San Francisco layoff of 15,000 workers--sort of...

Here's the lead from a story in Saturday's Chronicle (click here):

Emotions ranged from disbelief to despair to downright anger Friday as 15,000 San Francisco city workers received pink slips. But Mayor Gavin Newsom reiterated that his controversial plan to rehire them under shortened workweeks would wind up saving thousands of jobs.

Newsom ordered the layoff notices be sent to most of the city's 26,000 workers and said the overwhelming majority of them will be hired back within two weeks to work 37.5 hours a week instead of their current 40 - meaning they'll see a 6.25 percent cut to their paychecks

I guess it is one of those only in San Francisco sort of issues--with some of it due to the many creative bargaining agreements it has struck with its workers--as we noted last Saturday in our post about Muni workers.

This story and others reinforces the unique times we are now living in--and the need for those of us in the public sector to understand that the economy and government finance have changed forever. Future labor agreements are going to need to include provisions that actually relate to the world around us and our local budget realities.

The days of long term guaranteed raises with ever increasing benefits are done--it is just going to be a painful process to have our labor agreement adjust to the new normal.

Highlights from "The Week in Review" (TWIR)

You can access the full version of the TWIR by clicking on the link on the right side of this page.

Fire
Emergency Incidents: We had a total of 79 incidents this week, which included 3 that were fire related: 1-Structure Fire, 1-Smoke Investigation and 1-Equipment Malfunction. The remaining calls this week were: EMS-47, Vehicle Accidents-2, Service Calls-14 and Other Emergencies-13.

Fire Prevention: This week’s Fire Prevention Activities included: Business Inspections-56, New Construction Inspections-5, Plan Checks-2, Certificate of Occupanies-3, Business License Inspections-1 and Fire System Checks-3.

Police
Bar Fight and Officer Assault: On February 27 at approximately 12:40 a.m., Officers responded to Rocko’s Sports and Spirits, 757 N. Main St., in regard to a large fight. One subject was knocked unconscious and was lying on the sidewalk in front of the bar. Upon arrival, there was a large crowd fighting in front of the bar. After all parties were separated, the bouncers pointed out the one responsible for the fight. Witnesses on scene reported there was an altercation inside the bar. As everyone was leaving, two large groups met in front of the bar. Several words were exchanged. The suspect came up from the side and punched the victim, knocking him unconscious. The victim was transported to Doctor’s Hospital via ambulance. His injuries were not life threatening and last report was he suffered a concussion. Officers were still on scene trying to disperse the large intoxicated crowd. An intoxicated and belligerent subject was attempting to start another altercation in front of the bar. An Officer approached the individual, grabbed him by his arm, and told him he needed to calm down. The subject spun around and attempted to hit and pull away from the Officer. The Officer kept hold of the suspect’s arm and forced him to the ground. The suspect continued to fight and resist the Officer. Two other Officers assisted and the suspect was restrained with handcuffs and transported to the Police Department. Both suspects were charged with public intoxication, battery and resisting arrest.

DUI Checkpoint: On February 28, the Manteca Police Department conducted a DUI Checkpoint in the 700 block of North Main Street. The following are the results of the checkpoint:

531 Vehicles through the checkpoint
530 Vehicle screened
20 Drivers checked for Driver’s License
7 Field Sobriety Tests
1 Arrested for DUI
9 Vehicles Impounded ( 3-Unlicensed, 3-Suspended DL)

Burglary Arrests: Officers were dispatched to 473 Cherry Lane, Apt. “J” in regard to a report of an interrupted residential burglary. The suspects were described as three African-American males and were had said to have fled over the rear fence. Officers responded into the area. Officers received some information from a witness that a possible grey SUV might have been involved in the burglary. As an Officer was in the area, he saw a 2001 Ford SUV in a parking stall with an African-American male walking away from it in the direction of the rear of the apartments. The Officer looked through the window of the SUV and saw the stolen property in plain view. There were several broken windows of the two-story apartments and several of them were vacant. There were also several fence boards broken out behind the apartments. An Officer knocked on the back door of one of the apartments, and the resident came to the door. After a short conversation and investigation, it was determined the resident was on searchable probation. The Officers conducted a search of the residence and located the two suspects inside the residence. One of the suspects was the subject the Officer saw walking away from the vehicle with the stolen property, and the other was also on searchable probation. The two male subjects had property on their person that was positively identified as being taken from the burglary. Both of the suspects were arrested and the property from the vehicle was returned to the owner. After the initial investigation, it was determined that the victim walked in on the suspects, one of which had packed up her suitcase with computer items, and tossed it over her back fence. The victim had a brief struggle over the suitcase with one of the suspects until a witness neighbor yelled at the suspect and he ran off without the suitcase. It appears there were a total of three or four suspects involved in the burglary. Officers arrested Stewart Deandre, 29, of Stockton, and Louis Holiday, 33, of Manteca, for burglary and possession of stolen property.

