Category Archives: Mayor

Will The Mayor’s Budget Have a Reserve To Protect Against The Unexpected?

Posted on May 26, 2011 by | 3 Comments

On May 26, and at additional meetings in June, Oakland’s City Council will be considering one or more of the three budget proposals submitted on April 29 by Mayor Jean Quan. Mayor Quan has named the three budget proposals Scenario A (All Cuts Budget) Scenario B (Cuts Plus Savings from Employee Concessions) and Scenario C (Cuts, Plus Employee Savings, Plus Income from a Presumed $80 per Parcel Property Tax).

Make Oakland Better Now! (MOBN!) has combed through these documents, and still has many unanswered questions. The answers may be available, but as far as we can tell, they don’t appear in the budget documents. In our first two posts, here and here, we asked what the budgets told us about City priorities. In the coming days, MOBN! will raise more questions  and try to explain why the answers matter.

A “reserve” consists of money set aside in each year’s budget as protection against unexpected surges in expenses or drops in revenue.  An appropriate reserve is essential to responsible budgeting because not every expense, nor every element of income, can be accurately predicted two years in advance.  Oakland Ordinance No. 12946, Section A.(1), requires that Oakland set aside a reserve of 7.5% of its General Purpose Fund, which may be appropriated by Council “only to fund unusual, unanticipated and seemingly insurmountable events of hardship of the City, and only upon a declaration of fiscal emergency.”

One would expect that in the General Purpose Fund, the required reserve would either be a budget line item, or that the budgeted revenues would exceed expenditures by the required 7.5%.  None of the proposals has a General Purpose Fund reserve line item that we have been able to find.  And here is how revenues and expenditures compare:

Scenario A

2011-12

2012-13

Revenue

$395,187,332

$402,354,163

Expenditures

$395,077,068

$402,221,003

Balance

$110,155

$133,160

Scenario B

2011-12

2012-13

Revenue

$387,187,223

$394,354,163

Expenditures

$387,098,053

$393,446,261

Balance

$89,170

-$92,098

Scenario C

2011-12

2012-13

Revenue

$400,212,788

$410,379,728

Expenditures

$400,272,744

$410,328,505

Balance

-$59,956

$51,223

At a budget town hall on Tuesday night, Acting City Administrator Ewell stated that we would be unable to know what the reserve amounts would be until the City had closed its books for 2010-11, which would likely be this fall.  In other words, if the City finishes this fiscal year with a positive GPF balance, that balance, plus with the minimal positive balance in Scenarios A and B or less the negative balance in Scenario C would constitute the City’s reserve for 2011-12.  Mr. Ewell acknowledged that this was not likely to amount to the 7.5% required by Ordinance No. 12946.  In fact, it seems likely there will be no reserve – and therefore, no margin of error – at all.

The City Council adopted its reserve policy in 2009 as part of the last two-year budget process, and in response to a situation where Oakland was starting a fiscal year with a reserve of only $9 million.  The ordinance requires a 7.5% reserve in the first instance, and allows that reserve to be appropriated only to meet a need which is “unusual, unanticipated and seemingly insurmountable.”  Certainly the City is having a difficult time balancing its budget.  But is that difficulty “unusual?”  Is it “unanticipated?”  If not, is a no-reserve option even legally an option

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Posted in City Budget, City Council, Mayor

Oakland’s Budget: How Did The Mayor Set Priorities in the Three Scenarios?

Posted on May 23, 2011 by | 4 Comments

Part Two

On May 26, and at additional meetings in June, Oakland’s City Council will be considering one or more of the three budget proposals submitted on April 29 by Mayor Jean Quan. Mayor Quan has named the three budget proposals Scenario A (All Cuts Budget) Scenario B (Cuts Plus Savings from Employee Concessions) and Scenario C (Cuts, Plus Employee Savings, Plus Income from a Presumed $80 per Parcel Property Tax).

Make Oakland Better Now! (MOBN!) has combed through these documents, and still has many unanswered questions. The answers may be available, but as far as we can tell, they don’t appear in the budget documents. Our first post was at A Better Oakland, here. In the coming days, MOBN! will raise more questions here at Oaktalk and try to explain why the answers matter.

As stated in MOBN!’s last post, one way to identify the city’s priorities is to look at how it actually spends its money and where it makes its budget cuts. Interpreting the three scenarios for this purpose; however, presents challenges.

Each budget scenario includes reductions which have not been applied to individual departments or programs. In Scenario A, Mayor Quan proposes a reduction of $13 million in savings from mandatory leave without pay, fewer internal service fund transfers and unspecified reorganizations. In Scenarios B and C, she proposes reductions of $29.8 million in savings, substituting unspecified employee concessions for the mandatory furloughs. But since these reductions are not allocated to departments, there is no way to determine–under any of the scenarios–what will be spent on any department, let alone any program.

