Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/158244
4A Daily News – Saturday, August 24, 2013 Opinion DAILY NEWS RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U NTY S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Greg Stevens, Publisher gstevens@redbluffdailynews.com Chip Thompson, Editor editor@redbluffdailynews.com Editorial policy The Daily News opinion is expressed in the editorial. The opinions expressed in columns, letters and cartoons are those of the authors and artists. Letter policy The Daily News welcomes letters from its readers on timely topics of public interest. All letters must be signed and provide the writer's home street address and home phone number. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and cannot exceed two double-spaced pages or 500 words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section of those submitted will be considered for publication. Letters will be edited. Letters are published at the discretion of the editor. Mission Statement We believe that a strong community newspaper is essential to a strong community, creating citizens who are better informed and more involved. The Daily News will be the indispensible guide to life and living in Tehama County. We will be the premier provider of local news, information and advertising through our daily newspaper, online edition and other print and Internet vehicles. The Daily News will reflect and support the unique identities of Tehama County and its cities; record the history of its communities and their people and make a positive difference in the quality of life for the residents and businesses of Tehama County. How to reach us Main office: 527-2151 Classified: 527-2151 Circulation: 527-2151 News tips: 527-2153 Sports: 527-2153 Obituaries: 527-2151 Photo: 527-2153 On the Web www.redbluffdailynews.com Fax Newsroom: 527-9251 Classified: 527-5774 Retail Adv.: 527-5774 Legal Adv.: 527-5774 Business Office: 527-3719 Address 545 Diamond Ave. Red Bluff, CA 96080, or P.O. Box 220 Red Bluff, CA 96080 Bus systems should be linked Editor: As a visually impaired consumer, I know that our current bus system is not meeting the critical needs of our residents, including those who are unable to drive and have disabilities, for the reason that our system lacks accessibility to our southerly neighboring counties of Glenn and Butte. This presents a hardship on me, as well as to others who solely utilize public transportation since not all resources and services that one needs, including access to Chico State are offered in Tehama County. I have to depend on relatives to drive me to and from Orland, which costs me about $60 a week, so that I can connect with the Glenn Ride and attend classes at Chico State. Additionally, it costs me $45 a month for a bus pass that is only valid on the Glenn Ride. Furthermore, our bus system does not offer our county resi- dents opportunities that would be of interest such as social, cultural and enriching events that one could attend within our neighboring counties. These include meetings dealing with disabilities such as Council of the Blind, access to resources and services such as Department of Rehabilitation, Social Security Offices and Far Northern Regional Center, and CSU, Chico events. On a personal note, it negatively affects my ability to have steady relationships, pursue possible employment and to enjoy outings with friends. I encourage our residents to attend the Unmet Needs Transit Meeting that will take place at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. at the Tehama county Board of Supervisors' Chambers in view of the fact that we all have a say as citizens. It is crucial that our County Board of Supervisors, along with the Transportation Commission hear our Unmet Transit Needs. A representative from Independent Living Services of Northern California and I are having frequent discussions to quickly diagnose pot with both Glenn and Tehama impaired drivers, as easy to counties so that an Intercounty use as alcohol breath and Transit agreement can be blood tests. formed. True, medications can have Community involvement conflicting results and cause would very much be appreciat- injury or deaths if improperly ed and together we can make a used or prescribed. difference. Thank you for readFor the tiny percentage ing my letter. injured or dying Armando Malfrom abuse or medYour donado, Corning ication mismanagement, there are hundreds of millions of US citizens whose quality of life is dramatically improved with Editor: physician recommended medLetter writer Orville ications. My life has been Strong, is incorrect in his extended with heart and diastatement that pot use does betes medications, surgeries, not cause serious injury or and implanted devices, and death to safe drivers on the useful vision maintained with road with pot impaired dri- glaucoma medications. vers. Our roads and cities would The automatic weapons be safer if pot users received used to protect pot crop grow- their prescriptions from pharers certainly does harm and macists and their medications causes serious injury. recommended and prescribed Pot and other drug dealers by doctors who care about the and distributors who are in whole person instead of satisjail for their crime, are not fying primarily recreational innocent victims. pot needs. Police do need a new tool Joseph Neff, Corning The safety of pot Turn Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Dan Logue, 1550 Humboldt Road, Ste. 4, Chico, CA 95928, 530-895-4217 STATE SENATOR — Jim Nielsen, 2635 Forest Ave., Ste. 110, Chico, CA 95928, (530) 879-7424, senator.nielsen@senate.ca.gov GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 