January 9th, 2009, 6:30 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
 So there’s good news and bad news.
- The good news is that, despite the awful economy, Orange County’s donations to those iconic Salvation Army kettles grew 31.4 percent in 2008, over the year before.
- The bad news: The now-infamous Brea kettle - booted from its traditional spot outside the Birch Street post office and relocated to Brea Mall - actually took in 12.7 percent less in 2008 than the year before.
The Brea story isn’t as dire as it seems: The kettle wasn’t doing so well at the post office for the eight days it was there - averaging just $133 per day. Once it moved to the mall, it averaged $277 per day (and stayed for 18 days), according to Salvation Army figures.
Colleague Lou Ponsi unleashed a firestorm when he wrote about how Sean Thomas complained about a church kettle on federal land at the Brea post office. Turns out that U.S. Postal Service regulations prohibit any organization from soliciting on post office property.
And so the kettle moved, to a spot outside Brea Mall’s J.C. Penney store. That made a lot of people mad - one man sought out the kettle and stuffed in a $500 check in protest - and Thomas received lots of nasty  phone calls and emails.
In the wake of such church v. state fireworks, another kettle was asked to leave a Placentia post office’s property. But several others were allowed to stay. Donations had been lagging more than 30 percent before the controversy hit, and the Salvation Army sees the whole episode as a blessing in disguise.
“The total reponse was such a positive - I think it raised people’s awareness,” said Barry Frost of the Salvation Army. ”People saw the kettles and really noticed them, thought ‘This is an organization that needs help,’ and wanted to show that they care.”
Here are the kettle contribution totals for 2008:
- Countywide: $260,138.47 (up from $197,954.92)
- Brea kettle: $6,049.76 (down from $6,932.42)
Qualifiers: The Brea kettle averaged almost the same take per day in both years, give or take a dollar. In 2008, it was out for 26 days; and in 2007, it was out for 30 days. The average was about $232 per day.
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Posted in: Churches • Money • Nonprofits | 6 Comments »
January 8th, 2009, 6:30 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
 Charges of who gets which perks have been flying like cannonballs as hundreds of county workers lose their jobs - and the truth is, the county’s benefits package for workers is pretty sweet.
All workers - from executives to grunts - get $3,000 a year for educational and professional advancement.
The county pays 95 percent of health benefits for all full-time employees (and 75 percent for their dependents).
Elected officials have 100 percent of their health benefits paid for - and that means 100 percent for dependents, too.
“The county’s benefits coverage appears relatively generous in this day and age, notably the health care (and payment) plan, the dental plan, and the educational and professional reimbursement plan,” said David Lewin, the Neil H. Jacoby Professor of Management, Human Resources & Organizational Behavior at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management in an email.
“Alternatively, the lack of a merit pay plan for executive managers and a rather limited merit pay plan for administrative managers are rather ‘poor’ features of the overall benefits package.”
Of course, the higher up you are, the better the package; It’s good to be king. But isn’t it always?
To see a chart of what Lewin saw - and what we’re about to discuss - click here on benefits-comparison. (Thanks to the county for providing this easy-to-look-at spreadsheet.) And now, to the meat of things.
Some highlights: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in: County government • Employee unions • Money • Sheriff's department • Taxes | 31 Comments »
January 8th, 2009, 6:29 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
 (Read the ‘Class warfare’ story about county benefits first)
Orange County Employees Association General Manager Nick Berardino pored over the county’s benefits spreadsheet (benefits-comparison), and offers “a little ground fire from the guys in the cheap seats” (or, alternately, a view “from the trenches of the lower class in the class war”):
“They left off a big (huge) ticket item…payment for the employees normal retirement costs by the county for the elected, execs, and managers,” Berardino said by email. “Also the management banding which ensures that almost 100 percent get the 2 percent merit increase, where only about half our folks get the merit increase (most are at the top of pay range and were not part of new manager banding).
“The fully paid health insurance is huge for the electeds with families. The fully paid dental etc. is also very big. The real issue is a comparison in the benefits for the plan. We have to use the 30 cents per hour for dental, life, disability and optical. You can imagine that the benefits in those plans can’t be very great because of the limited amount of money to cover all the programs.
“Also they don’t get overtime, but they get an extra week of paid administrative leave that they use for
anything they want in lieu of overtime and their salary is set based on working more hours and not receiving overtime so they get a double.”
