Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/49729
FRIDAY DECEMBER 9, 2011 Breaking news at: www.redbluffdailynews.com GEMS Club Education See 5A RED BLUFF Pujols to Angels SPORTS 1B Weather forecast 10A Sunny 64/33 DAILYNEWS TEHAMACOUNTY DAILY 50¢ T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Walmart foes claim win Fair tax flops By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer A proposed tax to support the Tehama District Fair has died before it even reached the ballot following the Tehama District Fairboard decision Tuesday to let a motion for support die. "I guess it's over," said Supervisor Dennis Garton. "If the Fairboard doesn't support it, I can't." Garton proposed placing a measure on the Novem- ber 2012 ballot for a $1-2 a month tax, that would have ended in five years, to support the Tehama District Fair- ground, which saw a $200,000 cut when the state elim- inated all funding for California fairs. The tax would have affected 33,000 parcels in unin- corporated Tehama County, not counting federal parcels or cities, and would have raised at least $350,000 a year, Garton said. "Part of the reason I asked the question of whether or not it would be supported is to get people's involve- See FAIR, page 9A Hospital chain settles with feds Staff report Catholic Healthcare Daily News photo by Chip Thompson The proposed Walmart Supercenter would replace the existing Walmart store, pictured here, and be built directly west of the existing store. By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer More changes will most likely have to be made to the Walmart Supercenter environmental impact report section addressing noise issues if the store is going to be built in Red Bluff. In a small victory for Walmart opponents, the 3rd District Court of Appeals issued a ruling Wednesday that did not entirely agree with decisions from the Tehama County Superior Court over noise issues that were addressed in the project's EIR and subsequent revisions. According to the ruling, the city did not provide enough relevant information to support its finding that sweepers, which are used to clean parking lots, would have no significant noise impact. Even though the Tehama County Superior Court had previously ruled that the city had provided sufficient information, the new ruling by the appeals court orders the city to pro- vide the information, publicly, or explain why such an analysis is unnecessary. The city must disclose the data from a study conducted at an El Camino truck stop on Interstate 80 that was used to support its findings on the noise level of delivery trucks. At issue, is whether the study prop- erly factored in background noise from the freeway. The appeals court also ruled against a number of issues present- ed by Walmart in a cross-appeal and remanded the case to the local trial court, which will be in charge of directing the city and Walmart to comply. Having just received the ruling, City Manager Martin Nichols said he did not know what all the legal implications are, but the city and Walmart will take the necessary steps to move the project forward. Brown warns of additional cuts if tax plan fails SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday warned of additional trigger cuts if voters reject his tax initiative next fall, offering Californians a stark choice between higher taxes and deeper cuts to schools, universities and public safety. Brown's spokesman, Gil Duran, posted on Twitter a quote from the governor that said, ''If taxes don't pass, there will be a hole that will trigger further cuts.'' The Democratic governor and state lawmakers face a $13 billion projected shortfall over the next 18 months. Analysts have already predicted the state will have to make required midyear reductions to schools, universities and social services. While tax collections for the month of November came in 9 percent above projections, the state con- troller's office said collections remain $1 billion below anticipated revenues for the year. The state is also spending $2 billion more than it anticipated for the year. ''Regardless of whether midyear cuts are enacted next week, the Legislature faces a tremendous fiscal challenge when it returns to session next month,'' Con- troller John Chiang said in a statement Thursday. Brown wants to increase taxes on high-income earn- ers and raise the state sales tax by half a cent, to 7.75 percent. The proposal would raise about $7 billion a year for five years. Earlier this week, Brown filed the measure with the state attorney general's office. It would appear on the November 2012 ballot if supporters collect 807,615 valid voter signatures. See BROWN, page 9A The appeal centered around noise issues that were already addressed in revised versions of the original EIR and an addendum that was done at the beginning of this year, he said. "Our superior court already ruled on these issues, and we created the addendum," Nichols said. "A lot of those issues were already addressed in the addendum." Walmart first presented the city with a proposal to build a Super- center in 2003. The final EIR was approved in 2006, and was immedi- ately challenged by a group of resi- dents calling themselves the Citi- zens for a Healthy Community. The Supercenter has several environmental impacts on neigh- bors that have not been properly addressed, said William Kopper, the group's attorney. He was pleased with the results See WIN, page 9A West has paid $875,564 and Sutter Health Associa- tion has paid $1,433,509 to the United States to settle allegations that certain of their affiliate hospitals overcharged the govern- ment for infusion therapy and lithotripsy services, the U.S. Attorney's office announced Wednesday. These settlements resolve findings by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Audit Services indicating that the two entities over- charged the federal Medicare program through duplicate charging for the administration of infusion therapy, unbundling pack- aged infusion therapy ser- vices when the individual procedures should have been billed as a group and duplicate billing of lithotripsy services under separate revenue codes. Lithotripsy is a medical procedure that uses shock waves to break up stones in the kidney, bladder or ureter. Catholic Healthcare West is the fifth largest hos- pital provider in the nation and the largest hospital sys- tem in California. The 36 affiliate hospitals involved in this matter are located in California, Nevada, and Arizona. Its hospitals include St. Elizabeth Community Hos- pital in Red Bluff and Mercy Medical Center in Redding. Sutter Health Associa- tion is an integrated health care delivery system with hospitals in Northern Cali- fornia and Hawaii. The 25 affiliate hospitals involved in this matter are in North- ern California. The settlements are the result of investigations by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Ser- vices, Office of Inspector General. Both healthcare providers cooperated fully with the investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine Swann handled the matter government. Strike up the band;concert tonight Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb Red Bluff Union High School Band students practice Tuesday during fifth period under the direction of Gabriel Sakuma for tonight's concert, which is at 7 at the Performing Arts Center, at 1260 Union St. Cost for the concert is $3. CARE TO COMMENT? 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 At redbluffdailynews.com, scroll to the end of any story, click the link and type away. TEHAMA COUNTY GLASS MOULE'S Broken Glass Is Our Special If It Has Glass We Can Fix It 515 Sycamore St. 529-0260