I’m starting to think the best way to contact your district representative is with a letter to the newspaper

4 Apr

Well, I know I’m always telling you folks to contact your city rep. So, I contacted my city district representative, Kasey Reynolds, about the problems I see with CO2 cannisters, dispensers, and Kratom powder being available at smoke shops. I sent her the picture. I was really disappointed in her response. For one thing, I don’t know if she read my email very carefully, and then she just didn’t get it.

I told her, “These cannisters pictured are placed in a dispenser used specifically to inhale the fumes” and she came back as if she thought I was talking about the dispensers she uses at her ice cream store. It’s a CO2 cannister, Dummy, there’s no whip cream in it!

“Thank you Juanita, not sure I have a good answer on this one but I’ll see what I can do. Unfortunately this is also what I use for making whipped cream so not sure how we could/would regulate them. BUT I do appreciate you reaching out at always.”

Sometimes I just don’t know how to talk to these people. I think we all know, it’s pretty obvious, we have a drug problem in this town. This woman lives right around the corner from me, in my neighborhood, I assume she has a pair of eyes, she sees what I see. The problem being, she doesn’t seem to realize that she has a responsibility to oversee these businesses and regulate them. Right now the dispensaries are all over the agenda, and council is giving them The Business. But not the smoke shops or liquor stores?

I also brought up the issue of Kratom powder – which is completely unregulated in Chico. Anybody old enough to go into a smoke shop (18 if they’re checking ID’s) can buy a bag of this stuff.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/in-depth/kratom/art-20402171

This stuff is marketed as an aide in detoxing off opioids, but it’s also used very commonly for recreation. “Although people who take kratom believe in its value, researchers who have studied kratom think its side effects and safety problems more than offset any potential benefits. Poison control centers in the United States received about 1,800 reports involving use of kratom from 2011 through 2017, including reports of death. About half of these exposures resulted in serious negative outcomes such as seizures and high blood pressure. Five of the seven infants who were reported to have been exposed to kratom went through withdrawal. Kratom has been classified as possibly unsafe when taken orally.“

That article goes on to say that Kratom causes paranoia and psychosis – I told Reynolds I’d seen a friend under the influence, it was very similar to the effects I’ve seen in the meth heads around town.

I told her the smoke shop at Mangrove Plaza advertises Kratom in great big letters on their marquee. She made no mention of that, just brushed me off on the whip cream dispensers. Then she gave me some news about the future.

I apologize for not answering your email about MO! [Mark Orme] I did read it and as you can see he has chosen to move on.  I feel good about it and know brighter days are ahead. There are some exciting projects I’m working on and hope to be able to share some successes SOON.

I had told her I’d like to see council terminate Orme’s contract – but they let him “move on“. I wish I could share her optimism, wonder where she gets her rose-colored specs? She’s working on some “exciting projects” but won’t share what. I responded:

“Well, here’s my answer – the dispensers are sold only at smoke shops, they’re not for making whip cream. Ban ’em! You have the power to regulate smoke shops and liquor stores. Same with Kratom powder – it’s been banned in other cities, even several states, Chico can ban it. How old are your kids? Because according to this article, there’s no legal age to buy Kratom powder in CA 

And I provided links to articles showing that other California cities had already banned the stuff, as well as several states. I said, “So you see, this is something council needs to take to task.”

I think I offended her with what I wrote next, although I didn’t mean to, I had to be frank. Reynolds had admitted on her own facebook page, and in a letter to the judge overseeing the transient lawsuit, that she didn’t understand the settlement she’d agreed to. I told her, “It bothers me how dependent council members are on staff for their information. I was shocked when you admitted that you had not fully understood the settlement terms. I find Vince to be difficult. Of course,  the taxpayers are held off by the forehead, whether we would understand or not, we are not part of the discussion. I think it would be a good idea for you to get your own lawyer. You could pay for it out of your council salary. It’s no excuse to say you didn’t understand, Young Lady. “

I was shocked and then annoyed at her response. I don’t think I really offended her, I think she just doesn’t want to answer. “My council salary is $350 a month take home pay so that would get me about an hour!!  This “young lady” will take all into consideration.”

