Dublin Preparing Residents for New Tax Measure
The City of Dublin, CA, recently conducted a survey amongst 400 likely voters to gauge their support for a new city tax. The survey questions were prefaced by the fact that Sacramento borrowed $2M from the City this year to bridge the State budget deficit; however, what the survey did not mention is that the City of Dublin was able to get all $2M back from the California Communities Prop 1A financing program. In exchange, California Communities gets the interest that the State would have paid to Dublin for the $2M loan.
The survey found that residents are most concerned about losing police and fire services as a result of budget cuts. The respondents noted that if a new temporary City tax were approved, fire stations, police services, and emergency response operations should be first in line to receive the extra money. Most residents noted that they are largely unaware of the many steps taken by the City of Dublin to balance the budget, the impact the state seizure of local funds had on City operations, and the choices the City will face without a new City tax. “Residents don’t see us taking cuts internally,” Councilmember Kasie Hildenbrand said to Robert Jordan of Contra Costa Times. In the same article, Councilmember Hildenbrand warns that “the cutbacks may become much more apparent.”
The City of Dublin will likely step up their communication of the ongoing budget challenges and the threats of losing police and fire services over the next few months, as it looks to build support for the new City tax. Part of this communication could be in the form of a future survey aimed at building the case for a new City tax and gauging how much residents are willing to pay.
Whether this new tax will manifest itself as a parcel tax, a sales tax increase, or a new assessment for emergency services remains unclear at this time. A sales tax increase would be highly unlikely, since it may make Dublin’s local businesses less competitive. A parcel tax could be a politically expedient option, given that the City can collect the money upfront as part of the Alameda County property tax assessment process. To get popular support behind a parcel tax, the City will probably have to offer exemptions to senior citizens and other groups of likely voters. If voters do not approve a new City tax, the City of Dublin can simply follow the example set by the City of Tracy and create a new fee for 911 services. Residents have the option to pay an upfront fee of $48 or $300 per 911 call, but either way the City will get its money.
Dublin’s annual city budget information can be found on the City website. Please contact Dublin’s Finance Director Paul Rankin at (925)833-6640 for more details.
11:51 AM on February 25th, 2010
Thank you for writing about this. You can bet I will be writing my council people to tell them I do NOT support an increase in taxes. If other city programs need to be cut, so be it. I find it hard to believe that fire, police and emergency services are going to be cut but the city can afford to sponsor festivals, recreation classes, etc. While I enjoy these programs, they are not necessary in difficult times.
12:29 PM on February 25th, 2010
Funny they always talk about cutting police and fire to scare the residents into agreeing on any tax increase. Why not re-evaluate the desk jobs or the deadwood and cut them off? Private sector has been doing it every single day for almost a decade are are now cut up to the bone. Why cant the city do it? With all the bloat there is at the city, county, state and federal level I am sure there is plenty of room for cuts without impacting “real” services.
1:22 PM on February 28th, 2010
If we need to pay more for fire and police services, the tax hike should just be a special assessment for that purpose and that purpose only. It should never go into the general fund in the first place. Of course, politicians like our Mayor Sbranti can then simply move what was supposed to be for fire and police services from the general fund to something else. John is right. Either way the City will get its money, and it seems like there is not much fiscally minded residents can do to stop the out-of-control spending. Also, why do we need to hire an expensive consultant group to tell us that people don’t want fire and police services cut? My guess is that Kasie will push for putting the tax hike on some special election in June, so she can make sure everyone pays.
11:30 PM on February 28th, 2010
I like your sarcastic style!
11:38 PM on February 28th, 2010
This is a reply to a comment by Anonymous 5:31 PM on February 26th, 2010. I do not know why it comes here.
1:50 PM on February 25th, 2010
Police and fire employees are top-paid and enjoy very generous pension programs that are bankrupting cities, counties and states.. Private companies with this situation go out of business but by law, the contracts for pensions are guaranteed. Think it’s bad now? It’s only getting worse– Combined, the various cities, states and counties are over a BILLION in debt due to these pensions… argue all you want about how they are needed, etc, but the fact is taxes will have to raise to keep up with the pensions (there are more individuals making more money on pensions than there are actually working in the departments.. Read up and open your wallet to help pay for your local fire and police pensions…
3:56 PM on February 25th, 2010
so true. a friend of mine will retrieve from police service next year at age 54 after 30 years of service. he’s getting 90% of his current salary for pension.