Shooting: On March 1 at 9:2 p.m., Patrol Officers were dispatched to 1034 Norman Dr. for a report of a shooting that occurred at the intersection of South Powers Avenue and Hutchings Drive. The victim was driving in his Chevrolet Monte Carlo southbound at the intersection of South Powers and Hutchings when he was shot at by subjects in another vehicle. The other vehicle was also southbound on South Powers and passed the victim’s vehicle while he was stopped at the stop sign. As the other vehicle started to pass, they began shooting. The victim was uncooperative and refused to speak with Officers. Officers did speak with his father. The victim told his father what happened, then went inside their residence and refused to come out to speak with Officers. The victim’s father called the police when he learned about the shooting. Five shots were heard and the vehicle had been struck at least three times. The suspect vehicle was seen by a witness fleeing the area immediately after hearing the shots fired. It was an older, black Chevrolet pickup, possibly 60’s model with no tailgate and no working tail lights. There were at least two subjects in the pickup. It fled the area southbound on South Powers toward Moffat Boulevard.

Public Works
Hazardous Waste Disposal: Many people think the City’s Solid Waste Corporation yard is the place to take all waste, including hazardous waste, for disposal. It’s true the City does collect waste from residents and businesses as part of its daily operations. Staff takes that waste to the landfill for disposal. However, the City DOES NOT collect hazardous waste. The City is not permitted by the County or by the State to collect hazardous waste, except for the following:

E-Waste: Computers, TVs and basically anything that plugs into a wall outlet.
Small household batteries (A, AA, AAA, C and D).
Medical Sharps: From Manteca residents only, in 1-quart “sharps” containers only.
Oil: From residents only, in City-provided containers only.

The City is not permitted, nor allowed, to collect any of the following:
Paint of any kind in any quantities.
Chemicals of any kind.
Fertilizers or pesticides of any kind.

The City can be cited and fined if any of these materials are found in the Corporation Yard during an inspection. If you find these items, or have these items at home and need to dispose of them, they can be taken to the San Joaquin County Household Hazardous Waste Facility located at 7850 Bridgeford Way in Stockton (near the Stockton Airport). The facility is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Materials can be dropped off, free of charge, if you are a resident of the County. Businesses will have to pay a fee for dropping off materials and will have to call ahead to schedule an appointment (468-3066).

Community Development
Building Safety Activities: The Building Safety Division conducted a total of 236 inspections during the week. The Division issued 25 building permits, which included 4 Single-Family Dwellings, 1 Commercial Remodel, 1 Fire Alarm, 2 Miscellaneous Electric, 2 Miscellaneous Mechanical, 3 Miscellaneous Plumbing, 7 Photovoltaic, 1 Residential Siding, 1 Roof, 1 Sign and 2 Swimming Pools. A total of 19 new project applications were submitted for plan check services, which included 6 Changes to Existing Plans, 1 Commercial Addition, 1 Commercial Electric, 1 Commercial Plumbing, 1 Commercial Remodel, 3 Patios, 1 Residential Fire Repair, 1 Residential Garage, 1 Solar, 1 Storage Rack, 1 Foundation and 1 Residential Accessory Building.

Latest Pension News

From the California City News Blog:


Pension Roundup: Pressure for Reform Spreads to Address Shortfalls
As we relayed here, California’s two big pension funds, CALPERS and CalSTRS may cut their assumed actuarial rate of return in order to account for the brutal losses that each funding system incurred over the past few years, not to mention the uncertainty about the state of the economy in the future. The substantial under-funding of both retirement systems is bound to put more pressure on taxpayers and public employees as smaller investment projections create seemingly unwieldy financial consequences. The Sacramento Bee has created a chart to showcase the discrepancies between predicted investment outcomes and actual results since 2004, which can be viewed here.

On the topic of state reform of pensions, a new study reports that 17 states have made such reforms, but California is not one of them. A ballot initiative that would have implemented several reforms failed to secure the necessary funding and was therefore suspended. Consequently, a new direction for reform being considered is opting to adopt more of a private sector plan that would incorporate a 401(k)-style individual investment plan, which a PPI poll found that 67 percent of Californians would support.

On the city level, Cal Pensions reports that cities like San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco are pushing for reforms on their own in light of mounting deficits. Specific to San Francisco, voters will face a ballot measure in June that city officials say would reduce pension costs by $400 million over the next 25 years. The City Council, with the support of Mayor Gavin Newsom, approved the measure, which will force new employees to raise their pension contributions, the city will have to set more funds aside, and the Chronicle reports, “pensions - for future employees, not those already on the payroll - would be based on the average from the last two years of employment.”

Finally, in San Clemente, local residents are pressuring the City Council to cut back pensions as well as raising the retirement age due to concerns about the city’s budget deficits. You can read more here.