Well, that figure doesn’t match information I’ve got in past from staff, and she’s not including her $18,000 insurance plan. For her entire family. According to her contract, she pays 2% of her salary toward that policy. And she doesn’t have to report the city subsidy as income, like Cal Covered. According to Transparent California, she made $5,783 in salary in 2020, so her share of the insurance premium would be a little over $100/year. There’s also a $900 “other pay” figure – is that the gas and cellphone stipend? I don’t think she’s being completely honest about the salary she votes to pay herself, or her very nice benefits, and that bugs me.

Furthermore, I can’t think of a better use of her council stipend than to do some legal research that would help her do a competent job. What, new shoes, a new outfit? A trip to the hair salon?

Every time I contact this woman I walk away frustrated. I think she’d probably read it better if it was in the newspaper.

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The atmosphere of drugs, crime and violence didn’t just happen, it’s a result of policies made by staff and council

1 Apr
The little metal objects there in the foreground are CO2 cannisters, properly used by restaurants and caterers to dispense whipped cream. Did you know they can be used to get high?

When I was about 13 years old, I saw a neighbor kid running down our street, with whipped cream all over his face, laughing hysterically. His mother was chasing him, crying and begging, desperate to catch him. He just kept screaming gibberish at her, and that laugh, it was insane. Later that day the police came around to talk to other kids in the neighborhood. They told us our neighbor was getting high on the fumes from the whipped cream can, CO2, and that if we saw that again, we should go home and tell our parents. We were clueless, we just thought David was the freakiest kid in our neighborhood.

When I was in college, I actually saw people using a very elaborate dispenser, specifically made for using these cannisters to get high. There was that laugh again. They spoke as though it was illegal, and that the dispensers were hard to get.

Forty years later – I was leaving Mangrove Plaza yesterday morning when I spotted these cannisters laying along the sidewalk. It wasn’t hard to imagine some nut standing there, in the dark, laughing hysterically as he “huffed” his CO2.

I hate to be a quitter, but this is exactly why my husband and I finally sold our home just down Palmetto five years ago. Long time neighbors were dying or moving, and we started to see the weirdest stuff going on in the hood. Car break-ins started moving up Palmetto toward our house. We spent a few hundred dollars on security lights and spoke to the neighbors. Two doors down, a neighbor’s car window was shattered and the car was rifled. Right in her driveway, outside her open windows. Finally, our son’s car was broken into, sitting in the driveway – they forced the window open, and it was over $150 to get it fixed. At that point, we decided we were done with the old hood, and we sold the house. The folks who bought our house have since installed a very formidable security gate across the driveway.

But I’ll tell you what, security measures are spit on the griddle in the atmosphere our local leaders have fostered in Chico. I’ve lived in Sacramento folks, and what I’m seeing in Chico is the same big city problems that come along with a rise in the population. I’ve seen it for over five years, what’s taking our local government so long to deal with it?

I find it annoying that council has spent a ton of staff time on cannabis dispensaries, but smoke shops and liquor stores go along as usual, selling not only the CO2 cannisters and dispensers, but selling products such as Kratom Powder.

From WebMD: Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) is a tree native to Southeast Asia. The leaves contain a chemical called mitragynine, which works like opioids such as morphine. Kratom has pain-relieving effects like opioid drugs. It also has many of the same serious safety concerns as other opioids. People commonly use kratom for withdrawal from heroin, morphine, and other opioid drugs, as well as cough, depression, anxiety, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses. Using kratom can also be unsafe.

