Sacramento – Two bipartisan governmental reform measures authored by 3rd District Assemblymember and Amador County representative Alyson Huber were signed last week by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

AB 1659 and AB 2130 will “create a process to conduct comprehensive and regular reviews of the state’s many boards, commissions, agencies and departments,” said Jennifer Wonnacott, Huber’s spokeswoman, in a release. If entities cannot demonstrate they are being effective and efficient, they will be automatically eliminated.

The governor’s signature completes the final step in the legislative process. The bill previously passed the legislature with strong bipartisan support.

“The Legislature creates new boards and commissions to solve a problem. Far too often, there is no on-going oversight of the newly created bureaucracy to ensure it actually solved the problem it was created to solve. The lack of accountability has been studied and known for years yet no action had been taken, until now,” said Assemblymember Alyson Huber.

She said the review process, known as the sunset review process, “finally gives us the tools we need to really cut down on waste.”

Both bills were co-authored with bipartisan support from Senator Mark DeSaulnier (D-Concord) and Assemblymember Roger Niello (R-Fair Oaks). The bills will make California the latest state to implement a sunset review process.

Texas’ Sunset Advisory Commission created in 1978 saves $27 for each dollar spent on the Commission. Furthermore, total savings achieved by the Commission equals roughly 5 percent of the state's budget – in California 5 percent is $4 billion.

The Little Hoover Commission issued a report in 1989 which found that, “California's multi-level, complex governmental structure today includes more than 400 boards, commissions, authorities, associations, councils and committees. These plural bodies operate to a large degree autonomously and outside of the normal checks and balances of representative government.” The Commission concluded that “the state's boards, commissions and similar bodies are proliferating without adequate evaluation of need, effectiveness and efficiency.”

Huber said, “These bills show that when Democrats and Republicans works together we can take steps in the right direction to achieving the change our state desperately needs.”

In related news, Huber will visit Amador County on Tuesday (October 5th). She will be interviewed here on TSPN for the noon news. She will also be touring the Amador County Interfaith Food Bank at 8:30am and in the evening will be participating in the Amador Child Care Council's Candidate Forum at 6:30pm.

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Amador County – Ione City Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing Tuesday on a Public Facilities Fee Update that would lower development impact fees on single-family homes, and create a new way to figure commercial fees.

The update prepared by Pacific Municipal Consultants, using the 2009 updated city General Plan, looks at fees needed for city services, based on growth forecasted out roughly 20 years.

City Manager Kim Kerr in a report last week said “overall, the recommended infrastructure needs of the eight fee categories equal nearly $228 million, of which $115.6 million (51 percent) is allocated to new development.”

The city is responsible for $112.6 million, with the funds coming “from a combination of regional impact fees, grants, special funds, and the general fund,” Kerr said.

The Public Facilities Fee update listed $33.7 million for sewer costs, with $25.3 million to be paid by development fees and $8.3 million coming from the other funding.

The 30-year project list includes $147 million in total roadway costs, with development fees paying $49.5 millions, and the other $98 million coming from other funding.

Development would pay 100 percent of fire service total costs of $2.7 million, and 86 percent of police service costs, of a total $4.7 million. Parks and recreation total costs were listed at $25 million, with $23 million paid by development impact fees.

Bikeways and trails had a total cost of $10 million, with $7 million paid by developers.

The update’s 20-year growth forecast to 2030, includes a population increase from 3,567 current residents, to 18,182 people. Housing units overall are forecast to rise from 1,500 now to 7,400.

Non-residential square footage was forecast in the document to rise from 110,000 square feet now, to 8.7 million square feet, including 2.3 million square feet of office space, and 4.2 million square feet of industrial space.

Jobs, estimated by city staff to be 2,250 at forecast to grow to 18,800 jobs by the year 2030.

A single-family residential unit fee in the update is $14,256, down from the current fee of $17,619 per single family home. Story by Jim Reece

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Amador County – Amador County Public Health last week announced its 2010 Flu Clinic Schedule, which begins with a clinic Wednesday, October 6th.

