AUGUST 2009
VOLUME1II/ ISSUE VIII
| DISTRICT 3 | AUGUST 2009 |
VOLUME1II/ ISSUE VIII |
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Downtown Residents Are Invited To A Summer BBQ
Event Details & RSVP
I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member. Seven months ago, when I was asked to become a trustee to one of the City’s two retirement plans, I did so with one proviso: that I would do everything possible to kick myself off the board. Why? Our multi-billion dollar pension funds didn’t need to fill their boards with more elected officials, but rather with financial and actuarial experts. City rules require that two councilmembers serve as trustees of each fund, yet remarkably, they do not require any expertise from these trustees, who oversee the management of billions of our retirees’ and taxpayers’ dollars. Though usually well-intentioned, retirement board members in San José (and in many other major cities) rely largely on information gleaned from staff, consultant reports, and occasional seminars, without any independent expertise. To improve these and other deficiencies, Cortex Applied Research has proposed a set of reforms, click here to review. Public outreach meetings have been scheduled to discuss these proposals (see the information below). The current economic maelstrom doesn’t help; taxpayers will contribute an additional $50 million in 2010—and nearly as much in subsequent years—just to cover the billion-dollar fund losses left by the 2008 market collapse. The problem runs much deeper than a bad streak on Wall Street, however. Even before the recent market collapse, San José’s funds failed to meet the board’s lofty assumptions for long-term returns—about 8.9% after expenses. In contrast, Warren Buffett, a man who knows something about investing, assumes returns of 6.9% for his Berkshire Hathaway pension fund. San José’s overly optimistic assumptions have led to underfunding, shifting burdens to taxpayers and future generations. The plans have also invested in equity-heavy portfolios, which expose retirees and taxpayers to excessive risk during market downturns. Other problems plague San José’s funds. An excessive number of fund managers and brokers generate a steady stream of commissions at the expense of retirees. For example, some two hundred brokerage firms earned commissions from the Police and Fire Retirement Plan in fiscal year 2007-08, a year when over 50 fund managers invested money for the City’s two plans. Excessive trustee travel expenses also made the news in late 2008, when the City Auditor issued its findings. (I have pushed—with Councilmembers Rose Herrera and Pete Constant--to sharply curtail trustee travel, and those reforms remain under board consideration.) Yet these maladies pale in comparison to the unhappier reality of San José’s retirement benefits: we can’t afford them. Years of overpromising our employees have left our residents with unfunded retiree pension and medical liabilities exceeding $4 billion. We’re hardly alone; some municipalities and states, like New Jersey, have liabilities exceeding the value of all of their employee pension assets. Nationally, public plans, in the aggregate, run over a trillion dollars in the red. What to do? Under the state constitution, and for moral reasons, we must keep our commitments to those retired police officers, firefighters, and librarians who reasonably relied upon them. So, proposed reforms should start by reducing benefits for new hires (as several states, like Michigan, have already done), and imposing reasonable cost-sharing measures, like higher co-payments on medical benefits. State law also requires that these changes come by union consent at the bargaining table, so we need to embark on collaborative but difficult negotiation as labor contracts expire in the coming months. In the meantime, we should at least begin with one improvement that we can all agree upon: Kick me off the board. Sincerely, Sam Liccardo
Sam and City of Cupertino Councilmember Dolly Sandoval introduce an act on the main stage at the San Jose Jazz Festival. |
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Contact Us D3 Staff |
You Can Aid in the Fight Against Graffiti The photographs and information will be added to the database and reviewed by investigators. This collaborative effort between law enforcement and concerned citizens will result in a greater number of incidents being recorded, which will reduce graffiti incidents by increasing arrests.
Pension Plan Outreach You are invited to attend a meeting to discuss how the City’s two pension plans are managed. Provide feedback regarding the management structure and how we can make the systems more efficient. A full report on the City’s pensions can be found online. Two stakeholder outreach meetings have been scheduled for August 26th and 27th.
