Ad Hoc Tuah Coming
You read that right. This evening the Fullerton City Council is being asked to create an “ad hoc” committee that would spend the next nine months considering our financial situations, and, presumably, making recommendations for next year’s budget hearings. The idea came from Councilmember Charles, supported by Councilman Fred Jung.
The fact that Charles initiated this process is telling. Her only observable skill on the City Council is to keep things the bureaucracy wants alive, alive.
And what they want is a recommendation to put a sales tax on the ballot at a 2025 special election.
The object here is simple. Keep talking about a 13% sales tax increase, a tax whose campaign the “public safety” unions will pay for and that might pass a 50% threshold in a low turn out special election.
When and where will this committee meet? Who knows? One thing is sure, meetings won’t be easy to find, and will likely take place midday somewhere – like a broom closet at the Fullerton Physical Plant.
According to our crack legal team of the I Can’t Believe It’s a Law Firm” of Jones and Meyer, “temporary” ad hoc committees are not subject to the Brown Act – California’s open meeting laws. Our City Manager, the hapless Eric Levitt, promises real hard to “notice” us peons, but wants to maintain “flexibility” to accomplish the “work” requested.
Of course that work is to work on the committee members to come to the right conclusion – a tax to fix the dire fiscal cliff years of pandering to the cops and the paramedics has created.
I sure hope that Nick Dunlap and Bruce Whitaker will see what’s going on; and that Fred Jung was just having some fun with pro-tax Charles. But then again, Fullerton, being Fullerton, has been known for this sort of thing: stalling, obfuscating, temporizing, hoodwinking, and generally doing the stupid thing in the end.
A committee? Isn’t that we elect city councils to do – figure out the budget? Our fine staff has already explored the subject to their poor wit’s end. And now they get to work their psychological magic on an “independent” group of innocents.
This needs to be killed ASAP.
Feckless ones gather
Spending the people’s hard work
More never enough
Think about all the time Charles has popped up with “let staff come back,” or “new information,” or some other reason to delay and draw out until they get what they want. And the boys on the council sit there and suck up the bullshit like good little darlings.
Trail to Nowhere, sales tax, Wilshire street closure. They won’t quit until they get what they want. Watch ’em get to Whitaker, Fullerton’s King of al fresco dining.
We ate in DTF at Hopscotch this past weekend. Before even considering WoW, the city needs to power wash all of the sidewalks and do industrial cleaning of the parking lots. There is nothing quite like walking down the sidewalk with the odor of urine and vomit wafting around you to set the mood for romantic al fresco dining.
Sorry about the ambiance Al.
I heard Castaneda is available, maybe Jung can toss him a bone?
You can be sure Fullerton’s “Heroes” will be thick in the ad hoc discussions as well – in particular their union masters. This is the perfect venue for the goons to apply political pressure to the discussion to steer their useful idiots in the direction they want. I guarantee there will be no discussion whatsoever of setting up any sort of regulation that will protect the new pot of gold, if voters are dumb enough to approve a tax increase, from the “Heroes” who will immediately demand massive pay raises “to keep them competitive” with their union goon brethren.
Charles and Zahra would appoint 2 pro-tax stooges. Who know about Whitaker, Dunlap and Jung.
One thing is certain. There would be a full court press to have this committee recommend a tax so that the council, especially if Jaramillo gets on, could press a fourth member to cave in and put it on a spring ballot.
So, what happened last night at meeting? I can’t bring myself to watch those anymore…
Zahra made sure to ask about whoever Whitaker would put forward.
Asked about that person being replaced by the new seat warmer once the election took place, meaning hopefully Jabamillio would be up to replacing Whitakers pick.
Whitaker and Dunlap both voted NO on the whole thing as they explained it was just stupid to begin with.
Last time we had an ad hoc meet to consider a sales tax their recommendation was ignored by the city council. Instead of a tax meant for specific infrastructural purposes, the council majority put one on the ballot with no limitations on where the money raised could be spent and voters soundly rejected it. Will the council learn anything this time? Even if a council majority manages to place an open ended spending tax increase on the ballot and the city illegally campaigns for its passage through “informational” mailers, what makes anyone think it would pass?
Spit on that thang! You get me?