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January 21, 2011· scvtalk.com · WordPress (SCVTalk 3.0) · Wayback capture

January 21, 2011 – Daily Brief

By Jeff — Jeff Wilson

  • On the Council Agenda: On Tuesday the Council will debate/discuss naming the Cross Valley Connector bridge “Fallen Warrior Memorial Bridge,’ regulating the SCV’s many massage parlors (they even mention the “P” word!), adding bike lanes to Valencia industrial center, officially opposing Jerry Brown’s move to end Enterprise Zones and Redevelopment agencies, and approving a company as a partner for the Whittaker Bermite site. AGENDA
  • Michael Dean Stephens, convicted of second degree murder in the death of Josh Pipho, and attempted murder of his friend, was sentenced to 20 years of prison. SIGNAL. Myers thinks he’ll be out in 9.
  • Hundreds of gas buyers at a Castaic gas station had their credit/debit cards skimmed by a machine installed by crooks, according to the Sheriff’s Station. Some people had their entire bank accounts raided by the unknown thieves. SIGNAL
  • Not the first time Cities have rushed to spend redevelopment agency monies ahead of changes in Sacramento, according to the BEE
  • The City of Santa Clarita is upset that the American Lung Association has given them an “F” grade for its anti-smoking controls imposed on sellers of tobacco. The ALA says a city can improve its grade by passing an anti-smoking ordinance (particularly in the case of minors), but the City hasn’t done that SIGNAL
  • Local artisan cupcake shop to be featured on the Food Network cupcake competition next week. SIGNAL
  • Dr. Gene Dorio, frequent Mayo critic, lists Roger Seaver’s and other Mayo executive’s salaries in a post that alleges the SCV’s only hospital isn’t standards-compliant WRB
  • Scott Wilk’s column on redistricting is a must read. Good stuff. I wish he’d write regular weekly columns SIGNAL
  • Pondering Ike’s “military-industrial complex,” modern American defense spending, and even our own Congressman McKeon US NEWS
  • Signal praises City’s Extreme Neighborhood makeover program SIGNAL
  • Interesting NPR Planet Money podcast on how the 30 Year Fixed Rate mortgage is a “Frankenstein” of a financial instrument PLANET MONEY
  • Do yourself a favor and read the nicknames of the mobsters busted in yesterday’s FBI sweep of NYC crime families. My favorite? Junior Lollipops NEWSER

Comments (37)