5:31 PM on February 26th, 2010
Hey there, watch what you’re saying! Are you really claiming that police are overpaid? You are way off base, Buster! Let me set the record straight. All it takes is one simple example to make things crystal clear. First, search for “Kevin Hart” in the online database of public employee salaries:
http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_13226767
You’ll see that Kevin Hart’s base salary as a captain in the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department is only $168K per year. Sure, if he’s smart about saving his vacation days and other artificial salary boosters until his final year, he’ll probably be able to spike his retirement to around $200K per year for the rest of his life, but that’s hardly sufficient compensation for putting his life on the line every single day. Just imagine how many times Kevin Hart, the perfect role model of bravery, physical fitness & social integrity, has been shot at in the line of duty! He deserves every penny he can milk out of the public coffers.
Besides, don’t forget that the Sheriff’s Department has to pay such salaries in order to attract & retain high quality personnel. That’s no myth. If Kevin Hart was not being paid that much, someone with his vital skills could easily leave the force tomorrow for a much better salary elsewhere. Furthermore, there’s no way the Sheriff’s Department could find a replacement willing to do Kevin Hart’s desk job for only $168K plus benefits + overtime + pension.
Bam! Case closed!
I say let’s raise all our taxes to help pay for Kevin Hart’s meager retirement some day. No one is more deserving.
4:40 PM on March 2nd, 2010
First, the “3% at 50″ that people like to rant about is only for public safety employees, who have a tougher job than any of the typical pencil pushing government employees, and thus quite frankly deserve to be compensated for their sacrifice and service to the community.
What a lot of people fail to realize, particularly about law enforcement, is that the average life expectancy for law enforcement officers post-retirement is only FIVE YEARS. Also, studies have shown that working in law enforcement decreases a person’s life expectancy by 12 years. Studies have also shown that firefighters too experience a reduction in life expectancy. The severe stress (both physical and mental) of the job takes its toll on the officers (and firefighters), and it’s extremely common for retired officers to just “drop dead” from a heart attack or other ailment 6 months later. Once they’re dead, they’re no longer collecting their pension.
Add to this the fact that most officers (and possibly firefighters) don’t work the requisite years to collect the maximum pension. I know that for police officers, many burn out (or have to leave the force due to injury) well before they hit their maximum retirement potential. Many officers leave the force early and go on to have a second career — one that’s less stressful and less damaging to their health.
12:50 PM on March 3rd, 2010
I agree with this post. People who devote their careers to helping people, and sacrifice their lives to protect and serve, are the real heroes of this world.
It is only fair, however, to point out that the pensions of officers and firefighters who pass away mostly go to the surviving spouses. But believe me, those spouses go through a lot, never knowing if their loved ones will ever make it home.
How anyone can question or denigrate these great professions is mind boggling. We should cut back on a million things in the government, but public safety is not one of them. Yes, the pensions are too much, but if we cut back on those, we’d have a much harder time attracting people to those professions (and keeping them there).
3:48 PM on February 25th, 2010
D’oh, i meant 1 TRILLION, not 1 Billion….
7:43 PM on February 25th, 2010
Trillion is the new hundred.
8:12 PM on February 25th, 2010
How about this. I will agree to more taxes when I am above water on my mortgage.
Funny, we have had major job and pay cuts at my company and we seem to be doing fine. Why don’t we cut the fat from the city? Half of them are worthless anyway.
Also, I don’t have a pension. These public employees make the same or more than hard working employees in the private sector. I seem to scape up enough to fund my 401K. Let the public workers get a traditional 401K.
NOT MORE TAXES!
9:49 PM on February 25th, 2010
What, now everyone is suddenly against taxes and more government and more union rights? I’ll bet almost all of you voted for Obama. This is what liberals do, both in Washington and in Dublin: tax and spend. Everyone is now getting to see that again. Let’s hope in November and in 2012 the voters speak with their ballots and vote out every liberal in the country.
