For many, the real scare this time of years is not the monsters at our doors on Halloween, but the property tax bill in the mail box.

Fortunately, as a direct result of Proposition 13, which limits increases in a property’s assessed value to two percent annually, most property owners have a good idea what their tax bill will be even before opening the envelope. Still, every year at this time, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association reminds taxpayers to carefully examine their latest property tax bill. Although not common, assessors do make mistakes.

Taxpayers should understand the various charges and make certain that they are not being dunned for more than they are legally obligated to pay. The best way to check a tax bill is to have your previous year’s bill handy for reference.

Checking the bill is especially important for those who bought their homes a few years ago at the height of the market. If the current home value is actually lower than the assessed value shown on the tax bill, the owner is entitled to file for a reduction in taxes.

Typically, the property tax bill will show three categories of charges. They are the General… Read More

Saturday (26 October, 2013) I received not one, not two, butthreebig, glossy, expensive mailers for the upcoming San Diego mayoral election. All three were touting Nathan Fletcher for the position. I was going to toss ’em out (a daily evolution for me with the avalanche of such Fletcher mailers), but then I decided to look a little closer at what these mailers actually said, and what they divulged about the people and organizations backing Fletcher.Veryrevealing.

FLYER #1— The simplest and most (relatively) honest of the mailers. It’s an ode to Fletcher paid for by San Diego City Firefighters Local 145 PAC — which like all such union candidate support is probably entirely funded with compulsory union dues. Given the respected nature of firefighters, they make no effort to hide the affiliation.

The flyer asserts that Fletcher is “Protecting Our Families.” And that is true — if by “our families” they mean thefirefighters’ families(the overwhelming majority of whom do not live in the city of San Diego — many live outside… Read More

From a decade ago, a week and a half after the start of one of the worst fires in U.S. history, below is a letter by local officials to then Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger outlining the lack of response by the State to a means of getting additional firefighting equipment in the air.

It is worth a read today, as both a cautionary tale and what became a vehicle for change.

In the wake of the Cedar Fire tragedy, I’m proud of the truth that was told and the small part I played in piecing together and putting to pen the thoughts of those signing this letter.

Schwarzenegger did respond. The signers and San Diego County Supervisor Dianne Jacob subsequently played a significant lead role in driving changes that to this day have better equipped us to respond to wildfires.

November 3, 2003

Governor Elect Arnold Schwarzenegger 770 L Street, Suite 800 Sacramento, CA 95814

Dear Governor-Elect Schwarzenegger:… Read More

No need to revisit Nathan Fletcher’s political opportunism here, it is well-documented. But this 60 seconds of interview with Nathan on the Mark Larson Show is well worth the listen. Every single word of it could be applied to Nathan today and I hope he gets a chance to listen to himself as he parades around with his “change of heart.” … Read More

Some random thoughts on the passing California political scene…

IDIOT OF THE WEEK AWARD: Its unclear who the specific winner here is — it may be the entire Workers’ Compensation system in California. But specifically it is the person, persons or rules that would allow former U.C. Davis Police Lieutenant John Pike to be awarded $38,000 in benefits after he suffered stress as a result of the notoriety and attention he received, back in 2011, when he unloaded a stream of pepper spray on students who were peacefully protesting tuition increases. All you have to do is take a moment to watch the video and, well, you will understand how idiotic this cash bonus was for someone who may have been 2011’s Idiot of the Year. By the way, I know for a fact that the compilation of videos of police response to that protest is now routinely used in officer training to show how NOT to handle an incident such as… Read More

We saw a lot of news stories last year surrounding the $11 million dollar contribution that was made from an Arizona-based non-profit to the Small Business Action Committee here in California last year. This contribution was made during a period of time when SBAC was heavily funding independent efforts to defeat Prop. 30 and to pass Prop. 32 (with no success, I might add, unfortunately). Prop. 30 was the measure to increase the state’s sales tax rate, and Prop. 32, if passed, would have taken away the ability of public employee unions to collect dues through payroll deductions. Apparently the funds sent to the SBAC by this Arizona non-profit were sent to that entity by two other non-profits. Under federal laws, 501c4 non-profit organizations are not required to publicly report their donors. Left-of-center groups like Common Cause (who hate the idea that there is money in politics, except for when they agree on the cause for which it is being spent) took issue with this large contribution, arguing that these groups must have been acting as some sort of “pass through” for California donors who wanted to maintain some anonymity in their… Read More

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California’s Secretary of State has the constitutional responsibility to implement a fair and impartial elections process. Indeed the integrity of state government depends on the impartial execution of her duties. Yet there are troubling indications that Secretary Deborah Bowen’s office may be improperly manipulating the election process, taking actions to damage a political cause disfavored by Democrats in the same way that the IRS used its power to damage conservative groups and causes.

Assembly Bill 1266 is a law passed solely with Democratic votes and signed into law by Democratic Governor Jerry Brown. The new law, sponsored by the gay rights group Equality California – whose PAC exclusively supports Democrat politicians – mandates that students in California public schools shall be granted access to vulnerable school facilities such as showers, locker rooms, changing areas and bathrooms based on “gender identity” and not their actual sex.

The law is one that leaves most people shaking their heads and asking, “what were they thinking?” A recent statewide survey found that only 35% of California voters support the law, while 51% oppose it.… Read More

[Publisher’s Note: We are pleased to offer this original commentary from retired State Senator Dick Ackerman – Flash]

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Every $1 the state invests in UCLA produces $34 in economic activity. As California’s largest UC, it pumps $12.7 billion into the state’s economy every year.

These findings, from a new study of UCLA’s economic contributions, demonstrate the importance of investing in higher education to keep California’s economic recovery alive – and to position the Golden State for a more prosperous future.

In Orange County, where I live, UC Irvine is the second-largest employer and generates an economic impact on the county… Read More