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Amador County – The Jackson City Council unanimously adopted the City’s annual budget on Monday, with the good news being that no further cuts will be necessary in the near future. “The bottom line is that the severe cuts made last year mean the General Fund is ‘in the black’ and no further cuts are necessary, however, none of the cuts made last year have been restored yet either,” said City Manager Mike Daly. During last year’s budget review, the council decided to freeze some positions, implement a two-day-per-month employee furlough, reduce some retiree benefits and eliminate all capitol improvement project expenditures. At a fiscal mid-year budget review in December, the council went one step further by freezing one police officer position and reducing the City’s workforce by three employees. In a staff report Monday, Daly said all this “was required to balance expenditures with the worsening revenues.” Of the City’s key revenue sources, only sales tax is on the rebound, with the last 12 months of revenue exceeding the budget projection and coming in at $585,631. Daly said what is more concerning is that property taxes decreased by over 5 percent from $827,050 to $786,056, and a “further decline to $766,000 is projected due to lower assessed values driven by the foreclosure market and the end of the federal homebuyers tax credit program.” Daly said that “after three years of plummeting General Fund revenues, it does appear that some ‘bottoming out’ is occurring, but there is still plenty of fluctuation in the general taxes and fees that constitute the regular portion of this fund.” Jackson’s General Fund is expected to finish with a positive balance this year, and revenues are expected to exceed expenditures by $88,955. When considering the projected mid-year budget deficit of $264,000 and implemented reductions, the final deficit for fiscal year 2009-10 was reduced to $40,574. Another positive note is that the city is receiving much-needed assistance through a number of federal and state grant programs that will fund one officer’s salary for three years and various road improvement projects. Measure N, a ½ cent sales tax approved by County voters last November for fire services, will allow the City to hire four full-time firefighters. The City Council will also continue suspension of its monthly salary of $75 per month ($100 for the Mayor), saving approximately $5,600 in salary and payroll taxes next year. Daly said the “wild card” is the State of California, which is now facing a $19 billion budget deficit and missed its statutory budget deadline of June 15. The newly approved 2010-11 budget does not include restoration of reductions in positions, furloughs, or benefits. “Though it is good that revenues have stabilized enough to avoid further cuts, the previous reductions in staff required by General Fund revenue declines will continue to hamper the City’s ability to provide services to the community,” said Daly. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in Local

Wednesday, 30 June 2010 06:13

SPI to Reopen Sonora Sawmill, Good for 130 Jobs

Tuolumne County – Sierra Pacific Industries on Tuesday announced that it would be reopening a revamped sawmill in Sonora, where 130 jobs could be restored to the region. SPI and Tuolumne County Economic Development Authority issued a joint statement saying that they worked cooperatively to “retool the mill and restore jobs to the community.” Larry Cope, director of economic development for TCEDA, said it is “a major project that will not only bring jobs and investment to Tuolumne County, it will bring back a way of life.” Cope said the “facility will be tops in its class” and feature state-of-the-art technologies. The statement said “SPI is making a major investment in Tuolumne County by retooling its sawmill in Sonora, updating an older mill that closed there in 2009.” The facility will produce lumber from a wider array of log sizes than was possible under the older configuration. SPI area manager Ryan Land said SPI is “investing in the future of this community.” Land said: “Lumber markets have improved modestly and by increasing the range of acceptable log sizes we will be able to bring family-wage jobs back to this area.” He said SPI “continues to invest in its forests and mills to grow more trees and enhance productivity while protecting the environment and creating jobs.” Retooling of the mill will be managed by SPI, which anticipates hiring local workers to help with the project. Remodeling of the old plant is expected to begin by mid-July, and the updated facility is projected to reopen for production in May of 2011. Reopening the mill “does not impact the SPI cedar fencing mill in Chinese Camp, which currently employs about 80 people,” Land said. The Sonora mill closed in July 2009 due to weakness in the lumber market, reduced timber harvests on nearby national forest lands and increasing state regulatory burdens, Land said. The mill at the time was configured to only accept larger-diameter logs. “When combined, these factors left us no choice but to close the plant,” Land said. About 130 employees were affected by the closure, and about that same number of employees will be hired when the retooled plant reopens. SPI spokesman Mark Pawlicki said “retooling this mill will help California meet its own demand for wood products, rather than importing lumber from faraway places with lower environmental standards.” He said the “time has come when more of the lumber needed in this state can be produced in California’s mills.” Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in Local