11:21 PM on February 25th, 2010
Well, why is it surprising? Our dear mayor is a staunch and unyielding liberal,i.e.,he likes to tax and spend, tax and spend, tax and spend,,,,,,,,,,
10:11 PM on February 25th, 2010
You obviously have never worked in public safety, otherwise, you would be eating your words. Try strapping on a gun belt for a day or two and see how you like carrying all of that gear around your waist, along with a bullet resistant vest, additional gear, and then having to worry about how your next call could be your last. Try chasing a suspect who is carrying a shotgun, rounded the corner, and then you are struck with intense fear wondering whether he is waiting to take you out in one blast.
Yes, police officers and fire fighters take the risk of possibly never returning home safely when they enter into these professions, but that is why they deserve to have a nice pension. They spend many years of their life risking their life, health, and living with the fear of possibly never seeing their family or friends again all in the name of making the ultimate sacrifice to keep people like you safe. It is a huge sacrifice because they don’t know if they will ever live to see their spouse or kids again. And supposing they get injured and live, then the possibility exists that they will never fully recover. I’ve known of fire fighters who had floors collapse on them and suffered serious injuries (third degree burns, back injuries, etc.,). With an office job, your worst nightmare is a paper cut. This is why they DESERVE to be highly compensated.
Maybe you should try taking a ride along one day to see the life in a police officer’s shoes. Maybe then you will think twice before you say silly things about how these supposed generous pension programs are bankrupting cities. Just so you know, police and fire fighters pay into the pension system.
11:35 PM on February 25th, 2010
Public employees are whining about pay cuts, furloughs, etc. Let me ask you public employees: Do you know that most of the silicon valley private companies laid off people and/or cut the remaining employees’ salary during this recession? Do you know that new college graduates are willing to take much lower entry salary during this recession? Do you know that families are tightening their belts to ride through the recession? If you do know, why cannot you sacrifice a little bit just like everybody else in the private sectors? After all, your pay and benefits are coming from all tax payers, most of whom are from private sectors.
9:50 AM on February 26th, 2010
Mr policeman above… Do me a favor, tell me, how many Dublin Police officers were fired at with a gun last year? Please, tell me…. How many officers are on the force here in Dublin and how many were fired at in 2009?
I’m waiting for your answer…..
9:55 AM on February 26th, 2010
Whenever we talk about the law enforcement or fire dept. pensions bankrupting the states,cities, counties, a law enforcement person comes on here and preaches about how dangerous their job is.. In reality, it is much less dangerous than a professional fisherman. You cannot argue otherwise— Report after report has proven as much:
http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2009/09/04/americas-most-dangerous-jobs/
Search anywhere for “Most dangerous jobs” and you will see that law enforcement is not #1.. and the ones above law enforcement are very low paid most of the times and NEVER have 90% pensions..
The reality is that cops and firemen are very smart individuals.. They know they have it good, they enjoy a pension plan that no private companies would ever be able to afford or offer.. How do they protect that? By scaring us into thinking no one would do the job if it wasn’t for those benefits (and yet people become professional fishermen even though it’s more dangerous and has lower pay).– They also vote in droves.. They make sure to vote in other members of their group (Kevin Hart) and they vote against anyone that would dare bring up changes to their pensions… Unless the average citizens go out and vote in large numbers, we’ll never see change–
I also love the Obama comment above.. Make no mistake about it, the country’s current state is indeed due to 3 distinct (and major) things that Bush and his administration did:
1) Declaring war (on TWO fronts!)– War is extremely expensive.. It costs a LOT of money to wage a war… Do it on two different fronts and you almost double your costs.. Remember how Bush and his team told us we were going into Iraq simply for Regime Change and not country-building.. well, I see that years later, the regime has been killed and yet we’re still there, building roads, infrastructure,etc.. Seems like country building to me….
2) Lowering taxes WHILE you wage war… So the cost of war is getting into the multi-Trillions, right? For those Republicans that were all for the war, where did you think the money would come from to wage war? It’s very important to remember that most of Obama’s tax raises are on the very wealthy. The average person/family would’ve seen no increase– Take a look online and you’ll see that the MAJORITY of all taxes paid are paid by the top 5% of earners in this country– That means that 5% of the country are paying more than 50% of the total tax revenue… I am in that top 5% but I’m STILL in favor of raising my taxes if it helps those not in the top 5%….
