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Pension Reform: The Time is Now California is in the midst of another painful budget season, where we are forced to make cuts to important programs and consider other extreme measures to close a $19.1 billion deficit. While there are many factors that led to this, we have clearly seen that the size of our state’s government has become unsustainable, and one of the primary reasons is the state’s pension system, which is in desperate need of reform. For decades, California has been issuing billions of dollars of unfunded pension debt without the approval of voters, and then using accounting rules to understate the size of that debt, most notably in 1999 with SB 400, a monumentally bad bill which sailed through the legislature in a matter of minutes with little debate. Those lawmakers just assumed that a rising stock market would cover pension costs, but as we see today, they were wrong. As a result, recent studies by Stanford, the University of Chicago, and Northwestern estimate that our state now has $500 billion in unfunded pension debt. The burden for these mistakes of the past unfortunately falls on education, higher education, public safety, and other programs whose budgets must be cut in order to service this unfunded debt. As hard as it may be to believe, state spending on retirement benefits this year is actually greater than state spending on UC and CSU. This is not right, and it shows poor priorities. The pension system simply has to be reformed so we don't continue to divert billions of dollars from needy programs. Consider these numbers: In fact, this year the state will spend more than $30 billion on employee compensation and benefits, up more than 60% over that same period. Had that spending grown at the same rate as revenues (18%), we'd have nearly $10 billion more this year to spend on higher education and other programs in desperate need of more funds. We have received our wake up call, and we must act. It’s time to reform pensions, so that we do not keep writing checks that we cannot cash. We can’t do anything about the promises we have already made to existing state workers, but we can reform the packages we promise to new hires, so that they do not continue to handcuff our state for generations. When I announced the May revised budget, I said that I would not sign a final budget that does not reform the state’s pensions, budget system, and tax code. If the reforms I have been calling for had been in place over the last 10 years, this year’s deficit would be $10 billion less. California will continue to see devastating budget cuts and calls for higher taxes until the system is reformed, so that is why I am taking this stand. This is the year for the legislature to finally take my call seriously, and make sure Californians have a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, not of the employees, by the employees, and for the employees. Guest Editorial: Goleta Beach is a Park Not an Experiment You may have noticed a series of marketing pieces lately that entice readers to believe the only way to save Goleta Beach is with the passage of Goleta Beach 2.0. This radical agenda is being played out at Goleta Beach County Park by special interest groups that want to hold our County Supervisors hostage. It will eliminate any protection at our Park from storm surges by removing existing rock protections that now protects this public property. Remember the Blue Line Special we were asked to swallow a couple of years ago. Now we are to believe that we have lost the battle, all the polar caps are melting, that the oceans are taking over the world and Goleta Beach Park is now at the center of this new universe. So by taking out the rock backstops that were strategically placed in 2002-05, these fringe groups can link the next El Nino storms, that have hammered the California coastlines for centuries, to man-made global warming and say, I told you so. Let’s breakdown the facts. Currently, there are several hundred linear feet of buried rocks along the Goleta Beach Park property. Goleta 2.0 recommends removing approximately 900 feet of these rocks on the west side, with the lions share protecting the grass park, our restrooms, picnic benches, and playground structure. They want to take out these rocks that are protecting the park with no recommended alternative for protection. These rocks were placed there by our County Parks Department strategically to protect the park after severe storms washed away part of the park and the public outcry to save the park was heard. These rocks were placed strategically and set back beyond what is called the “high high tide line”. Waves do not hit these rocks except during severe winter storms. They are not a seawall; they do not touch the water at all. What this means is that these rocks are only protecting the park, the parking lot, and underground utilities as the last line of defense against major storm surges. So because of their location, they have no impact on the normal ebb and flow of tides and therefore don’t interfere with the natural processes of sand migration up and down the coast. Yet, you will hear the environmental opposition tout over and over again that the “rock wall” is causing erosion as wave action hits the rocks. This simply is not true. More importantly, those in support of 2.0 will have you believe that these rocks on the west side are causing catastrophic damage to our beach with loss of sand. They even want you to believe that a recent sewage spill is a result of the rock placement. Turns out it was a human mechanical error. Nothing could be further from the truth. As a matter of fact, if you go out to the park today, you will not see any of these rocks because they are buried far below grass, soil, and sand, a solid insurance policy for the next big storm backstop when needed. These organizations (Surfrider Foundation, Environmental Defense Center) will not stop short of there goal of abandoning our park in the name of “saving our beach”. They have controlled the process, the plan, and the recommendations coming out of Goleta Beach 2.0 in a near vacuum. If this plan were to be implemented, parking would be eliminated, utilities would have to be moved and our park would have no backstop protections against known El Nino storms. Just to show the ridiculousness of this plan, the utilities would only be set