Wednesday, 30 June 2010 06:11

Plymouth Wants More Information On ACTC Fast Food Fee Reductions

Amador County – The Plymouth City Council on Tuesday decided to ask for more information before deciding whether to approve a fee amendment for certain fast-food restaurants proposed by the Amador County Transportation Commission. ACTC Executive Director Charles Field said it would have been the first “no” vote he has received from a member entity in the 7-year history of the ACTC, but instead of a rejection, the council deferred action, and directed staff to send letters of inquiry to the cities, commission board, and its chairman. The latter was attending Tuesday’s meeting: Plymouth Vice Mayor Greg Baldwin. Field said an amended Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) – creating lower fast food restaurant fees – had been approved by other cities, the ACTC board and the Amador County Board of Supervisors. But too many questions were not answered, said Mayor Pat Fordyce. And Councilman Jon Colburn said there was too much of a disparity between fees, which for a “stand alone” fast foot restaurant are $48,944 per 1000 square feet, and for an exempt fast food restaurant would be $18,240 per 1000 square feet. The exempt restaurants either share a building or are built in a strip mall, but also do not have a state highway frontage. Colburn said he thought McDonalds in Martell would not have had to pay the higher fee, but Field said it would because it has a parcel adjacent to Highway 49, and can advertise on the roadside and directly affect traffic flow. Baldwin voted “no” in an attempt by Fordyce, Colburn and Councilwoman Pat Shackleton to change the resolution amending the MOU. City attorney Laura Hollender said the council could only vote approval or disapproval of the resolution as worded, but could not change the wording. The council then voted 4-0 to rescind the action. Baldwin said city council members do not what fast-food-type restaurants in Plymouth, and one council member does not want growth at all. He said the city also would probably not get a restaurant of any kind built for at least a year. Baldwin said it was hindering a lot of hard work done by ACTC staff. Colburn said the MOU amendment directly aids Carl’s Junior and Martell, because it was crafted based on that restaurant’s “internal” traffic study, accompanying an appeal of the higher fee. Baldwin said the city council has discussed its Highway 49 “scenic corridor” through town, and agreed to not have a lot of ingress and egress, to have a buffer with side roads for development. He said the city council and planning commission should be able to handle specific issues in the city. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in Local

Wednesday, 30 June 2010 06:09

D.A. Joint Investigation Finds Potential Auto Fraud, Misdemeanor Violations

Amador County – Amador County District Attorney Todd Riebe announced Friday the results of a three day joint operation which resulted in the discovery of one potential auto insurance fraud investigation and four misdemeanor violations of the Vehicle Code and/or Business and Professional Code. Investigators inspected 45 licensed and unlicensed businesses in Amador and Calaveras counties. The objectives of the outreach operation were to uncover cases of automobile insurance fraud, insure compliance with workers’ compensation laws and to enhance public awareness as well as the awareness of each particular business in staying in compliance. “Businesses who defraud the system gain an unfair advantage in the marketplace over law-abiding businesses. Operations such as this are designed to hold fraudulent businesses accountable, ultimately saving consumers money and preventing future victims,” said Riebe. The operation, which took place over a three day period from June 22 to 24, was a combined effort by investigators from the Amador County District Attorney’s Office, the California Department of Insurance, Fraud Division, the California Department of Motor Vehicles, and the Bureau of Automotive Repair. The operation also worked in conjunction with the District Attorney’s Workers’ Compensation Fraud Unit to check for proper Workers’ Compensation insurance. If you are aware or suspect Automobile or Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fraud, contact the Amador County District Attorney’s Office at 209-223-6444. Via Release This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in Law Enforcement

Wednesday, 30 June 2010 01:52