3) Relaxing the banking regulations.. Yeah, so Republicans are all for letting the “markets police themselves..”— How’d that work out? There are reasons the government HAS to regulate various industries.. Without it you see that a few very greedy men can indeed wreak havoc on our financial base..
I know, i know, Obama has been in office for gosh, months now.. He should have all this fixed now right?
I agree, there is a LOT of waste in government. Dems and Republicans are both to blame.. I’d love for someone to finally show what the costs are for, say the City of Dublin.. Oh wait, they did:
Page xix: http://www.ci.dublin.ca.us/pdf/finance/Year-ended-June-30-2009.pdf
Hmm…. let’s read here.. what the HIGHEST cost the city has. Oh, PUBLIC SAFETY… That means Fire and Police… we spent $23million on that… Well, what about Health and Welfare, cause we know those lazy people are eatin’ up all our tax money, right? oh.. only $1.8 million on health and welfare…Culture and Leisure was $11Million– Yeah, see, that seems too high… For what do we get with that money? Dumb public art that no one cares about? Funding for plays that need funding because no one wants to watch amateurs act? Oh, i know, funding for all the sports programs we are offered– How about charging higher for those? If you want to play adult basketball, well, you should pay the cost, not me… I am all for the parks themselves though– Dublin has a great park system and I like to pay taxes for that..
Ok, well let’s all keep arguing while we all see the government go bankrupt…
PS: Dear senior citizen. Please make sure to vote Pro-law enforcement and fire dept. pensions.. If we dare cut them we’ll see havoc in the streets and some punk thugs may beat you up.. I know, by having those pensions and making you pay for them means that you won’t be able to afford your medications but you want to be safe on the streets right?
10:16 AM on February 26th, 2010
How ignorant you are. You have no idea. You are completely clueless. But thats OK, you can continue be ignorant because of the sacrifices made every day by police and firefighters
Did you every hear of Officer John Monego?? Shot in killed in the line of duty. Left a wife and 18month old son. He never made it home.
http://www.odmp.org/officer/15192-deputy-sheriff-john-paul-monego
1:46 PM on February 26th, 2010
Yes, i do remember this tragedy from 12 years ago.. I’m all for giving the spouse $2-$5Million if they are killed in the line of duty..
That was 12 years ago.. I’m wondering, please tell us, how many Dublin Police Officers were shot at with a gun in 2009? Please tell and stop hiding from the question…
3:26 PM on February 26th, 2010
Don’t use John Monego’s sad case to fight for your own damn agenda!–
From your article:
Deputy Monego had been with the department for nine years and was survived by his wife and 18-month-old son. He was the first deputy to be murdered in the department’s 146 year history.
So, yes, very sad and tragic story, especially leaving his wife and young child.. I really do feel for them. Yes, I agree, give them $5million payment (It won’t cover their loss, but it’s the least we as a community can do for someone who’s lost their precious life in the line of duty.
But in the same respect, please don’t keep trying to tell us how dangerous it is to be in law enforcement in Dublin– The taxi drivers in Oakland or SF are at MUCH MORE danger and you don’t see them whining/using scare tactics to get 90% pay for life pensions-
10:38 AM on February 27th, 2010
I’m waiting for the same answer as others. How many times has a Dublin police officer been in the line of fire in Dublin? How many times has a Dublin firefighter responded to a house on fire in Dublin? Taking an officer or firefighter from Oakland and Dublin is like comparing apples and oranges.
12:42 PM on February 27th, 2010
Who are any of you to demand answers to anything? Do we owe you an answer just because you think you’re owed one?
You’re all so clearly missing argument that this debate isn’t a fair fight.
1) Who said the officer was a “policeman?” Who’s to say it wasn’t a woman? Assuming it’s a man is an incredibly sexist remark.