Public Health has planned a series of six flu shot clinics, with the first scheduled for 2-4 p.m. Wednesday, October 6th, at the public health building.

Vaccines available will be given at a cost of $10 each.

The vaccines available include the FluMist nasal vaccine, intended for healthy people ages 2 through 49 years old. Also available is the flu vaccine for individuals over 6 months of age who are not eligible for a nasal vaccine.

The clinic will also offer the “Tdap” vaccine booster for tetanus and pertussis, commonly called Whooping Cough. The Tdap is for people 11 years old and older.

Pneumonia vaccine shots are available for people 50 years old and older with chronic lung disease.

Costs for each vaccine are $10, and the clinic can bill Medicare for flu and pneumonia. Patients should bring their Medicare cards.

Other clinics are scheduled for October 14th, 18th and 27th, and November 8th and 30th. Times of clinics vary, but all will be held at the Amador County Health & Human Services Building, at 10877 Conductor Boulevard in Sutter Creek.

For more information call Amador County Public Health at 223-6407.

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Amador County – Columbia College in Sonora was awarded a $1.1 million federal grant that will be used to expand services to disadvantaged students, the college announced in September.

Coni M. Chavez, executive assistant to the president said Columbia College “has been awarded a $1.1 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education.”

The “Student Support Services” grant will give funding for “increased counseling, advising, and transfer services to students,” Chavez said. The program will also feature group workshops, special activities and events such as field trips to four-year universities. She said the program will “grant aid directly to qualified students.”

The college will hire a full-time faculty counselor/project director and full-time program coordinator to implement the activities.

The Student Support Services grant will be overseen by Dean of Student Services Melissa Raby.

Raby said the “additional funding could not have come at a better time.” She said Columbia College “students really need this extra support, and while our enrollment has been consistently growing over the past few years, our budget has been cut tremendously by the state.”

Chavez said “counselor-student ratios at the college are well beyond generally accepted levels for community colleges,” normally 400 to one. She said Columbia has “only one counselor for every 1,379 students.”

The program will specifically target students that are low-income, disabled, or first-generation college students – each of whom typically experience far lower retention, graduation, transfer, and good academic standing rates other than comparative groups, Chavez said.

In fall of 2008, 1,722 Columbia College students identified themselves as first generation according to a USDE definition, in which neither parent has a bachelor’s degree. The figure represented 73.1 percent of students who provided data regarding their parents’ educational status. Another 43 percent reported meeting low-income criteria, while 14.5 percent reported a disability of some kind.

Director of Development Beccie Michael coordinated the Columbia College grant proposal, which she said “scored 297 points out of 300 possible.”

Michael was hired through another five-year grant to help expand resources available to the college.

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Amador County - The El Dorado County Resource Advisory Committee is accepting proposals for projects that benefit National Forest lands in El Dorado County.

The committee currently has $500,000 available to recommend projects to the Eldorado National Forest and the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit Forest Supervisors for implementation on their respective units. Additional funds will be available after January.

RAC funds were made available under Title II of the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act of 2008 which spells out how the funds can be spent. The Act says funds may be used for the purpose of making additional investments in, and creating additional employment opportunities through, projects that improve the maintenance of existing infrastructure, implement stewardship objectives that enhance forest ecosystems, and restore and improve land health and water quality.

The purpose of the El Dorado County Resource Advisory Committee is to recommend funding of eligible projects to the Forest Supervisors of Eldorado National Forest and the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. The next scheduled RAC meeting is October 18 at the El Dorado Center, Folsom Lake College, in the Community Room, beginning at 6 pm. Project proposal presentations to the RAC will begin on January 24, 2011 at the same location and time.

The deadline for applications is December 1, 2010. Applications, instructions, project evaluation considerations and other information are found on the Eldorado National Forest website: www.fs.fed.us/r5/eldorado.

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