Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Tax Ballot


Last weeks partial argument by Mayor Nihart supporting property owners further taxing themselves through a simple majority of a mail in ballot tax assessment measure assures us that city staff and employees have taken drastic cuts in pay and now it is our turn, property owners to step up. Step up to what? Out here in the private sector where our labor creates wealth there isn't much room for  extra expenses like further taxing ourselves in order to continue the quality of life of publicly funded employees, be they senior staff or city employees, firemen or police. 

This upcoming mail in ballot measure requires a simple majority of returned ballots to pass. What was missing from Mayor Nihart's article was an explanation that the majority count will be of only these ballots that get returned. If you want to vote against increasing your property taxes you must mail in your NO ballot. Not returning you ballot isn't a no vote, you must physically return your NO vote ballot. Consequently if you want to vote YES you must also return your ballot. Ballots that are not returned are simply not counted at all. and will not affect the measures majority in any way.

Simply put if you are a property owner and you receive a ballot for this tax increase you must return the ballot for it to be counted toward a simply majority whether you are voting No or YES. Currently I'm a NO vote but I'm still open to being convinced otherwise. I hear there will be a community workshop or two to sell this tax increase. They should be fun. 

Todd McCune Bray

48 comments:

todd bray said...

I ran into Ann Ritzma at city hall yesterday when I went there to read the most currenent fire contracts and we had a nice talk about my concerns. In the interest of playing fair below is the text of my follow up email to her

"Hi Ann, I hope this gets to you.

I want to thank you for showing me what the numbers mean today. Having the Fire Department responding to state wide emergencies, that level of organization and co-ordination and the reimbursements for line item expenses like Battalion Chief overtime coming from the state under those circumstances has given me a much better understanding of the issues regarding the fire tax. I think you have turned my head around today concerning my vote. I want you to know that I am grateful for that. I also want you to know that Leo Leon had recommended that I talk to you about my concerns and I'm glad that just sort of happened as it did informally.

Hope you have a pleasant evening."

todd bray said...

There are a few outstanding issues for me to be sure. One major issue is the question of furlough days or flat rate pay cuts for all employees. Neither of these cost saving tools has been used yet. A flat 5% pay cut across the board from our $257,000 a year Battalion Chiefs to our $40 a year Life Guards at Oceana pool would more than equal any fire tax measure. A wage reduction like this coupled with the fire tax would in my opinion make our city solvent right quick. There has been wage freezes but no major wage reductions,

There are some substantial roll backs of perks in the new fire/police contracts such as a 50% roll backs in uniform allowances and 50% roll backs in their ability to cash out unused sick leave, which can be astronomical. Of note is a clause that allows for vacationing fire men who get sick while on vacation to get sick pay also.

Perhaps the most surprising if not funny clause allows more than $4700 to be paid to fire union officials by us the tax payers while they the union representatives negotiate firemen contracts with the city. That caused me to bust my sizable gut laughing.

Anonymous said...

For every one fireperson whose job was saved by stimlus funds I will show you a million Americans who lost their jobs in the private sector. Get real.

Anonymous said...

When government union employees out number and out vote the populous, then the end is near. The unions will vote for their needs over that of the taxpayers who will be under constant assault until the weight of the government makes it collapse in upon itself.

Anonymous said...

Unbelievable. Mash notes to the Official City Story Teller/Number Juggler Extraordinaire. Whatever you do guys, don't look directly in her eyes. Look away, look away.

todd bray said...

Hang on now guys. There is one thing that is not being done which has to happen and that is voluntary wage reductions by every city employee from City Manager to life gaurd. Without that the fire tax is useless.

The happy speak of DRACONEAN CUTS is bull. No one needs to be laid off, no one. With a city budget of $26,000,000 a 5% cut would equal the fire tax.

I need to see some empathy toward us residents by the city staff.

Chris Porter said...

Everyone needs to remember that Councilperson Stone is working with no salary or benfits.

todd bray said...

Chris, the issue is bigger than Len.

If our public employee's don't man up to the reality that their Princess and the Pea type contracts need to be altered to fit the current reality they will lose their jobs and cause their co-workers to lose theirs too.

Senior staff right on down to our lowest paid part timers need to voluntarily reduce their wages by 5% or there is no point in voting for the fire tax as I see it.

I need to see some empathy and understanding from staff that we are all in this together and they must pull their weight to, in the form of a 5% pay cut.

Anonymous said...