back some 20-25 feet from their current locations at the cost of millions of dollars. To our knowledge, none of the utility companies have agreed to this idea and have indicated to the County that they wouldn’t pay for it to be done. This means the taxpayers will pay. This plan even goes so far as to recommend installing additional rock revetments at another section of the park to protect a sewage outfall. The irony: take existing rocks out that protect our park and its visitors but install new ones to protect a sewage facility? These fringe groups are aligned with the California Coastal Commission, who have ordered the County to remove the rocks. Why? Because these unelected set of commissioners are driving an initiative called “managed retreat” which says to all California, we will not have protection along our coastline and this mandate starts at Goleta Beach Park. Our County Supervisors have a choice to make – bow to the Coastal Commission’s edict, take out the rocks and abandon the public’s investment in this park, or find a way to work with the Coastal Commission on a plan that will protect our current park and our 1.4 million citizens who use it yearly. At this moment, the Board of Supervisors has decided to vote on Goleta 2.0 Master Plan with an up or down vote July 6th. We ask you to review the Plan, and the resultant consequences. The plan can be viewed at http://www.countyofsb.org/parks/parks07.aspx?id=16864 and the impacts on the Friends of Goleta Beach Park site www.friendsofgoletabeachpark.org. Contact your County supervisor and/or come to the hearing as your voice needs to be heard. They are our leadership on this public land and let’s hope they also see that Goleta Beach 2.0 spends millions and saves nothing. They have a moral obligation to be the leaders who stand up and protect this community treasure, today, tomorrow and for future generations. What’s Next? November’s Ballot Measures As the Chambers of Commerce Alliance begins to address ballot measures on the Nov. 2, 2010 ballot, there are some noteworthy results to report from the recent June primary election. Most business leaders are excited about the convincing victory of Prop. 14, which won by nearly ten points and will help independent minded candidates be more competitive. Both major parties vehemently opposed Prop. 14 and are considering legal options. Another win for business interests was the defeat of Prop. 15, the so-called “Fair Elections Act” that would have repealed the state’s ban on public financing of campaigns. It lost 58-42%. To see a complete list of the propositions that the Chambers of Commerce Alliance took positions on and some additional analysis click here. So far, six initiatives have qualified for the Nov. 2 ballot, with several more expected to be approved by the Secretary of State’s office soon. Those that have qualified include:
Among the pending ballot measures awaiting signature verification are:
The Chambers of Commerce Alliance will be crafting positions on most of these initiatives in the coming weeks. For more information, please visit www.ChamberAlliance.biz. Airbus Announces Expanded ‘Express’ Schedule to LAX During primetime morning hours, this express service will now depart the South Coast every hour for LAX, with return trips weighed heavily for the afternoon crowd returning to the Santa Barbara area. Moreover, getting out of LAX has never been quicker. With the expanded service, Airbus expects to increase ridership from air travelers seeking convenience, comfort and cost savings. It has been an exciting year for Santa Barbara Airbus. The Santa Barbara Airbus has just celebrated its 27th year of providing quality transportation services for Santa Barbara County and the surrounding area. And, for the first time in 20 years Airbus has moved into new more spacious facilities located at 750 Technology Drive in Goleta. For more information or reservations contact 964-7759 or www.sbairbus.com. Tour the Natural Attractions of Coal Oil Point Welcome aboard the “Condor Express” with Sea Landing for seep tours on June 26th and September 25th. Persons of any age may attend. It is a great morning out for the whole family! There are two tours starting at either 8:30 am or 10:30 am and the two-hour tour costs $10 per person. The tours begin in the Santa Barbara Harbor at the Sea Landing dock. You will board the “Condor Express” and travel up the coast to Coal Oil Point. Participants view the 6,000 gallons of oil that seeps naturally and 5 million cubic feet of natural gas that rises from the ocean floor each day. Next the boat motors over to Platform Holly to view the oil platform close up while learning how it operates. All along the way, the Condor Express captain will point out the marine mammals that call the Santa Barbara area home. Contact Sea Landing today at 882-0088 to reserve your seat. If you have questions, please contact Marybeth Carty at 745-2282 or mcarty@venocoinc.com. Celebrate the Fourth of July in GoletaFamily Fun Fair Old-Fashioned 4th of July Celebration Goleta Fireworks Festival Join the Sweet Fun at the Lemon FestivalThe Lemon Festival Committee is looking for you to join the team at the 2010 California Lemon Festival on October 17th & 18th. The committee is growing and looking for more volunteers to join the Arts & Crafts Committee and the Volunteer Committee. Many volunteers are also needed to work on the weekend of the Festival. Go to http://www.lemonfestival.com/vendor-information to download an application for the weekend or contact Sylvia Redding for more information about how to serve on a committee. Sylvia can be reached at Sylvia@goletavalley.com or 805-967-2500 ext. 5. Chamber Hires Business and Communications Coordinator; Says Goodbye to Kushnerov Our Vice President Valerie Kushnerov has accepted the Public Information Officer position at the City of Goleta. Her time at the Chamber will end in mid-July. We wish her the best in her new position. As many of you know, Max White, our Director of Business Development and Volunteers has been working from Santa Barbara and Washington State over the last month. She had given notice to the Chamber because of family commitments but has agreed to stay on through the summer to accommodate the other staffing changes. Top 10 Business Categories Searched on GoletaValleyChamber.com (5/1-6/1) Share Your Wealth
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