Amador County - Teams and committees are now forming for the 6th Annual Amador County Camp Out For Cancer, to take place on September 12 and 13 at Argonaut High School Stadium. “You don't have to camp out to participate, you can form a team, or join a team and then enjoy the talents of many local musicians who donate their time to entertain the volunteers who participate!” said Ginger Rolf, Board Director of the Amador STARS program. Teams take turns manning their campsite and walking the track all to support those whose lives have been touched by cancer. There are two ceremonies, the Survivor Celebration and the Illumination Ceremony which honor all those who have taken the cancer journey. Proceeds from this event go to the Amador STARS, a local non profit organization that offers Support, Transportation and Resource Services to local cancer patients and their families. Funds raised stay in our local community except for a small percentage that is dedicated to cancer research. Call the STARS at 223-1246 to get more information. The Amador STARS new office is located in the new Safeway shopping center, two doors east of Safeway. Staff Report This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – Supervisor John Plasse hosted a press conference Tuesday morning to announce a new Prescription Discount Card Program through the county’s private partner, Coast2Coast Rx. Plasse spearheaded the cooperative effort to bring the program to Amador County and called it “a terrific win-win situation for our citizens.” Also on hand to answer questions were County Administrative Officer Terri Daly and Martin Dettelbach, Chief Marketing Officer for Financial Marketing Concepts, Inc., the administers of the program. The program helps consumers save up to 38 percent annually on prescription medications not covered through insurance, according to Dettelbach. This includes over 60,000 brand name and generic drugs, even medication for pets. It will also cover “lifestyle” drugs or drugs not covered under typical insurance plans. Dettelbach explained that Financial Marketing Concepts works with buying groups to provide lower costs for consumers. Plasse said the program will be an “exemplary benefit” for our county because of the high percentage of seniors and individuals on Medicare. The program is already underway in states nationwide and in several California counties, the largest being Ventura, where 6,000 to 7,000 people benefit annually. Dettelbach expects at least 150 counties across the country to come on board by the end of the year. Many county pharmacies, including Wal-Mart, Raley’s, Safeway, Long’s and Pine Cone Drug have already agreed to provide discounts through the program. The card is accepted at nearly 58,000 pharmacies nationwide. “Pharmacies don’t make a lot of money, so part of this effort is to drive people in,” said Dettelbach. Plasse said he originally heard about the program while attending the California State Association of Counties Supervisors Institute last December in San Diego. When compared to NACO, the other leading Prescription Discount Card Program, Plasse found Coast2Coast Rx offered greater benefits and steeper discounts- not to mention a 50 cent royalty per filled prescription. Royalties come out of the dispensing fees that pharmacies usually charge. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved of the program last week and decided all royalties should go to benefit Common Ground Senior Services. Common Ground Director Elizabeth Thompson was on hand to thank the Supervisors, and said the funding is essential to the financial security of Common Ground and the 135 seniors they serve daily through their Meals-On-Wheels program. She announced the recent acquisition of a new meal truck, for which the cost will be partially supplemented by any benefits through Coast2Coast Rx royalties. Daly lauded Plasse’s efforts, saying “it was really John who did it all and brought it all here to us.” Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – During Tuesday’s meeting, the Jackson City Council discussed its preliminary budget review and a proposed resolution finding a severe fiscal hardship if additional city property tax funds are seized by the state. In a memo to the council, City Manager Mike Daly wrote, “most indicators point to continued economic struggles and an unlikely increase in total general Fund revenues anytime soon.” He attached a resolution declaring “severe fiscal hardship” and wrote its purpose was to “send a message to the Governor and legislators to keep their hands out of local governments’ pockets and to create a responsible state budget that does not harm local taxpayers receiving local government services.” City of Jackson finances are segregated by three primary fund categories: General Fund, Enterprise Fund, and Special Revenue Funds. According to Daly, the focus of the Fiscal Year 2009-2010 budget process is the wide-reaching General Fund, the primary source of funding for Police and Fire services, as well as streets, parks and facilities maintenance. Much of the General Fund includes Jackson’s most vulnerable source of revenue: sales taxes. “Over the past two years, the City’s sales tax revenues have dropped from a high of $1,344,108 to this year’s estimate of $590,000,” wrote Daly. Considering declining sales tax revenues, he said a “conservative projection of $550,000 (for the General Fund reserve balance) is projected for Fiscal Year 2009-2010.” This reduction has the greatest impact on salaries and benefits, which represents approximately 73 percent of General Fund expenditures. “Clearly, this is all going to have a direct impact on the services we’re providing,” said Daly. The city has reduced spending in most areas