Dreamers. One need only check the official salary report available on city website or state controller Chang's website to see the enormity of the state-wide problem put in sharp local focus. Are you aware just how much we the people are paying public employees? Take a look at the reports and prepare to be educated--many over $150K plus benies per year and several over $250K, that's right a quarter of a million dollars. Not to mention the cadillac benefit packages, pensions and that cash-in-lieu pick-pocket option so loved by our Council. Public employee salaries, benefits and pensions are just too high. Plain and simple. No economic scenario currently posed by Pacifica's financial wizards can or should support these inflated salaries and pensions. Open all the grocery stores and small businesses you want. Unless diamonds start washing ashore on Linda Mar Beach you couldn't generate enough visitors to save us..we're just not that special. We cannot make up the deficit or keep pace with the constant uptick in salaries and benefits unless we change our ways. Regardless of all the smoke and mirrors being used at city hall we continue to hand out raises while revenue falls. Yes, we continue to increase bloated salaries. Increase. We will remain in the same mess, lurching from crisis to crisis led by fools. It is a new economic world but it still requires tried and true financial policy--make the most of your assets and never spend more than you earn. How long til we learn this? We need leaders who can inspire us to make the sacrifices that must be made--raising taxes and getting salaries under control by any and every means the law allows. We're seeing a little of that leadership at the national and state level. Let's hope it trickles down to Pacifica soon. It will take a combination of deeper cuts and increased taxes and I don't think we're there yet. Not even close. More pain may be needed. Personally, I think the city may have found a way to get this upcoming fire tax passed by quietly using the snarky "protest" style election. If those who are thinking "No" don't actually vote No this thing can pass. And if it passes nothing changes in Pacifica except that property owners will be paying more for less. It solves nothing and our problem will still be with us.

Kathy Meeh said...

I am pro-union, and understand the history and need for worker collective representation and bargaining. "All unions are not alike", just as public sector benefits vary from the variety of private sector benefits.

Mercury News 2/17/11 posted a related article about the city of San Jose's struggle to keep their city financially afloat. Last year Mayor Reed ask for and received a 10% employee pay reduction from 6 of 11 union contracts. And, he is asking for extension of this 10% pay reduction this year.

San Jose Mayor Reed is also asking for a re-definition of "full retirement" age concessions to match that of the social security system. This is a larger State/City reform issue. Remember the CA State Controller John Chiang "Local Government (City of Pacifica) Compensation Report"? (On a separate article, Todd Bray referred to this report and an Anonymous person posted the link few days ago). Viewing the link, City of Pacifica, "Applicable Defined Benefit Pension Formula" (column title 7). Similar to the City of San Jose, note the age adjusted pension benefits, scroll down the list: age 50 for police and firefighters, age 55 for others. Then again, State workers seem to have an additional advantage (hope 5 year pension buy up perk. Love that one.

All pension reform is needed: government reform, and social security improvement. But, the issue for Pacifica continues to be how we finance and manage this city. Todd, I think your reasoning to likely vote against the proposed Fire Tax is valid. My probable NO vote, (same result) is for a different reason. Paying taxes for essential services (a city should provide), in Pacifica is just another excuse for doing the nothing to fix the ongoing city tax producing structural deficit.

Anonymous said...

I also am pro-union to a certain point. The government union, teachers union, afl-cio are greedy sons of bleeeeps and I do not support them. As long as those communiust unions exist this country will never recover. AFL-CIO Pres Chumpka salary is over $350,000.00 with all the perks of a king. He is truly a FAT CAT.

Kathy Meeh said...

Public employee salary links. The Pacifica link didn't come-up prior. City of Pacifica salaries/pensions.

And, here's a new one: Bay Area public employee salaries.

Anonymous said...

We can be pro-union and still see the merit of "make the most of your assets and don't spend more than you earn" and feel sheer outrage at paying way too much for something or, in this case, someone. A quarter of a mil for a battalion chief, 3 for $750K. I'm sure the city has some great involved explanation to make it ok but it's not ok. It's an outrage. The salary report is full of outrageous salaries. And pension reform is the only hope for our future. Check out the report. Pacifica's historic position has been fear and mismanagement of the labor partnership while looking for handouts from the Feds and State and actively, and often unethically, discouraging almost any kind of real economic development. What's next for P-town? Tent cities in all that glorious open space? BTW, our guiding star, the Open Space Committee, seeks nominations for their Open Space Legend award. I nominate Don Peebles. It's the least the Spacers can do for the man. Or how about the poor, beleagured, perpetually duped average Pacifican. Least they can do for us. Or go natural and give it to a plover, snake or frog. If you can find one. Seriously, check out the salary report and remember you must actually cast your vote, yes or no, on the fire suppression parcel tax to be part of the decision. Thinking evil thoughts won't work for this one.