From Mayo Clinic: If you read health news or visit vitamin stores, you may have heard about kratom, a supplement that is sold as an energy booster, mood enhancer, pain reliever and antidote for opioid withdrawal. However, the truth about kratom is more complicated, and the safety problems related to its use are concerning…

Unfortunately people do use it recreationally. “Kratom is also used at music festivals and in other recreational settings. People who use kratom for relaxation report that because it is plant-based, it is natural and safe. However, the amount of active ingredient in kratom plants can vary greatly, making it difficult to gauge the effect of a given dose. Depending on what is in the plant and the health of the user, taking kratom may be very dangerous. Claims about the benefits of kratom can’t be rated because reliable evidence is lacking.”

And when a person that I know was using it, I witnessed many of the reported side effects: “Kratom has a number of known side effects, including: weight loss, dry mouth, chills, nausea, vomiting, changes in urine and constipation, liver damage, muscle pain, dizziness, drowsiness, hallucination and delusion, breathing suppression, seizure, coma and death.“

The most frightening effect my husband and I witnessed was our friend’s psychotic breakdown. We’d never seen anything like it, and we were unable to help. The paranoia and delusions were too much for us to deal with, and when we tried to get him to a hospital, he jumped out of our car and ran away.

I’m mentioning this because the “smoke shop” at Mangrove Plaza advertises Kratom Powder on their marquee in giant letters.

The atmosphere of drugs, alcohol and crime didn’t just happen to Chico, it’s grown out of policies made by staff and rubber-stamped by a council that is completely dependent on staff to make their decisions. I don’t think any member of our council is particularly qualified to do this job. I’ve watched them follow Mark Orme like a brood of newly hatched ducklings.

I don’t remember when I’ve seen them turn down a new liquor store or smoke shop. The staff recommendation is always JUST DO IT! Those businesses generate a shit-ton of sales tax, which of course, Council is determined to raise by a full cent. And you’ll pay that on all your over-the-counter medicines, aspirin, cough syrup, cold and flu medicines, allergy remedies, rubbing alcohol, epsom salts, etc.

I sent the picture, with my concerns, to my city council rep Kasey Reynolds – Vice mayor, gee, does that mean, Mayor of Vice? Not sure. We’ll see if she gets back to me.


Be careful what you wish for! Orme’s departure leaves us out of the frying pan and into the fire

28 Mar

Well, if wishes were horses, eh? I’ve wished for Mark Orme to be fired many times. I’m sure resignation under pressure is almost as bad for his professional reputation. But, he’ll get another job, if he hasn’t already, and probably a higher salary. His former assistant manager, Chris Constantin, at least as culpable in this mess as Orme, did exactly that.

But what is council thinking, installing Police Chief Matt Madden as interim city manager? We have an assistant city manager, Jennifer McCarthy. McCarthy was hired away from her position as Butte County Deputy Administrative Officer (asst mgr). It seems to me she would be the natural choice to move into Orme’s position. And then you know what? I’d eliminate the Assistant Manager position altogether. The city has actually paid consultants, Chad Wolford for one, to tell them they are “management top-heavy” and have “too much overhead”, but they don’t listen. Council just keeps making the same left turn right into a pile of doo-doo.

I’d sure like to see the argument that was made in favor of moving the police chief into the city manager position. He’s been chief of police for less than two years, and I don’t think he’s done a very good job as of this point. One concern I had was when he took the Police Advisory Board off the radar, holding “private meetings”. Comments he made regarding his relationship with council were very alarming.

Madden told the News and Review in July 2021, “This is not a City Council-run board; this was created by the chief of police, for the chief of police,” he added. “If council wants to create some different type of board, ad hoc committee, whatever—similar to what we saw last year [with then-Mayor Ann Schwab’s Policing Ad Hoc Committee]—they have all the authority to do that.”

He has held PAB meetings in “private”. What right does he have to take public business into his back room? And with his chosen board members, he’s rewritten the rules for participation. According to board member and failed city council candidate Jovanni Tricerri, “You’re not going to find on this board somebody who doesn’t want the police department to exist… ” Who does he mean exactly? I thought the whole purpose of this board was “community input”.

