Welcome to MAY on Al's Corner. Where you MAY discuss the clown-show that is Davis politics. At 5:30pm on Tuesday, the AWARDS will be given out. Maybe we'll finally learn who the person nominated is who does "good" and "bad" according to at least one commenter, and what "bad" they did.
But I doubt it.
So talk about anything 😐
By Scott Steward
State leadership is about to let utilities gouge you. Three days before the end of the 2022 legislative session, legislators passed AB 205, a utility flat tax introduced by Newsom as a rider. The bill passed without public discussion.
Now, the CPUC is allowing utilities to hit four million ratepayers with a $24/month utility tax. The hardest hit will be those with a small energy footprint, working families and seniors living in apartments and small homes, as well as people with rooftop solar. (Find out more about the STOP THE UTILITY TAX here). (CALL TO ACTION, MAY 9TH IN SACRAMENTO).
The Utility Tax will add to the pain that these four million households are already feeling from never-ending rate hikes, which have increased by over 30% in California in the last two years.
The CPUC is letting the utilities increase taxes, electricity, and gas rates without a cap, which means the pain will only get worse in the years to come. The $24/month tax is just the start. Utilities have made it clear that they intend to raise the utility tax to $80 a month or more.
More than 250 nonprofit groups and 20 legislators supported AB 1999, which would have capped the Utility Tax at a sensible $10/month and pegged any increases to inflation. But Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas pulled the bill out of the Assembly Utility and Energy Commission (that had the votes to pass the bill).
(From press release) "Davis Housing Solutions: A Community Conversation", a forum organized by Interfaith Housing Justice Davis (IHJD) promises to be an insightful event addressing pressing housing issues and exploring potential solutions. Scheduled for May 16th from 6:30-8:30pm at Davis Community Church, the forum aims to bring together local and regional experts such as Roberto Jimenez CEO of Mutual Housing California and Reverend Connie Simon of the Unitarian Universalist Church, to name a few and moderated by our Mayor, Josh Chapman. Voices from immigrant mothers in our Davis Joint Unified School District ¿Un Cafecito? will be featured, as well as stories from housing-insecure students, the unsheltered, and those striving to purchase their first homes. The forum will explore topics such as affordable housing, social services, and the city's Housing Trust Fund. Attendees will gain insights into how the Housing Trust Fund can effectively address housing challenges in Davis, with a focus on ensuring sustainable funding for its initiatives.
Following the formal presentations, attendees will have the opportunity to question a panel that includes City Council members and city staff, local housing experts and non-profit housing experts. Additionally, representatives from Northern California Legal Services, Mutual Housing California, Empower Yolo and League of Women Voters will be available–offering opportunities for community involvement and contributions to housing equity efforts.
The forum is open to all and free of charge, with donations to the Housing Trust Fund welcomed during registration. Livestreaming information will be provided after registration, allowing broader participation in the conversation.
IHJD urges all community members to participate in shaping the future of housing in Davis.
Register for the forum at Https://bit.ly/interfaithhousing
To contact Interfaith Housing Justice Davis, email Ellen Kolarik at interfaithhjd@gmail.com
Something scandalous appears to be going on with the choice of a Thong Hy Huynh Award by the Human Relations Commission. If you're looking for the answer, you won't find it here. But that's not because I'm dancing around the issue, it's because I honestly don't know what the issue is, and for some reason those who do know what it is only want to imply to the public that there's a issue, but they don't want to say what person they have an issue with, why, or give any details.
By Scott Steward
The necessary actions to combat climate changes are too slow – obvious. Here is some of what the youth had to say to us adults on April 19th. Our local youth from Fresno, Davis, and Sacramento made their voices (short movie clip here) heard at the Capital this past Friday.
California has made good progress, and Yolo County has made more progress. We hope Davis will be as focused and insistent on necessary changes as well.
What can adults do today to help our children's tomorrow? There are many, but one thing stands out in our State, and that is to reverse the 2022-2023 damage inflicted by the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC), shielded by Governor Newsom, to raise our rates and just about crush the last 25 years of residential renewable energy progress in California.
Your utility bills have gone up 30% to pay $5.7 Billion to PG&E to cover climate change costs that an energy judge has already ruled are twice the $2.7 Billion needed. Please consider taking action and reading the op/ed written by Loretta Lynch, former Chair of the CPUC, who got us out of the Enron crisis 20 years ago. Paywall – so the article in full requires a temporary subscription to SF Chronicle – here is an excerpt.
By Alan Hirsch
The Caltrans whistleblower Jamie Wald-Waller accused Caltrans district 3 to beginning widening the causeway illegally- using SHOPP-money i.e. funds reserved to maintain pavement surfaces. If you drive California freeway you know how short we are here on money to maintain what we already have.
But not only does this action by Caltrans a the misappropriation of funds, it is wildly illegal to widen a road without going thru the environmental process.
You can see it happen in this picture of the causeway= the have repaved the center shoulder it already is a new 4th travel lane. This picture was on West Sac End of the causeway east bound on Sunday 4/14/24. You can also notice I-80/ Reed Ave bridge in West Sac is being widening for the new toll lanes with money that was supposed to be only used for road maintenance.
Caltrans official I District 3 will likely get away with no consequences.
Even if you think we need the widening, should it not go thru the legal process—that has enabled added thousand of miles of new lane in the past?