Other observations from OCEA:
- General salary increase scheduled for 2009: “Managers 3 percent, Lower class “0″. This stat is extremely significant because we were in negotiation only a few weeks after this increase was granted to the managers and we requested the same amount for 09 and the county refused to grant it for us !!!!!!!”
- Union members get $25,000 worth of life insurance (paid from the 30-cents-per hour, per worker, furnished by the county to pay for all supplemental benefits), while the bigwigs get $100,000 or $125,000 .
- “A manager comes in for a couple of hours and then leaves and does not report the absence so they get paid for 8 hours and there is more time that they are saving to cashout when they leave or during the year when they can …”
- Law Enforcement Managers-Special Assignment Premium of 5 percent.
- Equity Adjustments- The CEO can based upon considerations such as market data, internal salary relationships, position responsibilities, individual performance and sound management principles approve individual salary increases which shall not exceed 25 percent
- The county did not include details about the “defined benefits pension plan” on the spreadsheet. Details are forthcoming.
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Posted in: County government • Employee unions • Money • Taxes | 1 Comment »
January 7th, 2009, 6:30 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
 William Denis Fitzgerald has earned a reputation as - how shall we say it? - a Colorful Character….A Thorn In the Side of the Powerful. He dubbed Anaheim’s Curt Pringle “a silver-tongued devil” when he challenged Pringle for the mayor’s seat, then took on the “Disney candidate” for the Anaheim Union High School Board.
Fitzgerald lost both elections. But, in the aftermath of February’s school board faceoff, he has scored a victory in Small Claims Court, which sheds light on our free and fair electoral process. It could also open a can of worms for the financially-strapped County of Orange.
WORDS COST MONEY!
You know those Voter Guides with the ”candidate’s statements” that land in your mailbox before Election Day? They are not exactly provided gratis by the good County; rather, the candidates statements are paid for by the candidates themselves.
And some pay quite handsomely. In the June election:
- A candidate for Superior Court judge had to cough up $41,408 up front;
- A candidate for Orange County Supervisor had to pay more than $10,000;
- While other candidates paid between $1,550 and $6,000 to publish their statements.
These are estimates, according to the Orange County Registrar of Voters; actual costs are computed after the election, and refunds are usually given. (The judge candidate’s refund, for example: Nearly $22,000).
But that’s not how it worked out for Fitzgerald, a conservative activist with Anaheim HOME (Homeowners Maintaining their Environment). Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in: Elections • Justice | 2 Comments »
January 6th, 2009, 10:01 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
 Can American International Group ever hope to repay Uncle Sam that $150 billion if it keeps casting its pearls before swine?
Many naysayers fear taxpayers will never see that money again - and one might add former AIG executive Maurice “Hank” Greenberg to the list. In a cranky letter to AIG’s board of directors - which he copied to the Securities and Exchange Commission - Greenberg complains that the recent sale of a profitable AIG subsidiary at pond scum prices dooms the insurance empire he so painstakingly helped build.
“The press has reported, and AIG management has confirmed, that AIG intends to sell HSB to Munich Re for approximately $742 million,” Greenberg writes. “This can only be viewed as a distressed sale price. Indeed, Joerg Schneider, the Chief Financial Officer of Munich Re, has been quoted as stating: ‘The sales price is, considering the profitability of the acquired company, very lo w.’”
And here’s the kicker for you and me, who now own 80 percent of AIG: “Certainly, selling major assets at fire sale prices is not a viable strategy for reviving the company or even repaying the government.”
So, $742 million down; $149.3 billion or so to go. Not that we’re counting or anything.
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Posted in: AIG • Federal spending • Financial meltdown • Money • Taxes | Post a Comment »
January 6th, 2009, 6:30 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
 Less than two months after winning re-election to the Irvine Ranch Water District’s board of directors, long-time board member Darryl Miller has resigned.
That means Irvine Ranch is free to appoint Miller’s successor, rather than enduring the sloppiness, chaos and profound unpredictability of a democratic election.
There may be something of a pattern here. The overwhelming majority of Irvine Ranch’s board - four out of five members - were originally appointed, not elected, to their seats.
Once in, these appointees go on to win elections (as incumbents) and it’s hard to get them out: Miller, for example, was originally appointed in 1984.