Text For Information
Help Shape San Jose’s Future With Wikiplanning Complete the survey and you will be eligible to win complimentary tickets from San Jose arts, entertainment and cultural organizations. You can also learn more about the project, provide feedback in the discussion forum or post and comment on photos. Follow these simple instructions to participate: 1) go to www.wikiplanning.org 2) enter your email address 3) use the password 2040. For more information on the general plan process, please click here. You can also sign up for email updates here too. |
Kudos to Beautification Committee
Make A Difference - Join a City of San José Board or Commission
Greenprint Update The Greenprint document, the City’s 20-year strategic plan for parks, recreation facilities and programs, is a guide for City staff, partner agencies and developers on priorities and standards in developing a balanced and equitable parks and recreation system. The beneficiaries — you — can provide input during the public comments meetings. Included in this plan are the completed studies on the Community Center Reuse Strategy Plan, the Aquatics Master Plan, the Sports Fields Study, and the Pricing and Revenue Plan. Voice your thoughts during the meetings held Saturday, September 12, and Wednesday, September 16, at City Hall Council Wing Room 120. Meeting times will be determined soon. Comments on the draft may be submitted to greenprint@sanjoseca.gov by August 31, 2009, 5 p.m. For more information, please call the Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services at 408.793.5571. Please visit the website for more info and meeting details: www.sjparks.org/greenprint. |
Make a Difference by Coaching |
Safeway Opens This Month in The 88
The ribbon cutting ceremony will commence at 1 p.m.., which is open to residents and businesspeople. The store will open that afternoon after 2 p.m. |
Anti-Graffiti Community Volunteer Event Lend a hand to help wipe out graffiti in your neighborhood in this citywide graffiti abatement effort. The City of San José Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services will provide the anti-graffiti kits at 501 Vine Street (cross streets: Almaden Blvd., and Woz Way). For more information, please call the Anti-Graffiti Program at 408.277.3208. Golf for Jobs Tournament The Center for Employment Training and City of San José Clean Slate Tattoo-Removal Program is hosting the Golf for Jobs Tournament with former NFL player celebrity guests Joe Kapp and Dana Stubblefield. This year’s prizes include two roundtrip tickets on Southwest, an LCD flat-screen TV, and tickets to Disneyland. Diabetes Care: How Can We Do It Better? The Diabetes Coalition of Santa Clara County and the Countywide Chronic Care Coalition invite you to help change diabetes care in Santa Clara County. If you’re personally affected by diabetes you will have the chance to share what you’d like improved. If you know someone with diabetes, learn what you can do to help. Learn more at http://www.diabetescoalitionscc.org or call (408) 207-0178. A Mothers Tea for Healthy Babies You are cordially invited to A Mothers Tea for Healthy Babies, a fundraiser for the Coalition for Alcohol and Drug Free Pregnancies (CADPF). Proceeds will be used to reduce the number of babies born affected by exposure to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. Register at http://motherstea.eventbrite.com or call (800)-310-2332. Bark in the Park Join the Valley’s premier event for dog lovers and their pets. Activities include a dog water park, agility course, specialty vendors, performing dogs, vaccinations and much more. Additionally, there is a Dog Costume Contest (11a.m.), a Silly Dog Tricks Contest (12 p.m.) and a Pet/Owner Look Alike Contest (1p.m.). For more information, please visit http://www.barksanjose.org. 4th Annual American Indian Heritage Celebration Honoring the American Indian Nations, the Big Time Powwow Indian Market celebration will host information booths, vendor booths, food booths, tribal displays, language information, a health fair, dance presentations, honoring presentations, cultural crafts and activities, a horseshoe tournament, Indian football, hand games, and a kids’ fun zone. For more information, please call Vernon Medicine Cloud at 408.445.3400 x208 or email vmcloud@ihcscv.org. You can visit the Web site at www.americanindianheritage.org. Wine Tasting Reception The Positive Alternative Recreation Teambuilding Impacting (P.A.R.T.I.) Program will host the Beshoff Motorcars Mercedes Benz Wine Tasting VIP Reception on Friday, October 2, 2009 from 6pm to 9pm at the Beshoff Motorcars Dealership. Tickets are $25 in advance and $35 at the door. Guests will enjoy a silent auction, wine tasting, networking, appetizers and live entertainment. Confirmed distinguished guest include former Assistant Superintendent Franklin McKinley School District Sandra Will , City of San Jose Councilmember’s Nora Campos, Rose Herrera, Kansen Chu, Ash Kalra, and Sam Liccardo, the office of the City of San Jose Police Chief, the office Board of Supervisor George Shirakawa, and State Assembly Member Joe Coto. Additionally, a Fashion Show Fundraiser will be held on Saturday, October 3, 2009 at the San Jose State University Ballroom (One Washington Square , San Jose , CA 95192 ). There will be youth attending from every council district in San Jose. Both events will raise money to support the P.A.R.T.I. Program and the Martin Luther King, Jr. “Stop the Violence Rally” in January, 2010. Call (408) 561-4664 for more information. Chalk Art Festival The Luna Park Association and 13th Street Neighborhood Advisory Council invite your neighborhood association to show off your neighborhood talent in a friendly battle between artists at the second annual Chalk Art Festival. For more information, please contact Jose Posadas by email: jposadas2002@earthlink.net or City staff Maria Le: 408.795.1859. San José Prepared! The City of San José Office of Emergency Services offers its two-hour Home and Family Disaster Preparedness Training, where you can learn about hazards you should prepare for in San José, ways to reduce the risks of loss and injury before disaster strikes, how to create a family disaster plan, what you should include in your personal and family disaster supplies, and about opportunities to become even more involved and disaster prepared. For more information, please call 408.277.4595 or visit the web site www.sanjoseca.gov/emergencyservices. |
Last year, the San José Police Department launched a grant-funded, countywide law-enforcement database that tracks graffiti and the subjects who commit the vandalism. Now, the database has a new feature: the public can upload graffiti photographs and information to the department’s website. 
Need a short answer to a question? For example, when does daylight savings time begin? Where’s the closest post office? The answer is as close as your mobile texting device. Starting Monday, August 17th the San Jose Library invites you to “Text A Librarian.” Unlike some services that require you to pay for information, the library as always gives you whatever information you need for free. Your service providers standard message rates will apply. Text a Librarian at 66746 and begin your question with AskSJ. For example, “AskSJ What are the library hours on Saturdays?” Send your question whenever it occurs to you. Librarians will respond between the hours of 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. 
The City is currently creating the blueprint for its future growth and development, called Envision San Jose 2040, and the City would like your input. With support from the Knight Foundation, an online “wikiplanning” site was created where you can help shape the future of San Jose over the next 30 years. 
The City of San José Boards and Commissions are now accepting applications for vacancies in the following boards: advisory commission on rents, disability advisory commission, early care and education commission, human rights commission, and the senior citizens commissions. 
The eagerly anticipated Safeway urban store will open August 27th at The 88 high-rise located at Second and San Fernando Streets. Built in the ground retail floor, the store will provide a range of groceries alongside high-quality prepared and specialty foods.