Steve Sinai said...

Wow, I had expected the average full-time yearly income to be about $75K, but after a quick glance, my impression is that it's over $100K. And pensions with relatively young retirement ages on top of that.

I see what Todd is talking about.

Anonymous said...

Yes probably over $100K on average with juicy benies and far too early pensions and, worst of all, salaries are still going up. Nothing has really been done to change that. Little nibbles amid lots of fanfare & task forces & meetings & council bleating but the gravy train is still running thru Pacifica. Time to derail that sucker!

Anonymous said...

America has gone Snookie Stupid

Anonymous said...

Now, now. When Snookie gets tired/fired from Jersey she can hop on that gravy train marked Pacifica and come on out, get elected to Council cause we know almost anybody can and forever. Snooky is the American Dream 2011. Snooky for Mayor! Can you see her being heckled? Well, can you even see her? She'll need a booster seat on the dais. That girl belongs here.

todd bray said...

lets try and stay on topic... wtf is a Snookie?

Anonymous said...

LOL!

Anonymous said...

"Everyone needs to remember that Councilperson Stone is working with no salary or benfits."

Yes Chris, but councilman Stone voted for the new assessment along with the other councilmembers, disregarding the huge inequity in what small property owners will pay versus large landowners such as Eureka square and Linda Mar shopping Centers.
Quite a little difference in obligations, no?

Not a good future indicator as to councilman Stone's inclinations toward small business.

Anonymous said...

Maybe he didn't understand?

paulie D said...

The hell with snookie that JWOW is much smarter.

JWow for Pacifica Mayor

The Watcher said...

Who's lead city negotiator at the table sitting across from the unions during contract talks? Ritzma. Who was instrumental in converting council to the infamous cafeteria plan? Ritzma. Who's own salary is tied to union management contracts? Yep, Ritzma. So if your own salary is tied to someone that you are negotiating with, who's side are you on?

todd bray said...

Road blocks like union/city negotiators need to be by-passed for city workers to keep their jobs. This needs to happen from the bottom up. All the different departments should get this right with their locals and move on this. NO ONE NEEDS TO LOSE THEIR JOB IF ALL CITY EMPLOYEES TAKE THE INITIATIVE.

And DPW workers are FAR more essential to the operations of the city than Fire or Police. DPW and EMT's are the real back bone here.

Lionel Emde said...

The Watcher is right about the "negotiations" that led to this disastrous financial situation, but this last time the city brought a labor attorney when they had to finally start saying no during negotiations.
Too little, too late.

Kathy Meeh said...

Solutions, other than citizen tax?

Scotty said...

Kathy, Todd has proposed a different solution about ten times.

Nora said...

Todd Bray, you are a breath of fresh air. A 5% accross-the-board public employee salery cut is an idea whose time has come. You should write it up for the Tribune. You are also right about what we need are more medics, not more firemen.We will vote NO on the fire tax. Most of my friends are on pretty tight budgets. Why should we pay more tax so the chiefs can live like kings. Shame! If you ran for City Council, I bet you'd get the senior citizens vote.

Nora

todd bray said...

Nora et al, my motivation is to keep city employees employed. If along with a 5% voluntary wage cut AND the fire tax we could, all of us residents and employees, take care of this constant issue. However without a wage cut there is no reason to vote for the tax, in my opinion.

And if the city senior staff are going to start cleaving off employees they best leave the DPW alone. Those guys are the ones that really keep the machinery of our city running. DPW and EMT's are far more important to this city than fire and police, again in my experience

Kathy Meeh said...

But Scotty, San Francisco Garter snakes can NOT live by nibbling on Red Legged frogs alone. Neither can a city financially survive doing nothing for several hundred years, while waiting for the oceans to rise.

Todd, one thing maybe reconsider. Those lower paid employees should not take a pay "hit". And, haven't many of these union contracts already been renegotiated for this year?

Anonymous said...

All too little too late. And The Watcher and Lionel highlight a problem that is a big part of this mess and should not be excused--staff incompetence encouraged/enabled/overlooked by
befuddled and greedy elected leaders. Always, always follow the money to get to the truth. All these piddly little givebacks are just that..piddly. Even 5% across the board and the parcel tax won't save this town. In a year we'd be right back in the hole. Are there enough voters to say "no more"? If we can't afford some city services-and clearly we can't-then we should do without until the time that we can afford them or find smarter ways to provide them. Painful? Hell yes. But what other choice changes this downward spiral right now?

todd bray said...

