BAFPC is meeting every Tuesday –

The newly appointed members of the Budget Advisory Financial Planning Committee (BAFPC), Mary Geong, Steven Hollis, Chair Bill Hosler, Tom Lehrkind, and Tim Rood, gathered on April 24 to discuss benefits, the Sewer Fund and other financial planning matters.  Highlights of the meeting can be viewed below.  It included discussion of:

• Possible New Sewer Plan:  Phase “5A”
• Medical Retiree Benefit Costs – New Concerns
  
• Benefit Cost Reduction Implementation > Click to read more…

In a turn around on the proposed development of a sports field in Blair Park the Piedmont Recreation Facilities  Organization (PRFO) and the Piedmont City Administrator, on April 27, 2012, jointly released the following press release:

City Administrator and PRFO Recommend Blair Park Element of Moraga Canyon Sports Fields Project Be Withdrawn > Click to read more…

What is fact?   What is fiction?  –  

Without a commonly shared base of information on Piedmont’s sewer requirements, community discussion becomes difficult and informed decisions cannot be made by voters or Council members.  In the interest of creating a shared factual basis within the community on sewer issues, excerpts from the Piedmont Post article of February 15, 2012 are followed by facts.

_________

1. Intended Purpose of the Sewer Surcharge?
2. The EPA Mandate
3. The Vactor Truck Required – Yes or No?
4. Enough Money to do Mains Replacement:  Now or Future
5. Sewer Work Halted?
6. Budget Authority:  First Yes, Then No
7. Sewer Mains Remaining:  33% or 40%?
8. Possible EPA Waivers?
9. MTRC Sewer Recommendation – Why Not Unanimous?
10. Use of Sewer Fund Revenues
11. The History of Sewer Replacement
12. A Choice of Future Time Frames

> Click to read more…

On Wednesday, April 25,  a fundraiser at the Piedmont Community Hall was held by Friends of Moraga Canyon (FOMC), a non-profit organization working toward the preservation of Blair Park.  At the event guests were given an answer to the party’s theme, “What’s Up With Blair Park?”. > Click to read more…

On Tuesday, April 24, 2012 the City of Piedmont Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee (BAFPC) will be discussing salaries and benefits, the sewer fund, various capital funds, and transfers in and out of the general fund.  Meetings are currently being held every Tuesday night.

BAFPC meetings are not video-taped for online viewing.  They will not be presented on KCOM.  No meeting minutes are provided.  In order to be privy to these public committee hearings, residents must attend the actual meetings.  Tonight’s BAFPC meeting will be held in the City Conference Room at 6 p.m. at 120 Vista Avenue, Piedmont.

Residents interested in providing input on budget issues are advised by city staff to attend the BAFPC meetings and Piedmont Budget Workshop, rather than waiting until the budget is formally presented to the City Council in June.  The BAFPC plans to meet every Tuesday night until Saturday, May 19th, when the city’s Budget Workshop is held. > Click to read more…

Does State Tax Change Mean Refunds for Piedmonters?

On Friday, April 13, 2012,  the State Franchise Tax Board retracted its position that advised California taxpayers to limit their property tax deductions to “ad-valorem” property taxes, with only limited exceptions.  For Piedmonters who followed this State guidance, this meant not deducting school parcel taxes, which average over $3,000 per parcel in Piedmont. 

Taxpayers who did not deduct school or other parcel taxes on their 2011 California state income tax forms are now being advised by tax professionals to consider amending their returns to claim the deduction. > Click to read more…

The following open letter to the community was sent to the Piedmont Civic Association and the City Council on March 16, 2011 –

Dear Mayor, Vice Mayor and Council Members:

Re: Draft Sewer Asset Management Implementation Plan (AMIP) on City Council’s April 16, 2012 Meeting Agenda

This letter contains my detailed written comments on the City Council Agenda Report and attached AMIP for the Council’s Monday, April 16, 2012 meeting. (City Council Agenda Report from Chester Nakahara, Public Works Director, “Subject: Review an advanced copy of City’s Sewer Asset Management Implementation Plan prepared in response to the EPA [sic] Stipulated Order Compliance Requirement, Section XI, Subsection 73”. (The subject Stipulated Order is not, as incorrectly stated in the agenda report, an “EPA Stipulated Order”, but it is, instead, a Stipulated Order for Preliminary Relief > Click to read more…

Knowing the Future Impact of Decisions is Key –

The article “How Stockton, California Went Broke in Plain Sight”  by Steven Malanga in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ 3/30/12) discusses some of the reasons why Stockton, California now faces bankruptcy.  City leaders explained they weren’t looking at future costs when making decisions.

“In last year’s budget, Stockton admitted that its biggest problem has been a lack of transparency resulting in a host of “hidden costs’ in labor agreements for ‘obligations that are often difficult for citizens to identify or understand.’ “ (WSJ 3/30/12)

In the article, Stockton city leaders pointed to specific issues that led to their financial crisis. How do Piedmont’s “hidden costs” compare? > Click to read more…

Piedmont CONNECT and Piedmont Middle School’s Green Team are co-sponsoring a free “Fix It” workshop on Saturday, April 28 from 11am to 3pm in the Buzz Redford Gymnasium and outdoors at Piedmont Middle School (PMS).

Expert volunteers will show you how to sharpen your gardening tools, maintain your bike, and fix almost any household appliance or other item. This community event features experienced volunteers who will show you how.  Bring your dull or broken items, and the volunteers will have the specialty tools and know-how to help you repair them yourself. Purchase creative reuse desk-planters and vegetable starts grown by the students of the PMS Green Team.   Also, learn how to make your own non-toxic cleaners and how to maintain your garden like an expert. > Click to read more…

School Parcel Tax Deductions May Be OK-

In a sudden about-face, on Friday, April 13, the California State Franchise Tax Board removed its website page advising California taxpayers they must limit their property tax deductions. > Click to read more…