At Least the Fleece Awards Were Cute: SDCTA Hands Out 2012 Goldens

The Libertarian Lass, Gayle FalkenthalThe Libertarian Lass, Gayle Falkenthal Leave a Comment

Smart governing decisions saving taxpayer dollars and collaborative initiatives took top honors, while cavalier attitudes and lost opportunities were called out and shamed at the San Diego County Taxpayers Association (SDCTA)’s 17th annual Goldens Awards Dinner, held at the Town and Country Resort & Convention Center in Mission Valley. Remote controls were nowhere in sight as the evening’s theme “Taxpayer …

Faulconer pushes to bring City technology into 21st century

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey 4 Comments

Are you reading this using a computer system from the 1980’s? You’re probably not firing up a Commodore 64 each morning, yet much of the City’s information technology network still uses decades-old systems. This morning Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer joined Mayor Jerry Sanders and Councilmember Lorie Zapf to unveil the potential savings from two competitively bid IT services contracts. He called on …

WWFD? What Would Fletcher Do?

James BehanJames Behan 8 Comments

In the back and forth over Assemblyman and mayoral candidate Nathan Fletcher’s post Let’s be honest. Let’s be truthful. And let’s be direct., Rostrafarian Steve Rider posted an honest, truthful and direct question about this “leading by example” business. This brings up an interesting question. One can only assume that on the off chance CPR is defeated either in the …

Faulconer talks pension reform on national television

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey Leave a Comment

In case you missed it, Kevin Faulconer appeared on Fox News Channel this week to talk about San Diego’s Comprehensive Pension Reform citizen’s initiative, the fight to put it on the ballot and the millions of dollars in savings it can bring to taxpayers. The reform measure, which will appear on the June ballot, comes at a time when cities …

Competition Between Government and Private Businesses Saving Millions for S.D. Taxpayers and Neighborhoods

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey Leave a Comment

Competition works — and is delivering results for San Diego. Today, San Diego City Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer joined Mayor Jerry Sanders and City Councilmember Todd Gloria to announce City employees won a bid against three private companies to provide street sweeping services to San Diegans. Freed up to compete with the private sector through the voter-approved managed …

Faulconer: “People talk about creating new jobs. We must also protect the jobs we have”

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey, Undesignated Leave a Comment

San Diegans rightly expect all levels of local government to be focused on creating and maintaining jobs, especially in this period of economic uncertainty. Today in front of the international headquarters of San Diego-based manufacturer Solar Turbines, City Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer joined County Supervisor Greg Cox, Port Chairman Scott Peters and many more local leaders to unite …

Faulconer: Redevelopment’s Public Benefits Too Important to Stop

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey Leave a Comment

City Council President Pro Tem Kevin L. Faulconer released the following statement in response to today’s California Supreme Court ruling over the State Legislature’s decision to dissolve redevelopment agencies across the state, including in San Diego. “Redevelopment has been a vital resource in the transformation of downtown and many of San Diego’s older communities. It has been the key to …

City Council Serves Up “Restaurant Relief,” Removing A Burdensome Regulation For Local Businesses

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey 1 Comment

Faulconer: Government regulation putting “too many cooks in the kitchen” When was the last time you heard of the police breaking up a rowdy dance party at Liberty Station’s Corvette Diner? Probably never, but this family restaurant was required to obtain a $3,000 entertainment permit from the Police Department for the right to feature live entertainment (in this case, a …

“It’s In The Voters’ Hands” — Comprehensive Pension Reform Qualifies For San Diego Ballot

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey 7 Comments

  One hundred fifteen thousand nine hundred ninety one. That’s how many San Diegans signed the petition to qualify Comprehensive Pension Reform for the June 2012 ballot, the City Clerk confirmed today. The initiative’s authors — Mayor Jerry Sanders, City Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer and City Councilmember Carl DeMaio — joined the Lincoln Club, San Diego County Taxpayers …

Bipartisan City Council Coalition Vows To Cut Red Tape So S.D. Businesses Can Create Jobs

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey Leave a Comment

“Time is money.” It’s an all-American saying that every small business in San Diego lives by. Today, City Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer joined Council President Tony Young, Councilmember Lorie Zapf, the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and Building Industry Association of San Diego to committ to helping businesses spend less time navigating the City bureaucracy so they can focus …

Faulconer to Review Over 300 Recommendations to Improve City Operations and Boost Efficiencies

