Rostra columnist Jim Sills posted a question on my recent post “Calling San Diego Taxpayers: Oppose the “Jobs Tax” asking San Diegans to oppose a proposal by the San Diego City Council to double linkage fees. Sills had the courage (and the smarts) to ask an obvious question. What the heck is a “linkage fee”? I called on Chris Cate, …
Calling San Diego Taxpayers: Oppose the “Jobs Tax”
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 …
Help For Small Businesses in San Diego?
Lorie Zapf and Tony Young have released a Small Business Assistance Package designed to help small businesses cut through the red tape of city government and get the local economy growing. The effort is in part the result of an outreach effort by Zapf to small businesses. Some key provisions. 1. Code Compliance Amnesty 2. Small Business Liaison / Code …
A Q&A: Cuts to libraries and rec centers
I received an email Thursday from Voice of San Diego’s City Hall reporter asking for the councilman’s position on proposed cuts to libraries and rec centers. I had written a blog post a day earlier on San Diego Rostra that said some local reporters weren’t giving the City Council much of a say in stories about the proposed cuts. The email from Liam Dillon at the Voice …
Odds of saving libraries and rec centers better than Lions making playoffs
Stories about budget cuts are easy to tell and reaction is fierce, but the coverage is often misleading Just about every media outlet has recently and repeatedly told San Diegans the news isn’t good – massive cuts to your libraries and rec centers are coming. It’s a great story for the overworked journalist. Easy to report. Easy to write. Readers, …
In San Diego: Employees vote; taxpayers don’t
Starting today, an important election involving city finances is taking place in San Diego, but taxpayers won’t be casting the votes. Nope, this election rests with city employees, who have a week to vote on whether to eliminate a controversial and costly employee benefit – the Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP). Yes, in San Diego, employees have the final say …
We are not an ATM
Today’s editorial in the Union-Tribune is spot on, and I love the pocket-veto reference at the end. I made a similar argument last week. Initially, when I heard labor and school leaders were walking the council floor trying to drum up support for a loan/advance I asked: “They want it added to the $4 billion wish list?” “No,” I was …
DeMaio Celebrates Another Victory for Taxpayers; CCDC To Assume Payments on Petco Park Debt
On the heels of the City Council action today to transfer debt service for Petco Park from the City’s General Fund to the Redevelopment Agency, City Councilmember Carl DeMaio released the following statement: “Five years ago, I proposed that the City protect the General Fund by transferring annual debt service payments for Petco Park to the Redevelopment Agency and Centre City Development …
San Diego City Hall – Reading the Tea Leaves
Two articles in today’s U-T point to the growing realization by the City Council that the issues of fiscal responsibility raised by the Tea Party are the new reality. Item 1. The council appears poised to rescind the big box economic analysis law in the face of Walmart’s successful petition drive. Key swing vote, Tony Young, council President is quoted …
Walmart San Diego – Labor’s Flawed Logic
Lorena Gonzales makes some absurd arguments in today’s U-T editorial section on the law to block WalMart from setting up “big boxes” that sell groceries without a special economic impact analysis that no other business is subject to. Here is the core of her argument, Superstores have unknown and potentially economic impact, so they should be required to submit to …
Earliest Race Returns Show Rider In Front
While San Diego’s voters won’t be casting ballots for months to come, there’s still plenty of competition among current and aspiring officeholders. In a head to head battle at the Scripps Ranch Four Mile Run last Sunday, December 12, Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher and would-be officeholder Steve Rider both finished in the top three of the 30 – 34 old mens’ …
Wayne says he will return contribution
Dave Maass of San Diego CityBeat contacted SD Rostra to note that in response to his inquiry resulting from Jim Sills’ post of last night, San Diego city council candidate Howard Wayne said he ordered his treasurer to return the $100 contribution from Amerland’s Jules Arthur. Rostra has verified the information as accurate; Wayne indicated he has directed the return …
Will Howard Wayne return money from a Donor the Bay Area media say is charged with 2 Counts of Manslaughter ?
On June 22, 2010 the Solano County DA’s office charged businessman Jules Arthur, and 4 associates, in the deaths of 2 senior citizens killed in an accidental Vallejo fire. (source Vallejo Times-Herald, Sept. 4, 2010). The prosecutors say a Vallejo senior citizen project owned by Arthur’s San Diego-based ‘The Amerland Group’ burned down. 2 people lost their lives. The fire’s origin was purely …
If We Say It Enough, They’ll Believe It
The Yes on D campaign in support of the proposed half-cent sales tax increase in the City of San Diego has finally ginned up its efforts, less than eight weeks before election day. I suppose it took that long for the public labor union checks funding the campaign to clear. Its first news release announced the campaign’s team members. It …
Evidence the SD sales tax is doomed
When the San Diego city sales tax was first agreed to this week by the city council, there was a short “Breaking News” piece on the U-T website. The next day there were over 200 comments. But what struck me was the OVERWHELMING rejection of the tax by commenters. Normally there is a hyperactive cadre of government employees commenting away …
Our Own Microcosm of Freedom vs. Tyranny: The City Hall Machine vs. The Rest of Us
Kudos to Rostra blogger Bradley J. Fikes for this post calling out the thinly-veiled message in the U-T that actually precluded the sales tax proponents’ simple message: “Agree to a sales tax increase or you will die.” May I suggest we haven’t even begun to be spoon-fed this message. The coming months will be filled with it. This is the …
Jerry Sanders: Complete Failure?
First, a very important tenet for me. I do not use the term “RINO” or take shots at someone’s conservative credentials lightly, I cannot stress that enough. Now that we have that out of the way… Seriously? Jerry Sanders. Seriously, dude? At this point it isn’t “what have you done for us lately”, it is what have you done for …
This Isn’t Right
I thought a long while before writing this post. I lived with Mayor Sander’s position on gay marriage. Gave him a pass, for the good of party unity. I was pretty upset with his position on the Arizona law, but largely kept my mouth shut. But this sales tax increase is just too much. The one thing that holds the …
Top 10 Flaws in the San Diego Sales Tax Hike
Not surprisingly, the City Council today advanced the dubious Sales Tax Ballot Measure. Put simply, San Diego taxpayers deserve better than a tax increase masquerading as “reform.” That’s why we are putting together a broad-based campaign to defeat this deceptive measure – and to articulate a bold and effective reform agenda. If you are willing to help with the campaign, …
SurveyUSA: 66% oppose sales tax increase in San Diego
Thanks to Vince Vasquez for the tip. To quote Vince from his Twitter post, “SurveyUSA polling data shows 66% of San Diegans oppose sales tax hike, even when tied to vague promises of reform.” See the poll results
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