City Departments Unite and Share Resources to accomplish Safety Training

Several City departments shared resources this week to provide joint safety training to City personnel. This week the training focused on fire extinguishers with instruction and hands-on training on proper techniques to extinguish a live fire. The event was aimed at fire safety and was hosted by the Wastewater Treatment Facility with instruction provided by the Manteca Fire Department. Several departments from within the City joined in the training including personnel from the Public Works Department (Wastewater Plant and Engineering), Fire Department, Police Department, and Parks & Recreation. By sharing resources between the various departments for events such as this, we are able to provide quality training to our personnel with limited cost to the City.

LAO finally looks at Caltrans

Caltrans is probably the single largest impediment to economic development in the state of California. While the state has plenty of bureaucracies that get in our way--such as the Office of the State Architect that doubles the cost of every school built in the state--no bureaucracy slows progress down more than Caltrans.

While there are plenty of hard working dedicated employees at Caltrans, the department has a culture that chokes the ability of local agencies to produce timely and cost effective projects. It is hard to get a process streamlined at Caltrans since streamlining would likely mean someone will lose their job. Whether a project is a billion dollar interchange or a 10,000 dollar property lease, Caltrans forces you through the same laborious process. Getting a road repaved can take years of review before it is blessed by Caltrans.

In these tough economic times, they are attempting to keep as much work at the staff level, instead of farming it our to more efficient and more cost effective private companies. The employee union for Caltrans has attempted to get laws changed to force even more work to come to state workers instead of private companies. They've also put plenty of consultants on the payroll at excessive costs instead of farming out the work.

The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst Office (LAO) has finally called out Caltrans and conservatively estimated that Caltrans could easily cut 1,500 positions without any loss in productivity. In today's SacBee (click here), they note the following:

LAO said Caltrans' Capital Outlay Support (COS) program spends more money than other states and local transportation agencies for comparable work. The division is responsible for environmental review, design and construction oversight of highway projects, among other duties.

"We reviewed Caltrans' COS budget for recent years and found that the program's budget lacks sufficient workload justification," the LAO report states. "In order to gauge the reasonableness of the department's COS requests for staffing and funding, we evaluated the program using several different methods. The cumulative evidence from our review shows that the program is overstaffed and lacks strong management."

Early in the Governor's tenure he claimed he would address these sorts of deficiencies in state government. Unfortunately, he decided to attack employee pensions instead and he's been in a political hole ever since.

Let's hope that the next administration dusts off some of the old efficiency studies and finally cuts state government the right way--by eliminating all the duplicate and unnecessary services. The LAO and others have all the answers, but the governor and legislature has been afraid to take on the state workers.

Another Bee article (click here) noted that the public isn't interested in any more gimmicks:

Half of California voters believe the state should close its $19.9 billion deficit mostly or entirely through spending cuts rather than tax increases, according to a Field Poll released Tuesday.

That compares with 29 percent who said the state should use an equal mix of spending cuts and tax increases, or 13 percent who prefer balancing the budget solely or mostly with tax hikes.

Field Poll Director Mark DiCamillo said that with the economy still in recovery and the state having passed tax hikes last year, "tax increases are just not that popular a notion right now."

"You're asking people to dig into their own pockets, and most voters think there's a lot of waste and abuse in state government," he said.

Let's hope our decision makers listen this time--they really don't have any choice.

Happy Birthday Daniel!

Other than my first post and Christmas Day, I've stuck to business on the blog. I couldn't help myself today. My youngest turned one at 5:38pm today--so I couldn't help but post this at exactly 5:38pm.

Daniel James has been an integral part of this blog. It started right after his birth, and he has been in my lap for many of the posts that have occurred between midnight and 6am! In fact, his need to pound on the keyboard has often resulted in finding articles to read that I never would have seen otherwise.

Hopefully, as he gets a bit older he'll discover the joys of sleeping through the night--but in the meantime I look forward to having my co-editor join me whenever he wishes.

City Council Headliners

Here are some of the items Council will consider on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m.:

Consent Calendar items of interest include:
--Acceptance of the "One-Stop" Permit Center Project as complete and authorization to file a notice of completion for the project.
--Acceptance of the City's Comprehensive annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2009.

Other items of interest:
--A public hearing will be held to consider approving the allocations of the 2010-11 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Funds in the amount of $360,432; the allocation of the 2010-11 Home Investment Partnership Act (HOME) funds in the amount of $167,205; and, the reallocation of $145,392.18 in CDBG funds from previous years as outlined in the staff report.
--Approve a budget appropriation and and agreement with Urban Futures, Inc., for preparation of the necessary reports and findings to amend existing Redevelopment Project Areas and create a new Redevelopment Project for $205,000.

A copy of the full agenda packet is available at the following the link on the City's website: http://www.ci.manteca.ca.us/CityClerk/agendas

A new feature has been added to our website. Once there (www.ci.manteca.ca.us), go to Mayor and Council or City Clerk and click on the Council Meeting Video tab. Select the meeting you would like to view and click. From that location you may also view the staff report associated to each item on the agenda. If you are interested in a particular item, click on that item on the agenda and the video will que to that item.