This is not a good direction for the city of Chico. As of now, I’m looking for somebody to run against Kasey Reynolds. I will support you.

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What?

24 Mar

Every picture tells a story, don’t it?

hutch.png
From americanveal.com

A city vehicle on site at the non-congregate housing property, which is nearly ready to open. (Photo by Ken Smith, Chico News and Review)

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They keep us in the dark and feed us on bullshit – namely, the lie that Mark Orme has not had a raise “in years”…

22 Mar

My mom used to have a sign over her desk – “They must think I’m a mushroom – they keep me in the dark and feed me bullshit.” It was a crude reproduction of a reproduction of a reproduction – before we had forwards, we had the Xerox machine.

I have felt same lately. The city of Chico has gone completely off the radar since the COVID shutdown. Masks are off and meetings are open again, but they are doing stuff behind closed doors, using “special meetings”. A special meeting is not publicly noticed, unless you have signed up for notifications from the clerk, or you happen to check the front door of City Hall every day by 5 pm. I’ve been signed up for years.

Late yesterday afternoon I received a notice for a meeting scheduled for 5:00* (see post script) tomorrow afternoon, with the attached agenda, which reads:

SPECIAL AGENDA – Pursuant to Government Code § 54954.3(a), the City Council is prohibited by law from considering any other business at this meeting.
2.1. CLOSED SESSION PUBLIC COMMENTS OR COUNCIL DISQUALIFICATIONS
2.2. CLOSED SESSION – Council will recess to Closed Session in Conference Room 1
2.3. PUBLIC EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION: (Gov. Code section 54957(b).) Title: City Manager

Government Code 549543(a) says “Every agenda for regular meetings shall provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body on any item of interest to the public, before or during the legislative body’s consideration of the item, that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body, provided that no action shall be taken on any item not appearing on the agenda unless the action is otherwise authorized by subdivision.”

What a mouthful. What they are saying, put simply, is that they have to give the public an opportunity to speak on this subject. What’s the subject? Mark Orme. It’s his performance review.

The first question I have is, what’s the emergency worthy of a special meeting? Special meetings are supposed to be reserved for emergencies, like lawsuits against the city, or pending bankruptcy. Both of which are common problems facing the city of Chico. This is a perfunctory employee review. I never understood why these reviews, which should be a matter of public information, are closed. And now they’re held in special meetings, without real notice of the public. I know it says they are not supposed to discuss anything that’s not on the agenda, but things come up in these conversations, and who is there to report it?

I have an opinion on Mark Orme’s performance – I think he’s lied to the public. For one thing, he is constantly reporting that no member of management has received a raise for years – what about his 457 Plan?

https://www.calpers.ca.gov/page/active-members/retirement-benefits/deferred-compensation

“CalPERS deferred compensation plans include the 457 Plan and Supplemental Contributions Plan. ” Yes, Orme receives “supplemental contributions”, in addition to the usual employer-paid contribution toward his pension, plus the catch-up payments, he gets a special kind of 401K into which the city contributes most of the money. He received this 457 Plan for agreeing to pay a part of the “employer share” of his pension. So Orme pays 14% of his cost, and gets the 457 Plan, into which the city puts over $20,000/year. This is how they try to deceive the public into believing the employees are paying more. Orme has not had a raise? But he gets an additional $20,000 in a secret bank account? Liar, liar, liar – don’t stand too close to this guy, the seat of his pants is likely to spontaneously combust. (You Repo Man fans know that can happen, but did you know why?)

Hey, do you have an opinion on the city manager’s performance that you’d like to share? Well, share it – send your opinions directly to council.

andrew.coolidge@chicoca.gov

 dale.bennett@chicoca.gov 

alex.brown@chicoca.gov

sean.morgan@chicoca.gov

mike.obrien@chicoca.gov

kasey.reynolds@chicoca.gov

 deepika.tandon@chicoca.gov

*Here’s a post script – they rescheduled the meeting to 6:30, due to a scheduling problem with one or another members of council. That gives you an extra hour and a half to contact council.