  1. cashJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:01 am
    Looks like the GOBN is alive and well at May0. Rather high salaries for a second rate hospital.
  2. ReaderMamaJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:18 am
    Props to Dr. Dorio for speaking out. This is the kind of information which should be splashed across the Signal’s front page.
  3. cashJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:03 am
    Do we need to complain to get the BMW dealer to finish the siding on their building. This has been an eyesore for over a year plus! Oh wait, I forgot, the car delears are in bed with the city and the GOBN!
  4. Jim FarleyJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:07 am
    I’m actually proud of my city for getting an ‘F’ from the ALA. This should a matter of the lowest priority for our local government. The anti-smoking hysteria is out of control. A ‘D’ for not prohibiting smoking in open spaces such as parks and trails? Who out there really thinks second-hand smoke is a health issue for bystanders in a park? And no, I am not a smoker. Congratulations Santa Clarita on the ‘F’! Continue to work on the important issues facing our city.
  5. CCJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:17 am
    Agreed
  6. john adamsJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:23 am
    Here Here!
  7. IHeartSCVJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:22 am
    I’m with you on this one, Jim. California has the second lowest rate of smoking in the nation (and if we were our own country, we’d have one of the lowest rates of smoking in the world), but somehow most cities get an “F” for anti-smoking controls. Do people buy into these gimmicks?
  8. MoneyJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:28 am
    Yeah, let’s just worry about important issues like the open space tax.
  9. Jim FarleyJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:01 am
    We need to also keep our eye on the possibility of the new library tax that will be sold as a reduction of the county tax. As I understand it the County assessment goes away on July 1 when LSSI takes over. If the city puts it up for a vote we will be voting ‘yes’ for a $19 assessment or ‘no’ for no assessment at all. Does anyone know if it is a fact that the County assessment goes away for us living in the city? Another thing to look for will be weighted ballots giving developers a huge impact on the election. This one could be interesting…….
  10. spineflower2January 21, 2011 at 9:03 am
    Weighted ballots? You mean like the 3/5ths rule?
  11. Jim FarleyJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:16 am
    Specifically I’m talking about Whitaker Bermite voting for the 2800 unbuilt houses they have a developer agreement for.
  12. Jim FarleyJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:18 am
    BGH – are you out there? As a committee member we could use your insight. You said at the Canyon Country Advisory meeting that the County tax going away is still up in the air. Please inform us on this one.
  13. Berta González-HarperJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:05 am
    @Jim Farley I read comments every day, opine only when I feel the need. As to your question, as I understand it, the County of Los Angeles cannot continue to collect and KEEP the library assessment fee after July 1, 2011. The California State Constitution allows the City to RECEIVE the current library assessment fees after July 1, 2011 without a new vote. The County would have the ability to continue to collect the fees on behalf of the City if they turn them over as they do other funds they collect when required, however the County has said they will not collect them for us. Alternatively, the City can collect directly. The attorney’s for both sides disagree on the interpretation of the California Constitution and other pertinent law (are you surprised!). If the City attorney is correct, the City can collect the current assessment of $27.84 and yearly increases going forward. If the County attorney wins, no one can collect the $27.84. So in a nutshell, if this $19 library assessment were put to a vote: If City correct: A no vote means we continue to pay $27.84 with yearly increases collected for the City, a yes vote, we pay $19 with no yearly increase. If County is correct, a no vote means we pay $0, a yes vote means we pay $19. However, please remember this issue of the current library fee and who can collect it is still in dispute so I think the City is wise to proceed cautiously. Either way, we can still have a better library system even without the additional funds. I do have to question the rational of those who voted yes and are willing to turn extra money via library assessment fees over to the County, but not to the City instead. Just to clarify Jim, in a special tax election, it is a vote of registered voters rather than property owners. Since the vote is by registered voters (not parcel owners) unless a developer etc is a registered voter within the City of Santa Clarita, they do not get to vote regarding a Library Assessment. I hope I have answered your questions.
  14. Jim FarleyJanuary 21, 2011 at 3:12 pm
    Thanks Berta. I’ll be very interested to see how this dispute pans out. As far as the potential election. I’ll have to research it but I don’t believe under Prop 218 that a property tax assessment can be approved by the general electorate. It would not be fair for those not paying the tax to be able to vote to put a tax on another group (property owners).
  15. MikeJanuary 21, 2011 at 3:14 pm
    School bonds and what not don’t get a 218-style election. Coastal Sage, what’s your ruling?
  16. Jim FarleyJanuary 21, 2011 at 3:29 pm
    Here’s what appears to be the difference. I mistakenly assumed this was an ‘Assessment’ when indeed it is a ‘Parcel Tax’. They have different voting requirements. So much more to learn.
  17. cashJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:54 am
    Hell no says the city mouthpiece, we won’t allow an “F” for any reason. Not in assumetown! Second hand smoke seems to be real to the experts.
  18. MikeJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:59 am
    In Santa Clarita, you can go for weeks without even seeing someone smoking in public. The F is a joke, just designed to grab headlines.
  19. spineflower2January 21, 2011 at 8:27 am
    Maybe in consideration of the ADA, the VIC should be installing sidewalks before removing traffic lanes for bikes.
