tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8236405782975490260.post543495094370670252..comments2023-08-12T01:26:07.449-07:00Comments on Valley Economy: Stockton's Proposed Plan of Adjustment Assumes Sales Tax Increase is Permanent. City Council Should Reject Draft Plan.Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10344751623916759400noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8236405782975490260.post-57465711520859344002013-10-03T00:32:26.275-07:002013-10-03T00:32:26.275-07:00Thanks Jeff.Thanks Jeff.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8236405782975490260.post-49824228560488901892013-10-02T14:12:53.681-07:002013-10-02T14:12:53.681-07:00Anonymous,
The position is this. If the City has...Anonymous,<br /><br />The position is this. If the City has a strong financial plan that controls costs and provides for a balanced budget out of bankruptcy and beyond the tax expiration date, then I think people should vote for Measure A. The City needs to move forward from the Marshall Plan. But people can't reasonably make a decision without seeing the City's financial plan. Bob Deis said that is why they felt compelled to release this now even though some creditor settlements are still uncertain. <br /><br />So I reviewed the City's financial plan in detail, and observed that it falls short. Don't focus on my words, read the financial projections and decide for yourself. It shows the City running budget deficits for 8 consecutive years after passing Measure A; drawing down a small fund balance created in the first two years because it will not have hired all the new police yet. In 2024, the City projections show a near zero fund balance (absolutely no buffer for a new recession or other downward surprise), and a massive deficit if the tax expires as is written directly in the ballot measure. <br /><br />Thus, my position is that the City should revise its financial plan to include more cost controls so as to provide an adequate budget reserve against contingency and a reasonable expectation that Measure A could expire in 10 years.<br /><br />If I recall, the cause of the City's mess is expenditures higher than revenues that were caused by the City making commitments that it couldn't reasonably sustain. <br /><br />Jeff<br />Jeffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10344751623916759400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8236405782975490260.post-91432533336908882372013-10-02T13:13:52.830-07:002013-10-02T13:13:52.830-07:00Jeff - considering that you are Director of the Bu...Jeff - considering that you are Director of the Business Forecasting Center and Associate professor @ UOP, I am disappointed. The following excerpts is the sort of gobbledygook that confuses more than it informs. And frankly, IMO, is a disservice to those who would look to you for direction. And partly, it is this sort of "lane splitting" that got us into this mess. If persons with your credentials and analytic skills would actually take a position on something backed by sound and succinct reasoning, the world would be better served.<br /><br />"I believe a 3/4 cent sales tax increase is necessary, if not an obligation, for the City to emerge from bankruptcy."<br /><br />"In short, I agree with the City's long-run need for a general 3/4 cent tax increase. But it is more important to get the City's long-term budget in balance, and to keep the promises made to voters. This plan fails to keep the promises made to Voters in Measure A, and thus needs significant revision."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com