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It’s St Paddy’s, let’s spread some enlightenment – write those letters, emails, yak it up – council is putting a simple tax measure on the ballot, and the proceeds can be spent any way Mark Orme decides to spend them. And that will be, on the pensions.

17 Mar

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, all ye faithful. Like St. Patrick, you might try a little enlightenment!

Start with the truth about the city’s proposed sales tax measure. There’s a lot of misinformation floating around about this measure, but if I were to pick the most important non-truth being forwarded, purposefully, by the proponents, here it is: Mark Orme is trying to make people believe that the revenues generated by this new tax will go toward infrastructure and public safety. He spreads this willful misinformation, knowing fully well that council is planning to pursue a simple measure, requiring only 51% of the vote to pass, and that means there are no restrictions on the spending, and none can be made.

I’m not going to sit here while a guy who makes over $200,000/year to mismanage our town uses his position of respect in the community to spread a bunch of lies. So here’s my letter about that.

The city of Chico suffers from poor leadership and mismanagement. While city manager Mark Orme boasts that Chico is in  “the best financial shape it has been in recent years…”, taxpayers experience deteriorating infrastructure and increasing lack of services. Mayor Andrew Coolidge responds to our concerns as petty complaints, telling us to “roll up your sleeves and get to work…” What does that mean?

Orme and Coolidge propose a one-cent sales tax increase. Orme says, “It’s an opportunity for the public to make a determination of what they want their future to look like…”

Let me guess what the future will look like if we pass this tax. The city’s biggest debt at present is the over $150 million Unfunded Accrued Liability, or pension deficit, to CalPERS. While deferring maintenance and services, Staff makes increasing payments toward the UAL, millions a year.

According to NSPR News, “Orme made indications during Thursday’s address that investments in police and fire departments, road maintenance, homelessness solutions and small business support would be made.”

But Orme can’t make any promises, since council and staff have made it clear they will put a simple majority measure on the ballot, and the revenues will be deposited in the General Fund, with no restrictions on spending. The voters, if they pass this measure, will have absolutely no determination how the money is spent.

If the past is any indication of the future, we’ll watch the price of everything go up, while infrastructure and services continue to deteriorate.

Juanita Sumner, Chico CA

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City Manager Mark Orme and Mayor Andrew Coolidge are trying to mislead the public regarding the sales tax measure

12 Mar

In a recent news conference, Chico Mayor Andrew Coolidge chastised those of us who are unhappy with the direction the city has taken. “You have the choice to be a critic and complain about the issues we face, or roll up your sleeves, get to work and help make Chico a better place to live,” he said, adding, “Progress was never made by complaining.”

Roll up your sleeves? Who the hell does this total jackass think he’s talking to?

Coolidge likes to avoid the real issues that are causing people to criticize. He won’t admit, Chicoans have plenty to complain about. City manager Mark Orme boasts that, “The City of Chico says it’s in the best financial shape it has been in recent years,” the next minute telling Chicoans they won’t get the usual basic services if they don’t pass the upcoming sales tax increase measure. “It’s an opportunity for the public to make a determination of what they want their future to look like. I’m not going to advocate one side or the other, but what I am going to be is honest about the constraints on current resources.”

Despite his dire warnings, Orme continues to make sure he and the rest of staff get their pensions, funneling millions of dollars from city departments – money intended for services and infrastructure – into the Pension Stabilization Trust. Every year that Orme has told us they have deferred maintenance because they can’t afford to fix the streets or clean the parks, or guarantee our safety in our own homes, he’s paid increasing amounts toward the pension deficit. We’re under “constraints” but we are still able to dump $11.5 million into the pensions? Apparently Mr. Orme gets to decide who is under “constraints” and who is not.

I also believe Orme is publicly insinuating that the measure is a specific tax. According to NSPR, “Orme, however, made indications during Thursday’s address that investments in police and fire departments, road maintenance, homelessness solutions and small business support would be made.”

