.
What often goes unnoticed are the systems, structures, skills, expectations, and commitments that determine how public decisions are made in the first place.
Those things matter.
They matter because even good people can make poor decisions if important ethical questions are never raised, examined, debated, or communicated to the public.
They matter because ethics is not an optional extra. It is a necessary component of sound policy and good public decision-making.
They matter because public trust is not automatic. It must be earned and maintained.
And they matter because organizations that do not deliberately develop ethical leadership, ethical decision-making skills, meaningful public involvement, and public trust eventually lose the capacity to govern effectively.
Santa Clara once invested heavily in those capacities. Today there is little evidence that the City is systematically developing them.
The current Charter Review process, Ethics Code revision, Ethics Commission debate, and ongoing questions surrounding governance and accountability provide an opportunity to ask larger questions:
What must Santa Clara do to become a City of Trust? What does it need to do today? Is the status quo serving the best interests of the people of Santa Clara?
3. What We Can Do Together
That conversation cannot wait until the decisions have already been made. Everyone has a piece of the answer now, and we need to know what each other knows.
In this community, we stay informed, analyze decisions through an ethics lens, engage in respectful dialogue, and speak up. We celebrate good governance and call out decisions that damage trust.
Many people want to see the city change direction and rebuild public trust. But there is no public forum where people on all sides can engage in public deliberations about how to do that with each decision. Public Trust Now is creating such a space.
Before you join this community, please read the community standards located here. If you want to know more about the thinking behind the community, go here.
We're building a community of respect on our way to a community of trust. Everyone is welcome. Everyone's talents matter. Everyone's time is respected.
4. Privacy and Security
Read our full Privacy Statement. Your privacy is paramount. Here's our commitment:
- Your real name is known ONLY to the site administrator and will NEVER be sold or shared without your explicit permission
- Exception: Potential law violations, self-harm threats, or similar safety concerns
- All Public Trust Partners members are verified real people
- Your PEN Name protects your privacy while ensuring authentic community engagement
- Your email will only be used for article notifications and important site updates
- Your phone number is for verification purposes only and will never be shared
5. Why We Verify
We collect real names and phone numbers to ensure our community consists of genuine Santa Clara stakeholders, not bots or trolls. Your real identity will never be revealed without your explicit permission (except in cases of legal requirements or safety concerns).
6. What's Coming
a. Current Phase (Launch - June, 2026):
Dr. Tom Shanks is covering all costs and providing all labor for Public Trust Now.com. This includes research, writing, analysis, website management, and community moderation. All content remains free and accessible to everyone, but if you want to comment or join the forums, you need to join Public Trust Partners. .
b. Future Sustainability (Starting August or September 2026):
In approximately three months, we'll introduce a voluntary member support model. We'll ask those who find this work valuable to help it grow and sustain itself through contributions—starting as low as $1.
We'll discuss the fee structure with you before implementing anything. Your input will shape how this works.
c. Why Member Support?
- No advertising means no conflicts of interest
- No sponsorships means no influence from parties we're covering
- Reader support keeps the work independent and accountable to you
- When you invest in something—even a small amount—you're more likely to engage with it, share it, and help with its quality.
d. Nonprofit Status:
We're considering establishing Public Trust Now as a nonprofit organization to formalize our commitment to public service rather than profit. This is another decision we'll discuss with the community before finalizing.
Bottom line: This work needs to be sustainable to continue. But we'll build that sustainability together, transparently, with your input.