What I'm suggesting, and I know it's a Jimmy Stuart Christmas movie wish, is that the employee's go to their unions and tell them to do this 5% wage cut. It's their jobs that will disappear, not their union reps jobs.

Steve Sinai said...

A 5% wage cut is perfectly reasonable. When the stock market plummeted in the fall of 2008, I was forced to take a 10% cut in income. My hourly-rate is what it was in 1994, and that's without taking inflation into account.

I don't feel much of an obligation to protect city workers from what happened to me and many others.

Anonymous said...

There is no obligation. The city has an obligation to us to provide trash pick-up and public safety. Services beyond that may very soon become beyond our means. See how folks adjust to a bare bones city. Will most of us even notice?

Anonymous said...

uh...the city does not provide trash pick-up

Anonymous said...

This is what unions do. Boycott Tyson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abnD1UK9-94&feature=player_embedded

todd bray said...

Besides the DPW there really isn't an absolutely essential service that the city provides. Police and Fire are nice but working sewage is much more important as is clearing/maintaining streets.

Steve Sinai said...

A city DPW crew came out and cleared a clogged sewer in front of my house several years ago. They did a great job, and were very conscientious, but I rate public safety as a higher priority.

I was told by Chief Saunders that Pacifica is already at state-mandated legal minimums when it comes to patrol staffing. Maybe there's a clerical job or two that can be cut or made part-time, but if we cut officers, we'll just end up paying more in overtime.

I have a feeling that eventually the various San Mateo County police departments are going to consolidate dispatching and administration into regional districts like the fire departments have, e.g., north, central, and south districts.

Anonymous said...

There are a lot of city services that are non-essential. Nice to have but non-essential. A lot of money is spent on those services. Money we don't have. Decisions are going to have to be made based on what this city can actually afford. Wow, that'll be different! Public safety and housekeeping (trash pick-up, storm debris, basic maintenance) must be provided or contracted for by the city. The voters should decide how much of the rest we are willing to pay for based on today's financial facts not some politicians' grandiose fantasies.

Kathy Meeh said...

So Anon 10:09am, you are concerned about the decision making (majority worker vote, and collective bargaining by the union at Tyson Foods poultry processing plant in Arkansas? Where is that reference, other than "I found it on you tube, it must be true" (an amusing comment by Steve Sinai).

What I found through a Snopes link was a Tyson Foods press release for their Shelbyville, TN plant, 8/4/2008. Labor Day at is still a holiday, but at that specific plant, the approximate 250 political REFUGEE Muslim employees there will enjoy Eid-al-Fitr as one of their 8 PAID holidays, in place of Labor Day. The union member rank and file vote to be inclusive to these Muslins was 80%. BIG DEAL! This sounds like the best of America to me.

Anonymous said...

We pay for trash pick-up. It's not paid for by the city.

Anonymous said...

Sure. City chooses a vendor and subscribers pay for service. Beyond that what is being said and I agree is that basic essential services are city provided or contracted and will continue but the rest of the menu needs to be based on what we can afford. Simple, scary and maybe the only way to make real change happen. Put the choice on how to spend public money back in the hands of the public.

Kathy Meeh said...

"Put the choice on how to spend public money back in the hands of the public."

Is this some like of newly, revised history, or are you doing a to-the-date 250 year look back?

Just what kind of micromanagement "by the people" do you have in mind (because "we the people" are so collectively wise and well informed)?

Please explain, and do get really specific, otherwise what you said may be considered some kind of romanticized brain goo.

Anonymous said...

Sheesh. Just vote no on any additional Pacifica tax. That would be a start. Unless you like pouring your good, hard-earned money down a rat hole.

todd bray said...

And whatever way you vote make sure you return the ballot or it wont be counted.

Anonymous said...

I find it a little(very)suspect that City Council switched from 5 years to 7 years for the Fire Suppression Tax at the very last meeting. Hmmmmm.... could it be that all the Council Members will be termed out and the City Manager will be retired after the sunset of the tax.
Nice out gus and gals. Whose get's to pick up the mess later....

Anonymous said...

The mess is now. Consideration was 6 to 10 years. Council liked 7. A yes vote will encourage this tax to continue forever

Anonymous said...

Anon 10:04 said a mouthful with "the mess is now". Vote for anything our elected!!! bozos and their handy, over-paid staff put on the ballot and you can guarantee the mess will continue long past their exit. It will only seem like forever.