  20. john adamsJanuary 21, 2011 at 8:44 am
    I feel $100.00 getting closer and closer. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/21/us/21bccola.html?_r=2
  21. MikeJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:13 am
    I. will. not. lose.
  22. MikeJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:49 am
    Speaking of bets, how about Obama vs. the field, even money, another hundred?
  23. HermanJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:06 am
    What was the bet?
  24. john adamsJanuary 21, 2011 at 12:42 pm
    I need to see what unemployment is at in summer 2012. That will be the only number that counts.
  25. MikeJanuary 21, 2011 at 12:53 pm
    Failing something highly unusual, you’re pretty much right. But such certainty wouldn’t make for an exciting bet, now would it?
  26. john adamsJanuary 21, 2011 at 4:56 pm
    I wonder why the Gov of Hawaii is having such a tough time producing a birth certificate ? Strange??? There must be an simple excuse…
  27. cashJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:02 am
    Well, the, Federal government is broke, the state is broke, the county is broke and the Santa Clarita city council wants to fight the governors budget proposal. This is the same city council and staff that brags about how great they are when it come to managing the budget, yet they fail to mention that they balance that budget by taking advantage of moneys that come for those that a broke. They can’t even find the balls to say no to new bike lanes. What is it going to take folks! I say just wait a few years and you won’t need bike lanes because there will be plenty of room on the existing roadways.
  28. cashJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:21 am
    Share retweet EmailPrint..MARY WILLIAMS WALSH, On Thursday January 20, 2011, 8:56 pm EST Policy makers are working behind the scenes to come up with a way to let states declare bankruptcy and get out from under crushing debts, including the pensions they have promised to retired public workers. Unlike cities, the states are barred from seeking protection in federal bankruptcy court. Any effort to change that status would have to clear high constitutional hurdles because the states are considered sovereign. But proponents say some states are so burdened that the only feasible way out may be bankruptcy, giving Illinois, for example, the opportunity to do what General Motors did with the federal government’s aid. Beyond their short-term budget gaps, some states have deep structural problems, like insolvent pension funds, that are diverting money from essential public services like education and health care. Some members of Congress fear that it is just a matter of time before a state seeks a bailout, say bankruptcy lawyers who have been consulted by Congressional aides. Bankruptcy could permit a state to alter its contractual promises to retirees, which are often protected by state constitutions, and it could provide an alternative to a no-strings bailout. Along with retirees, however, investors in a state’s bonds could suffer, possibly ending up at the back of the line as unsecured creditors. “All of a sudden, there’s a whole new risk factor,” said Paul S. Maco, a partner at the firm Vinson & Elkins who was head of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Municipal Securities during the Clinton administration. For now, the fear of destabilizing the municipal bond market with the words “state bankruptcy” has proponents in Congress going about their work on tiptoe. No draft bill is in circulation yet, and no member of Congress has come forward as a sponsor, although Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, asked the Federal Reserve chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, about the possiblity in a hearing this month. House Republicans, and Senators from both parties, have taken an interest in the issue, with nudging from bankruptcy lawyers and a former House speaker, Newt Gingrich, who could be a Republican presidential candidate. It would be difficult to get a bill through Congress, not only because of the constitutional questions and the complexities of bankruptcy law, but also because of fears that even talk of such a law could make the states’ problems worse. Lawmakers might decide to stop short of a full-blown bankruptcy proposal and establish instead some sort of oversight panel for distressed states, akin to the Municipal Assistance Corporation, which helped New York City during its fiscal crisis of 1975. Still, discussions about something as far-reaching as bankruptcy could give governors and others more leverage in bargaining with unionized public workers.
  29. NickelDimeJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:04 am
    Hold up… one of the nicknames in the FBI mafia sweep is “The Fang.” And I’ve noticed eery silence from one of our commenters!
  30. Berta González-HarperJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:09 am
    @ND: I am not that lucky…
  31. NickelDimeJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:11 am
    Hey now! I was referring to “Gang Fang!” If anything, your nick would be “The Bull!”
  32. Berta González-HarperJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:19 am
    @ND: I understood that. I meant I am not that lucky that Gang Fang would be sent up “the river”. Why the “Bull”? As in full of…, or strong as a…? Or maybe pit bull that won’t let go?
  33. NickelDimeJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:25 am
    Ahh- gotcha. “The Bull” – as in, entering a China shop!
  34. Berta González-HarperJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:36 am
    @ND interesting take. I would never consider entering scvtalk a “china shop” although I certainly admit I am not subtle. I think of scvtalk more as a “den of lions” with a sprinkling of kitty cats.
  35. john adamsJanuary 21, 2011 at 4:15 pm
    did you notice the number of union leadrship in that group?
  36. NickelDimeJanuary 21, 2011 at 11:50 am
    Petz’s Peeps: Ojai woman fights to protect the night sky
  37. JaneJanuary 21, 2011 at 3:18 pm
    Smoking – Sorry but I would love for the city to prohibit smoking within 30 feet of a doorway as it is in LA. What fun to leave a nice restaurant and have to walk though a cloud of smoke coming from the patio. We could just pass a law that smokers have to wear a bubble over their head, I’d work hard to get that one passed.

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