5583160; E-mail: governor@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Doug LaMalfa 506 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515, 202-2253076. U.S. SENATORS — Dianne Feinstein (D), One Post Street, Suite 2450, San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 393-0707. Fax (415) 3930710. Barbara Boxer (D), 1700 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (510) 286-8537. Fax (202) 224-0454. Commentary The General Fund, going, going, gone In stark disregard for both public health and fiscal health the City Council continued to hem and haw its way through the woods, avoiding making a big decision which it could afford, and changing its mind on one it had already made. As you recall, Councilman Parker had put the Council on notice that they had an obligation to respond to the water quality problem; the problem is not the water itself, but the old and jerry rigged water delivery system which is vulnerable to contamination. The Council only reluctantly agreed to address this important public health issue at some vague point in the future. It was not on the agenda for Tuesday's meeting. Maybe they are waiting for a directive to boil our water before drinking. Mayor Brown, who works hard at his position as well as his day job, will be gone until mid November. Wayne deserves some time off, but the Council should not use the excuse of "only" four members present to avoid addressing this problem. If you rely on safe city water, let the Council know, tell them to let the Department of Public Works go ahead and use nongeneral fund money to prepare for the need to chlorinate our water when the next bad report comes in ....and it will. Letters to the City Council and attendance at the next Council meetings would help them do the right thing. Early during last Tuesday's Council meetings one of the Council members asked City Finance Director Sandra Ryan her projection for the general fund balance for June 30, 2015. Ms. Ryan indicated she had given some thought to that, that she had made some assumptions about increased income and ongoing expenses. Her estimate was that the ending balance would be about $120,000 as of June 30, 2015. Presumably Ms. Ryan was asked about the ending balance because she is good at her job and the Council needed her judgment to make important fiscal decisions. Nevertheless, the Council ignored what she had to say and continued to fritter away general funds. The big ticket item the Council decided about was the leasepurchase of three police SUVs to replace vehicles which will be used to replace other vehicles, which in turn will be retired. The police need reliable vehicles. As members of the public we rely on them to be able to respond in a timely fashion to calls for help. In budget building the Council decided to ignore this need, a need far more expensive than the new unbudgeted Charter Internet services they approved last meeting. However, the Police Chief is persistent, and again found a way to get the Council to change its mind. So they did. If the Council had taken Ms. Ryan's estimate seriously, they would have understood that the police SUV purchase will mean a projected ending balance of only $32,000 in June 2015. (Because this is a three year lease-purchase, the result would away at least $13,000, or possibe $88,000 less in the ending bly $19,500, in general fund savings by delaying action to balance in June 2015.) combine the Building The recommended and Planning Departstandard by the Govments. This brings the ernmental Accounting projected ending balStandards Board is ance down to less than that all cities should $20,000 in 2015. have a general fund It was also revealed reserve of about two at that meeting that in months' operating addition to a $176,000 expenses; this has not salary for the City been the case here in Manager/Attorney, the recent years. In order city also pays his to accumulate that Rotary Club dues of kind of reserve some Joe $150 as part of his basic decisions about compensation packcity priorities, organiage. This is certainly a zation and staffing trivial amount, but the would have to be question is whether it made. These are not pleasant decisions, nor are they may be indicative of what appears to be a simply nearsighteasy to make. It is during budget building ed approach to budget building. City Council meetings are that such decisions should be made. After budget building not full of energy, but Council those decisions should not be actions do have an impact on us, subject to change except under the 14,000 plus who live in this extraordinary circumstances. city on the river; it also impacts Presumably Council had all the those who have access to city information it needed to make water. If we show a little more the budget decisions it did; the interest in those meetings, question is what has changed maybe Council will be more responsive and responsible, since then. It might be more helpful to make the hard decisions we us in the public if Council could elected them to make and find a describe to us what significant way out of this fiscal morass we steps they have taken to make are in. I encourage you to attend city operations match fiscal reality, thus helping all of us Council meetings and see for realize why we have to lower yourself how our City Council our expectations and pitch in to is functioning. keep Red Bluff viable. Joe Harrop is a retired Clearly, however, a $32,000 general fund balance is uncon- educator with more than 30 scionable. Are we going to be years of service to the North State. He can be reached at the next Detroit? The Council has also frittered DrJoeHarrop@sbcglobal.net. Harrop