Council members and staff have said repeatedly that this measure will only require a simple 51% majority to pass. That means – Sean Morgan has reminded people – if they state any intended expenditures for this money, it has to be a 2/3’s majority measure, that would be dedicated to those specific expenditures. Morgan has made it clear that he, for one, wants a general measure that can be spent as council and staff determine among themselves.

Let’s all remember, council and staff wanted a Pension Obligation Bond until Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association made it very clear that such a bond had to go before the voters, and threatened to sue the city of Chico if any such bond was passed without voter approval. And it would have had to get 2/3’s approval.

When Yuba County used specific promises to pass a simple majority tax measure, they were sued by HJTA and two Yuba County citizens. The first judge decided against the county, but the county used taxpayer money to take it to a higher court, where their appeal was approved. Very unfortunate for the taxpayers of Yuba County.

Let’s not make the same mistake in Chico. We have to make sure the voters get the straight facts. Don’t depend on Mark Orme to “educate” anybody.

I’d also discourage people from participating in the online survey – they can screw your submission any way they want. That’s why your responses are not made public on the site, you don’t even know if they are read by anyone but Staff.

Instead, notify your district representative, and include the entire council in your email, that you will not support this tax.

I knew cars and even bikes were a hot commodity in Chico, but socks and underwear?

9 Mar

I think most Chicoans would agree with me – our town is suffering an unbelievable crime wave. Today it really hit me – I went to buy socks at Walmart, and I had to ring a bell for assistance, because socks and underwear are now in glass, locked cases. I had to point to the pack of socks I wanted and then wait for the employee to take out a key and hand me the socks. Maybe I’m the last one to know – I found a lot of articles about it online, dating back about a year.

“There’s a good reason that specific Walmart has added security to stockings and underpants: theft.”

But not all Walmart stores are doing it, just those stores that are seeing significant losses due to theft. 

“‘Some products are subject to additional security. Those determinations are made on a store-by-store basis,’ Walmart headquarters said in a statement to Bring Me The News. “

So, hmm, Chico a hotbed of sock and underwear thieves, very interesting… uh, I mean, embarrassing. I knew cars and bikes are hot items, but socks and underwear? That’s troubling on a number of levels. First of all, whether it’s a loss, or loss prevention, the additional cost will be added to every pair of socks and skivvies we buy. Second, these people walk out of Walmart and into our neighborhoods, stealing packages off of our porches, parts from our cars, tools, etc. Posts I’ve seen on social media express frustration with Chico PD’s handling of the problem. Store owners as well as residents are left to take matters into their own hands.

So Walmart responds by hiring additional security and locking up everyday items. I’ll guess other stores are doing it too. I’d also guess that the discount stores have a bigger problem with shoplifting because of the reclassification of thefts of less than $950 as misdemeanors. The added employee costs, as well as the specialized equipment, along with the inevitable losses, are tacked onto our purchases.

That’s just another aspect of the inflation we’ve been seeing, in everything. A sales tax increase is just adding insult to injury. Let your district representative know what’s going on in your neck of the Chico woods, and how you feel about paying more for less.

Passing the pension buck – letter writer tries to ignore the “catch-up” payments, which are all on the taxpayers

3 Mar

Last week a regular letter writer responded to my last letter to the editor. He misquoted a figure, and then he falsely stated that most of CalPERS benefits are paid through investments.

I am concerned with an error in fact appearing in a letter in the Feb. 23 edition on your Opinion page. Juanita Sumner (who often writes good fact-based letters) is clearly mistaken. At the conclusion of her second paragraph she states that public employees pay (at the most) 27%* of their retirement benefit “leaving the rest … to be picked up by the taxpayers.”