2) The officer made zero reference to the Dublin Police Department. His/Her argument was about the police in general, not just in Dublin. Of course police in SF and Oakland face more dangers than Dublin police, genius. They also earn much more, and thus, earn bigger pensions, and thus, soak up more city funds. But many SF and Oakland police officers LIVE in Dublin, so we’re really all one big community. No one should complain about Dublin police earning so much, because the impact to the city is minimal. Dublin is not broke, and if it ever went broke, it wouldn’t be because of law enforcement because they simply don’t earn enough compared to bigger cities.
3) What you fail to mention is that many police departments pay into their OWN pensions. SFPD officers definitely do. So you and your so-called taxpayer dollars are not paying for as much of those pensions as you think you are.
4) Without a doubt, pensions are still too high. There’s no reason law enforcement officials can’t just rely on their 401k’s alone, like the rest of us. Pensions aren’t necessary anymore for anyone. However…
5) Companies in the private sector like Safeway and PG&E also offer pensions, and they’re not broke. True, they are not taxpayer funded (well, PG&E is almost like the government), but they manage to pull it off. A 401k plan should be enough for everyone, true. Those pensions should be phased out.
6) Bottom line, law enforcement should be paid well and receive good benefits. Pensions? They are excessive. Blame the unions and the liberals who love unions.
4:50 PM on March 2nd, 2010
Add to that that police officers can’t collect Social Security when they retire. So while Average Joe may “only” have a 401k (which he probably chooses not to put money into so he can buy fancy toys and crap), he also has Social Security income to look forward to. It may not be a lot, but it’s still something!
12:08 PM on March 3rd, 2010
Well, then just let cops and firemen and public employees have the same social security and 401K benefits as everybody else in private sectors.
11:41 AM on February 27th, 2010
cops are committing felonies with their tricky tactics for excessive pay…they say “we could get killed”…I say cut their pay by 50% and gived them 30% of retirement…the cops are milking the system and should be arrested for grand larceny…cops got it easy, real easy…show up to work, eat donuts, and collect a windfall in retirement…we got to change this!
4:54 PM on March 2nd, 2010
Wow. You’re clever with your “eating donuts” comment!
What will you delight us with next? A witty repartee about a white person eating wonder bread and mayo? A black person eating fried chicken? An Asian person eating rice?
Only a prejudiced, cop-hating loser would bust out such a pathetic stereotype.
6:32 PM on February 27th, 2010
We as taxpayers DO deserve answers. We PAY for the police department with our tax money–
The fact is that no one will get on here and say clearly, how many Dublin police officers were shot at in 2009…. You can’t argue that police and fire deserve huge pensions and very high pay due to danger in the workplace– That is a fallacy here in Dublin and most other cities– Being a logger or fisheman is far more dangerous (statistics don’t lie… the only lies are those being told by our “public servants” who argue that they deserve all the money they get–
Can anyone give me an example in the private sector where you get 90% of your pay as pension even if you retire as young as 55? It doesn’t exist, and even if it did, THOSE COMPANIES WOULD’VE GONE BANKRUPT LIKE ALL LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT ARE NOW… Are the police and fire pensions and high pay the ONLY reason that governments are going bankrupt? No.. BUT they are a major reason among many reasons… Make no mistake about that— Someone care to Google highest paid county/city employees.. ?????
9:38 PM on February 27th, 2010
Why don’t you do the research and answer the questions for yourself?
10:56 PM on February 27th, 2010
I totally agreed with you. I personally extremely appreciate the public servant like policeman and fireman. They are basically they most respected career within the range. When you told about 90% of the salary at 55. A normal person would see as way beyond reasonable. When a person retire, even 50% of your previous salary would make one a very comfortable life. Considering the medicare are almost all paid for the public servant. Be fair, please compare those public servant who work in major cities from around the world and also compare their government financial status. One can easily tell what is a reasonable compensation. It is a era of globalization, please be open-minded to look out beyond America.
9:47 AM on March 1st, 2010
Why is it that EVERY time a city needs more money, the homeowners get hit first?? Many people are still upside down on their mortgage and having to pay more taxes definitely isn’t helping. All these “government programs” to help homeowners is not helping hardly anyone.
If you must tax, I say increase sales taxes. At least this way, I will have a say in how much I choose to spend, and it will affect everyone equally.