This reflect a culture of corruption: If Caltrans District 3 is institutionally willing to do, why should anyone trust them on any report or application?
It seems if you have enough money the law is not an impediment to accomplishing your goals. One can also question who the elected officials in Yolo County who have said not a word as this illegal behavior works to accomplish their goals.
by Elaine Roberts Musser
Finally the City of Davis commission merger issue is being brought back to some of the affected commissions for their feedback. Unfortunately city staff and some of the City Councilmembers are acting as if their terribly flawed plans for merged commissions are a done deal.
For example, last week the city began recruiting members for two of the proposed merged commissions (Fiscal Commission; Transportation Commission). And, this Wednesday, the first of an expected series of hearings will be held at the Utility Commission, to review a mission statement drafted by the City Council Subcommittee (Vaitla; Chapman) for the new Finance Commission that would be created by combining Utilities Commission with the Finance and Budget Commission. The Utilities Commission staff report states that it is seeking feedback on the proposed scope of work for what it calls the “newly created commissions.”
These commissions have not been “newly created,” as the full City Council only approved them in concept last January. It did not provide final approval in the form of official council resolutions and, in some cases, new city ordinances, that are needed to actually implement such mergers.
none of it becomes official until the City Council adopts updated authorizing resolutions.”
The proposal to merge commissions is still extremely flawed:
Disparate skill sets – Merging two commissions will require an incredibly steep if not impossible learning curve for commissioners to become well-versed in disparate commission missions.
More difficulty recruiting applicants – Because applicants for the proposed merged commission need expertise in both commission missions and meetings are apt to run long to cover all the ground required, it will be difficult to recruit citizens to serve on the merged commissions.
Time constraints – The agendas of commissions are often quite full. A merging of two commissions will result in half as much time spent on critical issues and much longer meetings.
Proposed scope inadequate, vague and unclear – The proposed scoping statements appearing in the city’s press release and staff reports for the new Finance Commission and Transportation Commission omit many functions of existing commissions and has been simplified so much that they are vague and unclear. The draft mission statements for the other commissions remain secret as of now.
ONCE AGAIN, PLEASE VOICE YOUR CONCERNS ABOUT THIS TERRIBLE MERGER PLAN TO CITY OFFICIALS. MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD THROUGH EMAILS TO THE FULL COUNCIL (citycouncilmembers@cityofdavis.org), AT COMMISSION MEETINGS (the Utilities Commission meets Wednesday, April 17, in the City Council chambers conference room), PUBLIC COMMENT AT CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS (next meeting is April
23) AND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (to the Davis Enterprise, Davisite, and Davis Vanguard).
$10+ at rush hour - but Tahoe Groups go free!
By Alan Hirsch
Policies that will decide how hi the tolls will be on new I-80 lanes will be discussed at little publicized hearing Tuesday April 9th 5:30 at the West Sacramento Public Library. Zoom will be available. This may be the first – and maybe last- chance for most members to make oral public comments as future toll agency meetings will be held during the day in DT Sacramento SACOG offices, where zoom-in comments are not allowed.
Staff for this new agency members have also shared they believe, under the proposed policies, they expect tolls on I-80 for Davis commuter may typically be $10 each way at congestion times– or even more when congestion is worst -even $40). But they are proposing 3-in-a- car will go toll free- a policy that seems to differentially favor Tahoe recreational travelers over commuters.
The hearing by the California Transportation Commission (CTC) will take input on setting up a new agency and making policies for the proposed 17 miles of new toll lane that run from I-80 in Dixon to both I-80 and I-50 Sacramento River Bridges. The agency will decide how tolls are set, who get discounted tolls, and how the toll revenue will be used. The Agency sponsors are SACOG and Yolo Transportation District. YoloTD is chaired by Davis Mayor Josh Chapman who is also the Davis’s representative on SACOG.
The following email was received by members of the Sierra Club Yolano Group Management Committee yesterday (Apr 4, 2024) in response to the email outlining the recommendations of the Sierra Club Management Committee for Davis downtown housing projects:
Thank you for taking the time to send us your thoughts on the downtown Davis housing projects. While your email has been received by the City Council members, I want to take this opportunity to respond to your comments.
Please let me know if you have any further questions or comments.
SHERRI A. METZKER
Community Development Director
By David J. Thompson
I feel that I must ask the citizens and voters of Davis for your forgiveness relating to what did not happen with the 150-unit senior housing project assigned to Delta Senior Housing Communities (DSHC) at the Bretton Woods project. My apology is because in 2021 DSHC without a word to the City of Davis or the public abandoned the four-year Bretton Woods project. So what was promised to the public by DSHC is not going to happen.
From 2016 through 2021 I worked tirelessly on behalf of Delta Senior Housing Communities, Inc. (DSHC) to win passage of Measure J (approval of what is now Bretton Woods). If Measure J passed then DSHC would be given five acres of land to build 150 units of low-income affordable senior housing. Although I asked the President of DSHC to help me win passage he never did and in three years he did not attend any of the many neighborhood meetings or the twice weekly booth at the Davis Farmers Market. I think the DSHC President may have attended one event but in that four-year campaign none of the other three DSCH officers/board members ever attended any event or even wrote a letter of support to the Davis Enterprise.
During that time I began to think that DSHC was hardly functioning as the board of a non-profit tax-exempt entity.
Davisite 