(*NOTE – I didn’t say “27%”, I said 22.7%, and that’s the correct number. That’s a big difference with these numbers, pay attention. I’d also like to see ER Editor Mike Wolcott PROOFREAD SOMETHING once in awhile. This is how misinformation gets out there. )

At least 60% of every CalPERS retirement benefit dollar annuity paid (to about 633,000 retirees) at this point in time is paid from investment profits gained with the CalPERS fund (now at least $475B). This leaves local contracting agencies, like the city of Chico, or state taxpayers to pay, at the most, 27%. These percentages vary little from year to year, from fractions of 1% to a very few percentage points over the past several decades.

All public employees (yes, I am a retired one) have negotiated their contracts with administrators under the direction and supervision of elected public office holders. We get the government we deserve by who we elect. Each reader, citizen, registered voter should decide whether they elected the right folks.

It is obvious to me that special interest groups strongly influence who gets elected. In the case of the CalPERS complex, but not always transparent, workings those groups would include: political parties, labor unions, leagues or associations of cities, counties, school board administrators and probably a few others I can’t think of right now.

Abe Baily, Chico CA

I don’t think he’s a liar, I think he was misled, or more likely, misunderstood information he got from the CalPERS website. I know retirees, and they don’t understand any of it, they don’t know how close they are to losing everything with CalPERS. They mislead themselves about how unsustainable CalPERS is, and who really pays. Yes, as taxpayers, they pay – they have to drive the same streets we do, live in the same crappy town – but they are also on the very generous receiving end. So yeah, they really don’t want to know the truth. These crazy pensions are like heroin – as long as you get your monthly fix, you don’t care where it comes from, or think about whether it will come next month.

https://www.calpers.ca.gov/page/about/organization/facts-at-a-glance/asset-liability-management

There you have a presentation that is confusing, but if you pay attention, you see and hear what’s really going on. Look at the “CalPERS buck” – very misleading. The illustration tells us that 60 cents of every dollar paid to retirees comes from CalPERS investments, while CalPERS employers pay (an average?) of 29 cents and members, or retirees, pay 11 cents. Those employer and employee shares are close to reality, but what they don’t include, are the “extra” or “catch-up” payments made toward the deficit. That’s all on the taxpayers. (+the 29 cents!)

The deficit is created by unrealistic payments, unrealistic shares paid by members, and historically poor performance by CalPERS investments. While CalPERS made great gains this year – 21%! – there are a couple of problems. First of all, it’s a one-time gain made on the backs of people recovering from the COVID shutdown.

Second, it follows years of single digit performance. In fact, in 2016, the fund returned only .61% – that’s 61 cents on the dollar, kids. Up from 2009 when they tanked, going 24 points into the red.

With losses like that, year after year, CalPERS has racked up a deficit of over $150 million for Chico, up from $143 million just last year. That’s despite rising “pension stabilization” or “extra” or “catch-up payments” – last year, $11.5, $18 million projected by 2025. Staff and council instituted the Pension Stabilization Trust a few years ago, siphoning millions from every city fund, but the deficit just keeps going up?

How does that happen? Well, for another thing, Council just handed out a bunch of raises to cover any added share the employees have agreed to. It’s like digging your way out of a sand pit.

So, I had to respond to Baily. I don’t like the nasty tit-for-tat Wolcott likes to run in the letters section, but I’m not going to sit by while Baily spreads misinformation, using my name to do it. Sorry Abe, nothing personal. You old gas-bag.

Abe Baily is mistaken when he states “At least 60% of every CalPERS retirement benefit dollar annuity paid at this point in time is paid from investment profits gained with the CalPERS fund”.

Bailey misinterpreted that from the CalPERS website. Gains are up this year – a 21% return, attributed to COVID recovery. A one-time gain after years of abysmal performance. Meanwhile, CalPERS administrators admit, “Obviously these gains, we have a lot to thank from you (sic) our EMPLOYER community, cause your contributions, I recognize, have gone up a lot to help fund that improved funded status.” CalPERS demands more from employers every year.