and is taking other steps to retain levels of service, such as applying for a Federal COPS grant that would fund approximately of the salary and benefits for one police officer position. Faced with a State Department of Finance recommendation to borrow property tax from local governments in order to “help bail itself out of trouble,” Daly recommended Jackson support a movement by the League of California Cities to reject this proposal. Daly wrote that “continuing the cycle of borrowing to patch holes in a current year budget is not an acceptable budget solution and only delays the inevitable.” Councilman Keith Sweet noted that since June of 2008, Jackson has spent $2 million more than it’s taken in. “We’ve been borrowing from our reserves, and we’re going to have to make some tough decisions before going any further,” he said. The council unanimously approved the resolution. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Sutter Creek Planning Commission finished weeding through its errata sheet for the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort Tuesday, finding a few items that needed work. Among those was whether houses should broach the crest of hills or whether the hilltops should be preserved. Commissioner Robert Olson said he would like to bring up the point that the specific plan for Gold Rush allows a house top to surpass the “crest of a visible ridge” by 15 feet. He said “you won’t see structures poking above the ridges in really nice subdivisions.” Olson said: “I don’t see why we are going above the ridge tops.” Commission Chairman Robin Peters said they settled on the 15-foot limit in a previous study of the city General Plan. Olson said it was a major issue for him, because after a home is built, above a crest of a hill, it would be up to the owner to provide tree cover to hide the home. He said that would make it more unlikely to happen. Peters didn’t “want to revisit the General Plan compliance conversation,” and he said “it might be good for commissioners to keep a list of issues to revisit.” Olson said they would “call it an unresolved issue.” Consultant Anders Hague said a group of maps that the commission received was prepared by Gold Rush’s Greg Bardini, in response to directions the commission had already given staff and the applicant. Peters said the maps would be available for public review at City Hall. Among other items, Peters recommended raising the standard height of sound barrier fences to 5 feet. Peters did “some research and found 5 feet was a common height.” He also suggested a rewording that made it clear that a need for sound barriers higher than 5 feet tall could be done, and “shall be accomplished with a berm and a wall or fence.” Also, it could be done with a staggered series of walls or fences, built in a terraced manner. He suggested walls for sound control over 5 feet tall be required to have terraces, like the retaining walls on the Sutter Hill bus center. Hague said they would get with Assistant City Manager Sean Rabe to use the same language used in the buss center specific plan. The commission next meets on Gold Rush June 17th. Hague said “the next time we get together, you are going to see a complete specific plan,” with changes recommended changes suggested by the commission. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Amador Water Agency board of directors today were expected to discuss a draft comment letter on the California Water Plan. AWA General Manager Jim Abercrombie prepared the letter, which is due to the state by June 5th. The California Department of Water Resources updates the Water Plan every 5 years, and the last update included a section dedicated to the “Mountain Counties Region.” The state has prepared a draft plan and is soliciting comments for inclusion in the plan. Abercrombie reviewed it and said he prepared the draft comments, focusing on the Mountain Counties section. The draft, addressed to Paul Dabbs, of the Strategic Water Planning division, commented on 6 areas in the Mountain Counties chapter. Regarding water supplies, the letter told of AWA’s 2006 completion of the $22 million dollar, 9-mile long Amador Transmission Pipeline, which replaced the Amador Canal. Abercrombie in the letter said: “The old canal lost 40 to 50 percent of the water along the 23-mile canal through leakage and seepage,” and it “faced serious water quality degradation along its route and was susceptible to outages and landslides.” He said the new pipeline “has been operational for 2 years and the project objectives of increased water delivery efficiency, and conservation, water quality preservation, improved reliability have been met and exceeded.” Abercrombie said the agency “will eventually abandon the canal.” The transmission pipeline was also mentioned as a “recent accomplishment.” Elsewhere, regarding a water rights, Abercrombie asked the state to “strengthen (the) area of origin discussion and protection.” On “storage,” Abercrombie said AWA is studying the expansions of Lower Bear River Reservoir with regional partners: Calaveras County Water Agency, the East Bay Municipal Utility District, and San Joaquin County “to provide an additional 26,000 acre feet for water supply.” He listed those partners in another development, the “lnterregional Conjunctive Use Project,” looking at reservoir storage at Lower Bear, Pardee or Duck Creek (or all 3), using San Joaquin’s ground water basin for storage, and addressing “critical overdraft needs of the valley.” Abercrombie said the agency is also “developing a Regional Recycling Master Plan” between AWA, Jackson, Sutter Creek, lone, Plymouth, and Amador County with a goal to reuse 20 percent of the water supply by 2020. The agency is also developing conservation and additional surface water supplies. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Amador County 2008-09 Grand Jury released a damning report Tuesday outlining the results of an investigation into alleged misconduct by Jackson Valley Fire Chief Thom Reed. The investigation came after a number of witnesses and JVFPD volunteers reported Reed responded to calls and endangered others by performing his duties under the influence of alcohol. Through the process of the investigation, 25 individuals from local emergency response districts were subpoenaed, sworn in and interviewed over the course of four days. The report find that “78 percent of witnesses were aware of the JVFPD Chief being under the influence of alcohol while attempting to perform his duties” and the knowledge of his intoxication “was widespread.” Witnesses testified to being threatened by Reed after confronting him about consuming alcohol on the job. Among the myriad of other violations, the Grand Jury found there had been no Operations and Procedure Policy in place for the JVFPD since at least 1992; the JVFPD “took no action after receiving a complaint concerning the consumption of alcohol by the individual in question while on calls”; “neighboring emergency service departments took no action after receiving complaints concerning the consumption of alcohol”; and the Jackson Valley Board of Directors “is in violation of the Brown Act.” Testimony revealed that on at least one occasion, witnesses requested Reed “stop providing medical aid to an accident victim” because of his level of intoxication. Perhaps the most pejorative conclusion of the Grand Jury was that Reed, as well as the Chief and Captain of the Ione Fire Department, Operations Manager of American Legion Ambulance Service, Assistant Fire Chief of the Jackson Valley Fire Protection District and the Chairperson for the Jackson Valley Board of Directors gave “false, misleading, or inconsistent testimony.” The report finds that the “Fire Chief for the City of Ione, the Chairperson for the JVBD, a Battalion Chief for Cal Fire, and a Supervisor for the American Legion Ambulance had the knowledge, and the power, to correct this issue and preserve the public safety. It was determined that they turned their back on their responsibility to the safety of the public.” It goes on to say “the individuals without the immediate power to correct the problem were the ones who eventually brought the problem to the attention of the Amador County Grand Jury.” The Grand Jury found Reed in contempt of court by openly and defiantly” discussing “his testimony (before the Grand Jury)”and trying “to ascertain the testimony of others,” as well as requesting “that the Ione Fire Department discontinue mutual aid within the JVFPD” subsequent to the Grand Jury hearing. The report recommends that Reed and the Chairman of the Jackson Valley Board of Directors be removed from office. The Jackson Valley Fire Protection District is a special district staffed by volunteers, and governed by the Jackson Valley Board of Directors. The JVFPD responds to calls involving fires, medical emergencies, and traffic collisions. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – Amador County philanthropist and pioneering tribal leader, Margaret L. (Hughes) Dalton passed away Sunday night, leaving a world-class legacy to her family, tribe and community. Dalton, 68, was Chairwoman for 30 years of the Jackson Rancheria Band of Miwuk Indians. She spearheaded the formalization of its government, and was elected and served as its first and only chair, starting in 1979. Her legacy includes giving millions of dollars back to the community, after fulfilling a dream she and her late husband, Earl Dalton Senior, both held of making the tribe self-sufficient. Earl predeceased Margaret in 1980, a year after Margaret formalized the tribal government, to strengthen its stance among state and federal regulations. She built self-sufficiency in the tribe through the Jackson Bingo Hall, founded in 1991, which became the Jackson Rancheria Casino, Hotel & Conference Center. The Jackson Rancheria is Amador County’s largest employer, with as many as 2,000 people in its endeavors. Margaret Dalton and the Rancheria built a 2-mile road, Dalton Way, dedicated in October 2006. Under Margaret Dalton’s leadership, the Jackson Rancheria has given voluntary semi-annual payments of nearly $1 Million Dollars to the county, Sutter Creek and Jackson, through the Amador County Local Indian Gaming Benefit Committee. Dalton, a 53-year resident of Amador, since marrying Earl Senior in 1956, has sponsored numerous causes in the county. The Rancheria was the main sponsor of the California High School Challenge of Champions Rodeo and an Amador County Fair staple. It also has a health and dental complex, and built the Pine Acres apartments on Sutter Hill for its employees. The Amador County Chamber of Commerce named its “Margaret Dalton Humanitarian Award” after her, Chamber Director Jacqui Lucido said, “because (Margaret Dalton) typifies the type of person we want to honor, an unsung hero who works unselfishly for others.” A local business owner said Margaret Dalton had “always been very supportive of the county,” a generosity she “passed on to her sons,” Earl Junior, Dennis, Robert and Adam. Margaret Dalton’s support included charities, protecting the environment, and direct grants, with an emphasis on local community groups, schools, organizations, and projects that benefit children and seniors. Margaret Dalton’s endeavors included the Jackson Rancheria Youth Fund, annual employee/vendor golf tournaments for charity, and donations to charities based on amount of play by casino guests. The Rancheria’s businesses built by Margaret Dalton annually pay more than $50 million dollars in employment-related taxes and annually purchase more than $50 million dollars worth of goods and services. Story by Jim Reece

