Taxable Talk

As mentioned previously, my home and office are served the the Irvine Ranch Water District (IRWD). Unlike the neighboring Orange County Sanitation District, the IRWD hasn't elected to spiritualize its' sewage. But the IRWD has committed its own sin: Late payments on electricity bills to the tune of $22,427, according to a story in the Orange County Register.

The IRWD says that the payments were late so that the bills, from Southern California Edison could be checked to ensure that SCE didn't overcharge the IRWD. The IRWD has now changed its policy so that if the checking of the bills will cause them to be paid after the due date, the bills will be timely paid and a credit (if appropriate) will then be asked for.

Yes, the double-checking of the bills has found errors (of more than $160,000). But shouldn't this procedure have been implemented after the first late payment? Definitely this shouldn't have had to wait for an audit; according to the Register story, that was the cause of the change of procedure.

Luckily, I'm not served by the Orange County Sanitation District (OCSD). That's because the Orange County Register disclosed that the OCSD has been paying a "spiritual counselor" $15,000 per month (or $180,000 per year). The Register reported on July 12th that Dharma Consulting would have made $570,000 by the expiration of its' contract.

That smells pretty bad: spiritual sewage?

The OCSD finally realized that Assemblyman Chuck DeVore (R-Irvine) might be right when he said, "What if a local government decided to bring in a representative of a nearby Catholic diocese to help coach their city employees on spirituality, teamwork and ethics? ... The ACLU would sue more quickly than you could say, 'Establishment Clause.'" The OCSD ended the contract; Dharma Consulting is left with its' take to date ($400,000).

Blake Anderson, OCSD General Manager noted, speaking to the Register, that, "While I certainly understand and respect the concern raised about the cost and length of the contract, the intention and outcome has ALWAYS been directed toward one thing: making the Sanitation District a highly effective and efficient public agency." The contract was cut on the 19th.

But that's not the end of the story. The Register reported today that Anderson has offered to resign.

For the record, my home and office are served by the Irvine Ranch Water District, which, as far as I know, hasn't jumped on this particular fadconsulting program.

Yes, it is possible for a piece of property to drop in value in California. The San Francisco Giants ballpark, SBC Park (formerly PacBell Park), has dropped in value by $88 million between 2001 and 2003, according to the Assessment Appeals Board of the City of San Francisco.

The Giants received a property tax refund of $3.6 million.


Source: San Francisco Examiner

...and still has a $5 Billion deficit projected for next year. Oh, the Governator signed the budget.

Moody's Investment Services followed up by raising California's Debt Rating from A3 (bad) to A2 (not as bad). Perhaps I'm being a bit cynical about this; after all, Moody's says that both A3 and A2 ratings indicate "bonds with many positive investment qualities." California, though, has one of the worst ratings of any state.

On the good news side of the ledger, the Governator used the line-item veto to eliminate some egregious programs, such as the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education. He also vetoed hiring 14 new state tax investigators. While the veto "saved" $1.2 million, the investigators were budgeted to bring in $4 million in back tax payments and penalties annually. So tax cheatersprocrastinators, you can rejoice!

Again, the key for California will be the results of the November 8th special election, which will have numerous initiatives that could change our state government in many ways.

As reported yesterday, California will soon have its' new 2005-06 budget. Dan Weintraub, a columnist with the Sacramento Bee, reports on more of the specifics (missing from yesterday's report).

Some highlights:

—Education funding increases, despite what you may hear from the teacher's unions;

—The state is repaying the $1.2 Billion it owes the cities one year earlier than scheduled. This will make local governments quite happy.

—The budget is balanced on paper. However, it's balanced by using one-time funds. Thus, next year's budget starts off $5 Billion in the hole.

So, let's take the good with the bad. Given the makeup of the legislature, this is probably as good as one could hope for. Just remember that we're still looking at a special election in November with a whole host of initiatives that have the potential to change the picture in Sacramento.

California's legislature and the Governator agreed on a budget last night that, supposedly, increases spending (a little) without increasing taxes (or implementing new taxes). That doesn't mean there won't be new fees, including new court filing costs, and who knows what else buried in the fine print.

Until we see the actual budget, and the analysts' reports on the budget, we're better off not speculating as to whether it's a good or bad deal. For now, look at it as a $117 Billion unknown.

Coverage: San Jose Mercury News (one-time registration required)