Furthermore, there’s still the pension deficit, $150 million, up from $143 million just last year, created and perpetuated by a combination of unrealistic employee contributions and consistently poor performance by CalPERS investments. Every year the city must make “extra” or “catch-up” payments. Last year, Staff took $11.5 million out of city funds – money intended for services and infrastructure – and siphoned it into the Pension Stabilization Trust, which is restricted to those payments.  

Contrary to Baily’s belief, the taxpayers contribute the lion’s share, not only paying a share toward payroll, but picking up the entire deficit, with interest. At the cost of our roads, parks, and public safety services.

Employees should pay a larger payroll share, and should pay a share toward the deficit. Instead, Mark Orme suggests a sales tax increase, to replace funds siphoned into the PST.  

This is called, “passing the pension buck”.

Juanita Sumner, Chico CA

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Chico Sales Tax Measure, Step 2: A heavily-led survey that will tell the consultant how to pitch this piece of crap right back at you

28 Feb

Last Wednesday, City of Chico Finance Committee listened the city’s $91,000 consultant lay out their tax measure campaign. First, the private meetings with stakeholders (they listed Enloe, the Farm Bureau, and the Chamber of Commerce). Next, a mailer with a survey. Finally, they will craft a series of videos to spread out on social media, telling us what they think we want to hear, based on answers to the survey.

The city needs to spend whatever taxpayer money on this venture that they can before they actually submit their ballot to the county clerk in June. Once the ballot is given a letter designation by the county clerk, the city is no longer allowed to spend taxpayer money. The plan you see above will cost at least $91,000 of our money, money that should be going to infrastructure and services.

This should all be familiar to you – this was the same strategy used to Chico Area Recreation District consultants when they rolled out the ill-fated Measure A in March 2020. CARD consultants used the same game plan – early mailers to get people thinking positive about CARD, then a survey, then videos and more mailers based on what they thought they found out from the surveys.

They decided to do a phone survey toward the end – that’s the easiest way to lead people to the conclusion you want, if they bother to pick up, that is. I remember the CARD consultant discussed the difficulties of phone surveys, starting with the reluctance people have to answer an unfamiliar number. They’d get around that, she said, by using a local number to do the calling – from Oakland. They still gathered responses from less than 1% of the local population, and the questions were heavily led, with a prompter on the other end of the phone to “interpret” the responses.

Measure A, which cost the district over $100,000 still failed, with only 47% of participating voters willing to support it. CARD staff and board all lamented the decision to make it a 2/3’s measure, but you see there, they couldn’t even get a full 51% of the voters to support it.

The board had been misled by the consultants as to the results of the survey. The consultants interpreted huge support in the community. This is how they use these surveys – here they are discussing the effectiveness of different arguments used in convincing respondents to pass this dud.

CARD survey heavily led, questions close ended – when did 28 percent become “overwhelming support”?

CARD did several surveys over the years leading up to Measure A. Each time, the consultant reported a positive, supportive response from the public. Come on, that’s how they make their money. The consultants that said it wouldn’t pass were never invited back, I sat through that for several years. While the board spent money on a conga-line of consultants, studies, surveys and mailers, they closed Shapiro Pool due to lack of maintenance and made the community hold fundraisers to fix their skateboard park.

We could still nip this in the bud if we just pushed back hard enough. First of all, don’t participate in any survey. They will turn your participation into “support” for the measure, and council will go forward based on that advice. Instead, contact the council NOW and let them know you will NOT support this sales tax increase. Tell them how much your utility bills have gone up over the past few years, tell them how much groceries have gone up. Tell them how disappointed you are in their “leadership” and their spending priorities. Tell them you’re tired of paying the lion’s share of Staff benefits.

The consultant predicted push back. “We’ll get a lot of cranky folks. But we’ll get folks who think this has been done out in the open…” I love that. If you question this little scam, you’re just “cranky“. Wow, interesting choice of words Mr. Sheister – “folks who think this has been done out in the open…” That’s what they have to convince people of, that this whole thing is all sunshine and lollipops and done for the good of the taxpayers. That’s the line of bullshit they’re casting out across Chico, don’t bite on it.

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