Amador County - Amador County Sheriff Martin Ryan joined a panel of law enforcement officers who testified in Sacramento last week in support of legislation to crack down on methamphetamine dealers. Assembly Bill 640, written by 10th District Assemblywoman and Amador County representative Alyson Huber, passed its first major hurdle when it was subsequently approved by the Assembly Public Safety Committee after the hearing last Thursday. “There is no mandatory jail time for sellers of methamphetamines under current law,” said Huber. Huber says meth is the largest drug problem in California and putting meth dealers behind bars is a top priority. Under current law, there are mandatory minimum sentences for the sellers of cocaine, heroine and PCP but not methamphetamine. “We’ve got 60,007 treatment admissions in California and less than 700 in the state of New York. That tells you that we’re not doing enough in California to fight this methamphetamine use,” said Huber. More than 40 percent of methamphetamine abusers nationwide come from California. Ryan said that “in 2008, out of 118 investigations conducted by our Narcotics Task Force, 46 of those involved methamphetamine- 39 percent. By contrast we had 8 heroin cases, 1 cocaine case.” Assembly Bill 640 would increase current sentences by imposing a minimum jail time of 120 days as a condition of probation. The Assembly Bill was approved by the committee and goes on to seek final approval through the Legislature. (end) am Story by Alex Lane

Amador County – The Ione City Council last week approved a “Circulation Element” for traffic that would allow the worst “Level of Service” on a few streets, in order to preserve the look and character of downtown. The council held a joint session with its Planning Commission and approved a “Level of Service” of Grade Level “F” for Preston Avenue as well as Main, Church and Ione Streets in downtown. Planning consultant Daniel Hamilton said those areas do not have enough room to expand because of the buildings’ close proximity to the streets. And to protect the character of downtown, the city must accept in trade the lowest level of traffic service there. Part of the Ione draft General Plan Update, the Circulation Element also included Level of Service “C” for off-street trails for pedestrians and bicycles. All parkways, including Golf Links Drive, would be tabbed with a Level of Service “D,” while sidewalk and pedestrian access on intersections would be required to meet a Level of Service grade of “B.” The council and commission opened a public hearing to take comment on the circulation and land use elements, and several people urged against making some land designations. Lynn Winter spoke against the Silva Property designation as a “Future Growth Area,” saying 5 Mile Drive was “affirmed” by the Local Agency Formation Commission as a boundary between developed areas and agricultural land. Winter said “why not wait for 20 years?” City Planner Christopher Jordan said the “Future Growth Area” was a designation that would be used in future planning, and would guide the next General Plan update. Mel Welsh of the Amador County Transportation Commission urged the use of a “complete streets concept,” for bicycles and pedestrians, and said “don’t forget busses.” She led a 2006 workshop to gather public input on pedestrian and bicycle recommendations in the county, and she offered to help the city in its work on such circulation. Dan Poor, who lives “catty corner” from Q Ranch, urged the panel to stick to its January 6th decision to designate Q Ranch for a maximum of 500 housing units. He said the new map had rural residential designations in all areas but the flood plains. Poor said approving it would “drive ag out of the area.” And if the city allowed an expressway through Ione Valley, the “people will not stay.” Q Ranch was designated for 850 units maximum, as a “Special Planning Area.” (end) am. Story by Jim Reece

Amador County – Ione Mayor Lee Ard called a special meeting of the Ione City Council for 3 p.m. Wednesday to consider, among other items, awarding a $150,000 dollar “Park & Ride” construction project. The council will also hear presentations from companies that answered the city’s request for proposals (RFPs) in a search for a contracted wastewater system operator. The council will consider awarding a construction contract for a “Park and Ride Facility,” to “Doug Veerkamp General Engineering, Incorporated, the lowest responsible, responsive bidder in the amount of $150,916. Veerkamp is a 25-year-old company based in El Dorado County, with offices in Placerville and El Dorado Hills. The council could approve the project by adopting a resolution awarding the construction contract and by authorizing City Manager Kim Kerr to execute the contract with Veerkamp, “subject to review and approval of the final contract documents” by City Attorney Kristen Castanos. The council will also consider authorizing Kerr to execute a contract amendment with Dokken Engineering in the amount not to exceed $28,119 for construction management services and preparation of “as built” plans. The council will also hear presentations by firms seeking a contract to operate Ione’s Wastewater Operations. The council will discuss city wastewater operation costs, and whether to contract operations or hire a chief wastewater operator, and provide staff direction if needed. Kerr said last week that 4 companies answered RFPs for municipal wastewater operations. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.