 (Appoint-rather-than-elect is a disturbingly common phenomenon in Orange County. Nearly half of those sitting on local water boards were originally appointed, not elected. See our October story for more details.)
Miller’s resignation is not exactly a surprise. Some little birdies in the oft-contentious water world told The Watchdog this was coming more than two weeks ago. Said birdies question whether Miller ever intended to actually take his seat.
To which Miller says “hogwash.” He told us this via email:
“I decided to run for re-election last July before the candidate filing
process started in preparation for the November 4, 2008 election. After my
re-election, I became aware of some professional opportunities that will be
available in early 2009. I subsequently began to consider whether I could
effectively fulfill my term if I wanted to pursue these opportunities.
After much personal deliberation in December, I decided to resign from IRWD
for the benefit of my career, family, and financial opportunities. I
regretfully resigned from IRWD effective December 31, 2008.”
To the idea that Irvine Ranch might purposefully avoid elections so it can appoint who it wants, district spokeswoman Beth Beeman said by email:
“All of IRWD’s current Board members have been publicly elected by residents of the district and serve four year terms. Every two years the public participates in elections conducted by IRWD for the alternating board seat terms.
“If IRWD receives a notice of resignation from a sitting Board member, be it for personal, professional or other reasons, the district follows the process provided for in California law to fill the vacant Board seat in an expeditious and fair manner.”
Irvine Ranch isn’t just any little special district. It’s one of the richest and most powerful in California. It posted on its web site Monday that it’s taking applications for an open seat - a good opportunity for someone who has a hankering to serve (for the next quarter-century or so) and be paid $237 a meeting, up to 10 meetings per month. (That can translate into nearly $30,000 a year for a part-time job; not bad in this economy.)
Applications are due by Feb. 4, and a “candidate forum” will be held Feb. 9. More info is available at the district’s web site here.
MILLER’S CHANGE OF HEART
 In his candidate’s statement for the November 4 election, which you can read here, Miller touted his 24-plus years with the district and pledged continued vigilance. “As a geologist and water quality professional, I am keenly interested and experienced in protecting our water supplies from the influence of toxic waste products…. I pledge my continued commitment to control the District’s costs and secure a reliable and safe water supply for our future needs. Thank you for your continued support.”
In his resignation letter - dated Dec. 30 - Miller says he plans to “pursue professional opportunities in the future that could create a potential conflict of interest” if he remains on Irvine Ranch’s board. (Read the miller-resignation-letter- here.) He also plans to spend more time with his family.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in: Elections • Justice • Special districts • Water | Post a Comment »
January 5th, 2009, 6:30 am by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
The head of the Orange County Employees Association - the largest union covering county workers - took in $201,185 in the last fiscal year, according to the union’s tax returns.
That rivals checks cut for the Orange County Board of Supervisors, with whom the union is locked in battle over looming layoffs. Each supes’ base salary is $143,031; their total compensation exceeds $200,000 a year, once all benefits are thrown in.
The union’s general manager, Nick Berardino, said that his pay is the product of history. In 1959, the union’s board of directors decided to tie its executive’s salary to that of the county’s personnel director, and it has been that way ever since.
The county’s personnel director earns a little shy of $186,000; Berardino, a little shy of $182,000.
“The purpose of that was so the general manager could be recruited from the same talent pool, and to cap the GM’s salary,” Berardino said. “In addition to his salary, the personnel director gets a car allowance of $765 a month, which is $9,120 a year; and he gets an additional $4,500 in an optional benefit plan.
“I get no car allowance, no mileage, no optional benefit plan. My retirement plan is about 1.2 percent (of salary) at (age) 65, compared to their 2.7 percent at 55. Hey, I’ll trade my salary and benefits program for theirs tomorrow.
“Here’s the point,” he said. “We are unable to provide to myself or our staff anywhere near the benefit package that the county’s executives and managers and even the rank and file members get. We just can’t afford to do that.”
The union’s tax return lists $201,185 as Berardino’s compensation - more than his salary - because it includes other cash payments, he said.
Nerves are raw today as layoff notices are delivered to hundreds of county social workers. The county is struggling to plug an $86 million hole in its budget.
For more on the union’s finances, click here.
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So there’s good news and bad news.
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