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey 1 Comment

Audit Committee to also consider proposal that could recover up to $500,000 from payment errors   Have an idea to fix City Hall and save taxpayer dollars? The independent City Auditor has over 300. This morning at 9:00 at City Hall, Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer — chair of the City Audit Committee —  will be reviewing 313 recommendations …

City Council Approves Private Sector Competition for San Diego Landfill Operation

Matt AwbreyMatt Awbrey 1 Comment

Faulconer makes motion to save millions of dollars through managed competition “We should line up managed competitions like planes on the runway at Lindbergh Field.” This is a line Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer is fond of using when stressing the importance of competition for City services. Today, the City Council gave clearance for another plane to take off …

The Strange Bedfellows of Pension Reform

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 9 Comments

The woes of public pensions seems a universal problem. Governments around the globe grapple with these unsustainable money pits in the hopes of avoiding more trouble down the road. San Diego’s not unique. But just a year out from the 2012 June primary, we’re seeing lots of hubbub about the pension reform ballot measure out trying to beat the clock …

Calling San Diego Taxpayers: Oppose the “Jobs Tax”

The Libertarian Lass, Gayle FalkenthalThe Libertarian Lass, Gayle Falkenthal 4 Comments

The San Diego County Taxpayers calls upon San Diegans to voice their opposition to a proposal by the San Diego City Council to double the so called “linkage fee” charged to construction projects in the City of San Diego. This fee is yet another short-sighted job killer and SDCTA is strongly opposed to this increase. The Council will also consider …

Confident, Determined San Diego Pension Reformers hold productive Thursday night meeting in Mission Valley

Jim SillsJim Sills 1 Comment

Kevin Faulconer set the tone last night, telling a crowd of civic leaders, “This is not about Republicans and Democrats.  This is about what is good for San Diego neighborhoods.”  Faulconer gestured to a chart showing that, if left unchanged, local residents will one day pay $500 million-a-year for a “defined benefit” pension system. “If we act now, we can save $1 …

Pension Reform Measure Would Save San Diego Taxpayers up to $2 Billion

Tony ManolatosTony Manolatos 3 Comments

A groundbreaking pension reform ballot measure would save San Diego taxpayers up to $2.1 billion, according to a comprehensive financial analysis released today. “Taxpayers simply can’t afford to keep paying the staggering pension costs of city workers year after year, decade after decade,” Mayor Jerry Sanders said. “This ballot measure will restore us to fiscal sanity, creating a system in …

Comprehensive Pension Reform kicks off

Tony ManolatosTony Manolatos 9 Comments

You’re invited… Who: Mayor Jerry Sanders, Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer, Councilmember Carl DeMaio, Lincoln Club of San Diego County and the San Diego County Taxpayers Association What: Comprehensive Pension Reform Campaign Kick-off Reception When: Thursday, June 30 Time: 5 to 7 p.m. Where: Trellises Restaurant at the Town & Country Hotel (500 Hotel Circle, San Diego CA 92108) …

No June Gloom for Leaders in Albondigas Meatball Poll

The Libertarian Lass, Gayle FalkenthalThe Libertarian Lass, Gayle Falkenthal 4 Comments

Albongidas members like their politics spicy. The Mayor’s race in the City of San Diego is tailor made for this bunch and it remains the hot topic of monthly gatherings by members of the San Diego Chapter at Cafe Coyote in Old Town. District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis made the first official visit by a declared mayoral candidate on Friday, June …

GOP Mayoral Candidates Jump to the Front: Dumanis Fav Among Insiders, DeMaio Choice of the Electorate

Owen KelloggOwen Kellogg 3 Comments

The Mayoral race has gotten off to a blistering pace: DeMaio, Fletcher, and now Filner are in; Faulconer is out. Surprisingly, there is a swift and early movement to coalesce center-right establishment support behind Dumanis. In just the last 36 hours Dumanis has received the endorsements of both Faulconer and Sanders. At the same time a SurveyUSA poll, sponsored by 10 News, shows DeMaio up substantially. He leads among every major demographic but women.

Kevin Faulconer Endorses Bonnie Dumanis for Mayor

Kurt BardellaKurt Bardella 4 Comments

San Diego City Council President Pro Tem Kevin Faulconer today formally endorsed Bonnie Dumanis for Mayor of San Diego, saying she “is the candidate who can best move San Diego forward.” Faulconer cited Dumanis’ proven leadership, chief executive experience and strength as a consensus-builder as examples of why he strongly supports her to be San Diego’s next Mayor.