Last night I acted on an impulse and went before city council to ask them to agendize a discussion regarding how a tax increase measure is placed on the local ballot.
As I said, our city clerk informed me that a tax increase measure can be placed on a ballot with nothing but a simple majority of council – 4 of 7 members. Or, council can call for the proponents to carry an approved petition and gather 10 percent of the registered voters.
So I thought I’d get this discussion going by asking council to agendize it for a near future meeting. This issue was brought up last November, just kind of leaked around, no real details were given about the measure itself or the people who are backing it. Since then it has been treated like some kind of state secret. I think a tax increase is something that needs the star treatment, lots of publicity, lots of public attention., lots of yap-yap.
So I asked. What I got was surprising. Two of the seven acted as though I was asking for a discussion of the measure itself. That’s not what I said. I made my self point-blank clear – I had written it down on a piece of paper aforehand, and practiced reading it to my family. My husband and teenage son were able to tell me what I was saying, but when I read off that piece of paper at council, I got dumb stares and one councilor’s opinion that “it might be premature to discuss this proposal…”
I stood back up and asked council if they understood my request – at this point I was feeling pretty perplexed. They aren’t stupid. They knew I was asking to discuss the procedure by which such a measure is placed on the ballot, not the measure itself. So, why play dumb? Ann Schwab tried to flat ignore my request, while Scott Gruendl said it should be agendized, but immediately launched into his own tour de force rant over the assault at Burger King. I never got an answer.
Well, I think we know why, given this morning’s Enterprise Record:
“City now operating at a loss: Chico to lose millions for redevelopment, thousands more from main fund”
Last night they came right out with it – they’ve been paying salaries with the RDA, and benefits, and pensions. Not to mention, the bond payments on the RDA debt. Yessiree, they been buying groceries and making the credit card payment WITH the credit card.
So, I can see why they want the tax increase, oh sure. But I don’t appreciate the way they’re going about it, kinda dishonest, using that dumb act, as if.
I have a very smart dog. Her name is Biscuit.
Yep, that's the blue ball alright.
She has her toys she likes, among them, six lacrosse balls – three white, one red, one yellow, and one blue. And she’ll play with all of them, but if you ask her for the blue one, that’s the one you get. She’ll search the entire back yard, through brush piles and weeds and gopher holes, under cars and behind sticker bushes. She’ll bring back that blue ball every time. She never tries to hand me a stick, or a bone, or even a white ball or a yellow ball. She never acts like she doesn’t understand. If she can’t find the blue ball, she tells me, and we go looking for it together. But she never plays dumb, or refuses to answer.
Maybe we should give her a stint on city council, see if she’s a better listener than Ann Schwab.
Chico Taxpayers Association 