Furthermore, although much of the city’s discussion of budget problems focuses on the General Purpose Fund (GPF), this is only about 40 percent of the city’s overall budget. If Oaklanders are to understand how the city is setting its priorities, we need to have a clear understanding of spending from all funds; however, in each of the budget documents, all of the savings from either mandatory furloughs or employee concessions are shown as if they were realized from the GPF–many city employees are paid, in whole or in part, from other funds, many of which are restricted. It seems unlikely that the Mayor plans to furlough only employees paid out of the GPF. So this raises yet another question: How can the city plan balance its GPF with either unilateral or negotiated labor savings that, by their nature, are applied across all funds?

Without denigrating the importance of any city department or program, the police and fire departments, museum, library, parks and recreation, human services, public works and community and economic development are most directly involved in providing services to Oaklanders. Of these departments, the only ones whose overall budgeted expenditures in Scenario A (before the unapplied $13 million reduction) are lower than their final budgeted expenditures for the 2010-11 fiscal year are the museum, library and human services. The museum is being turned over to the Oakland Museum Foundation under an agreement reached a year ago, thus funding from the City is being reduced by 100 percent. Library expenditures are being reduced by 83 percent, with the city giving up its Measure O library fund. Human services expenditures are being reduced by 2.1 percent. Budget increases for other departments (before the unallocated reductions) include fire services (4.2 percent), parks and recreation (4.5 percent), public works (1.8 percent) and community and economic development (5.6 percent).

To be fair, the above percentages don’t include the unallocated furloughs and other savings. The budget documents don’t tell us how these reductions will affect individual departments.  But if we proportionately allocate the reductions across all departments, the effect would be as follows:

Police Services

1.32%
Fire Services

+2.58%
Museum

-100%
Library

-167.48%
Parks and Recreation

-1.82%
Human Services

-3.98%
Public Works

-0.10%
Community and Economic Development

+2.59%

Also, to be fair, the police department sustained the largest cuts of all at the beginning of the 2010-11 fiscal year when Oakland reduced the department’s administrative costs by over $100,000 and laid off 80 police officers. So the big picture under Scenario “A” is this: over the years 2010-13, the largest cuts are to police and library services.

What city priorities do these cuts reflect? A cynical Oakland resident might well suspect that the cuts have been chosen to get the unions’ attention during negotiations and the public’s attention in a parcel tax election.

Mayor Quan and the administration will no doubt respond that there was simply nowhere else to make the big cuts. Is that true? In the coming days, MOBN! will be posing questions that need to be answered so we can learn what all of our choices are and choose the route that works best for Oakland.

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Posted in City Budget, City Council, Mayor

New MOBN! Guest Post at A Better Oakland

Posted on April 4, 2011 by | Leave a comment

Mayor Quan promised a proposed budget would be released in March.  Instead, she issued a report telling us the City’s finances are bleak and the City has cut a lot already.  She also has a long list showing what the budget savings if the City cut 15% from every department.  But there isn’t much in the way of a plan for those cuts, or for anything else.

In fact, what the Mayor has released isn’t a budget at all, and doesn’t contain much of anything in the way of real solutions.  So MOBN! has proposed we give the mayor a do-over.  Read about it at A Better Oakland.

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Posted in City Budget, Mayor

Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part Seven: Creating A Business-Friendly Environment

Posted on November 1, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Contributing Editor, Oakland Local

(Editor’s note: Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! – MOBN! – have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ response to an online questionnaire from MOBN!. We want to know if candidates are being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions?

This is the last of a series of fact checking stories on seven important questions by Oakland Local.)

Sunday’s Question: Economic development–what do the candidates think we should do?

Arnie Fields

Fields said Oakland is not “friendly” for businesses and entrepreneurs. Fields said he will be able to fix this because he is “a proven entrepreneur with a 25 year track record.”

What We Found: There were no details in Fields’ answer on how he would go about making changes for businesses and entrepreneurs.

Greg Harland

Harland criticized city council (particularly Jean Quan and Rebecca Kaplan) on its unfriendly parking rules and trying to reduce cars driving around the city’s downtown.

“I believe this impractical and short sighted,” he said.

What We Found: Harland did not directly address the question.

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan believes that the city has not done enough to support economic revitalization. She also believes that the city has in place a number of measures unfriendly towards building new businesses.

“As Mayor I will hire pro-revitalization leaders, revise Oakland’s zoning codes to encourage business and cut red tape, revise the business tax, aggressively recruit business, and expand and coordinate business attraction efforts and resources,” Kaplan wrote.

Kaplan said she will also support and attract key growth economic sectors like arts, food production, and health care.

If elected mayor, Kaplan said she will make transportation investments that help businesses, “like the grant-funded Broadway Shuttle I worked for, which helps downtown businesses by creating a better link to customers and to workers.”

What We Found: Successfully helping and supporting local businesses will be an important key in helping the city get back on its feet. And Kaplan is right in looking towards aging and complicated zoning codes as a start in that process. However, the last mayor to aggressively court businesses, Jerry Brown, saw his some of his pro business plans, like recruiting new national businesses to Oakland, hit major snags.

Don Macleay

Macleay also attacked Oakland’s business zoning codes and said the city “without a doubt” needs to be more user friendly.

“There are times when asking for an authorization to put up a sign, to sell beer in a restaurant, or adding a pizza oven becomes a ridicules series of trials and tribulations,” he wrote.

