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The majority of the Pleasanton City Council started to face up to reality at its last meeting while the public relations/polling firm simultaneously was working to convince citizens that they need to support an additional tax.
Just how Pleasanton went from generating substantial year-to-year surplus revenue for capital projects to running off the financial cliff in a few years bears examination. That’s for another blog.
This one will focus on the survey designed to show residents that services they value are potentially on the cutting block. In this fiscal year, the city settled protracted contract negotiations with its police officers after the officers union mustered public support for their position. Just how the city fell behind the comparative city average pay again is a question worth asking.
It’s notable how what was once a shopping gem in the East Bay, Stoneridge mall, has been decimated. If its owners hadn’t stepped in to save JCPenney corporately, it would have been reduced to just Macys as the solo anchor tenant. Sears closed a few years ago and Nordstrom closed during the pandemic and opted not to re-open. Simon Co., the owner, has a plan to replace the parking structure and Sears with an outdoor shopping/entertainment venue (think City Center San Ramon), but has not broken ground.
And the first residential use in the sprawling park lot is getting close to breaking ground—it was approved years ago in the prior residential zoning cycle.
There’s no question that part of the issue for Pleasanton and other agencies—the pensions—stem from a bad state decision to allow the California Highway Patrol to retire with an increased 3% pension after 20 years (instead of 2%) because of a roaring stock market. Other law enforcement negotiated the same deal and pension costs soared. In times of high revenues, Pleasanton was paying both sides of the pension contribution—a practice that ended a few years ago when payments climbed.
The polling/lobbying firm has a $200,000 contract to survey residents to determine what, if any, additional tax would fly. The survey sent to households was a shopping list of desirable and necessary services that residents were asked to rank.
As Councilman and mayoral candidate Jack Balch pointed out, there was no discussion of alternatives to raising local revenue. What can be postponed, cut or is not necessary—think repairs to the Century House that has been closed for 8 years or expanding the skatepark. Dealing with the forever chemicals in the ground water requires action.
The city staff presented what the Weekly reporter described as a “grim” report that laid out options for the council to consider. One of their pie-in-the-sky options was to propose to the school district to split the $1.8 million cost of school resource officers and crossing guards. Good luck.
The district’s financial situation, particularly after settling for a 10% raise with the teacher’s union, is far more challenging than the city’s. Prior to that agreement, the district was looking at $10 million in cuts based upon a 6% raise so the slashes are going to increase.The school district is dependent upon the state for its revenue and its cost-of-living adjustment is pegged at just 0.76% that won’t even cover PG&E’s soaring costs.
City staff, in its presentation, shared they were looking at ways to tighten the belts—something that Balch has been pushing for the last two years. His business perspective is valuable to a council whose other members lack it.
Government agencies from the state through the locals have been awash in money because of the pandemic spending that started under President Trump and then soared with President Biden is coming to an end.
The time of reckoning is at hand.
The exceedingly costly survey mailed to all residents was merely a public relations piece as far as I am concerned. The City’s cost of consultants is unbelievable. The City doesn’t have a revenue problem, they have a spending problem. There has been no mention of administrative reductions. The City Manager just received a generous wage increase and the City has continued hiring. When can we expect layoffs?
The city government is currently dealing with the same problem as the state. One-party rule and “progressive” politics.
What people earn/invest/save “belongs” to the community at large, the government is always the “solution” to every problem, and there is an endless supply of items to spend money on – and to tax. There will be no financial stability/fiscal discipline until the majority of the city council is voted out of office.
Since 1960 the United States has raised the national debt seventy-eight times. In the last two-plus years our national debt has increased by $8 trillion. Our national debt will not be sustainable in twenty years, sooner if we do not change course. After that, no amount of tax hikes or spending cuts will prevent default.
The cost of servicing the national debt has risen to match our national defense budget. Historically servicing our national debt was equal to half our defense budget. Finding a solution to manage the national debt becomes critical to ensure economic stability and avoid a crisis. Decisive action is needed to avoid this crisis.
That decisive action begins here in Pleasanton with our city council.
That can start with a hiring freeze, (the exception is the police department), cutting back on services, turning down the temperature in city buildings in winter, and turning up the temperature in summer, reduction in city staff, and much more. Raising taxes is taxing the same dollars that have already been taxed, is not the right course of action.