Macleay said despite some challenges, Oakland is not anti-business.

“There are a long list of home owners, non-profits organizations, artists and other groups will tell very similar stories of frustration dealing with the city,” he wrote.

What We Found: Macleay didn’t offer any solutions to the challenges faced by new and established Oakland businesses.

Don Perata

Perata said he can cite chapter and verse of businesses small and large that called his office for help when no city assistance was forthcoming.

“Building inspectors more interested in what hasn’t been done than how we can help get it done and the lack of “going to bat” with a state (ABC, DTSC) or regional agency (air and water quality) to fairly resolve issues preventing commerce from advancing,” he wrote.

Perata said City Hall has not been active in trying to woo businesses to Oakland.

“In a downturn economy, is it any wonder the only answer the city council has is to raise parking fees and fines to exorbitant levels and tax the use of your phone?,” he wrote.

What We Found: While Perata was able to outline the challenges emerging and established businesses face in Oakland, he offered no specific solutions to the issue.

Jean Quan

(Editor’s Note: Quan combined her answer with another MOBN response.)

Quan said the city has gotten better about helping businesses by providing more online access and a new small business center.

Still, Quan said, the city’s planning department needs to do a better job of streamlining the process.

“I think the city incentives from the enterprise zone, to the business tax phase in and other programs are not easily found or marketed,” she wrote.

Quan said that as mayor, she will have an economic development point person in the mayor’s office. The councilmember said she would also like to develop “concierge” type services in the major (city) departments to guide new businesses through the process of setting up.

What We Found: The city has taken some business friendly steps as of late, including updating its antiquated cabaret laws, but city’s permit process and zoning requirements are still considered challenging by many.

An economic development point person and a concierge service for businesses could go a long way in fighting through city hall red tape, but it’s unclear if Quan’s plans will have an immediate impact on current business woes.

Quan also did not say how she’s helped businesses in the past as a councilmember.

Joe Tuman

Tuman said he will work to attract large companies to become tenants in vacant parts of the city’s commercial real estate properties.

He will also “direct a review” of the different points of intersection between city hall and small businesses, and he will encourage reform policies for taxation, parking, land use and competition in ways that support and encourage small business growth.

Tuman said the key in attracting larger businesses is leveraging the unique assets of Oakland. And like other mayoral candidates, Tuman wants to attract job- growing sectors like the green industry, healthcare, and digital media.

“More rational land use policy, for example, can free up currently unused space for office and laboratory sites for biotechnology start-ups,” he wrote.

Tuman said he also wants to develop new retail business in Oakland.

“New retail growth will provide new jobs for Oaklanders, more choice and diversity for shoppers, economic activity for various regions of the city, and new tax dollars from sensible sales tax policies,” he wrote.

What We Found: Tuman’s economic plans are ambitious, but they’ll face several hard realities if he does become mayor.

For example, the city continues to struggle in attracting tenants to vacant spaces in Jack London Square, downtown, and long established areas like the Grand/Lakeshore district. As a result, Tuman will need to bring new ideas to the table on how exactly he’ll work to attract business during this economic downturn.

In addition, the city is battling with other struggling municipalities in attracting coveted business sectors like the green industry. So, Tuman will need to play up every advantage of Oakland to hot businesses looking to grow. That’s where Tuman will need to work closely with staff and city council on adopting smart business policies.

New retail would be a boon for the city. According to city studies, Oakland has lower per capita local sales than many similar sized cities. The city has also struggled to attract national and retail businesses since the 1980s. Downtown Oakland has only the Sears department store, operating in a portion of the old Emporium building.

While Tuman said his office will work to identify and target potential retail anchors, he’s unclear on what the city can bring to the table that would make retailers want to return after a significant absence from Oakland.

Terence Candell

Candell plans to introduce legislation to alleviate tax problems for new businesses.

“So that every one of them gets the benefit, getting rid of the “paper bag” or “briefcase” politics I’ve seen practiced in Oakland,” he wrote.

Candell said he would also like to streamline the construction process in the city.

“Oakland contractors tell me they refuse to even come to Oakland, because the process is so heinous,” Candell said in his response.

The mayoral candidate said if he’s elected he will work to bring the right people into the city’s “building department” to help the city develop a better process.

What We Found: Candell didn’t spell out what his legislation for new businesses would look like, and he didn’t give a lot of details on making the construction process easier for businesses.

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Posted in Elections, Mayor, Transparency / Accountability

Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part Six: Getting it Done

Posted on October 31, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Contributing Editor, Oakland Local

(Editor’s note: Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! – MOBN! – have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ response to an online questionnaire from MOBN. We want to know if candidates are being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions?

Each day, Oakland Local will run a fact checking story on seven important questions.)

Today’s Question: What will you do as mayor to ensure that your agenda is being executed?

Don Perata

Since Oakland’s mayor hires all department heads in city government, Perata said he will closely monitor the performance of the top city hall personnel.

“It is unambiguous and excuse proof,” Perata wrote.

What we found: There was no follow up information provided by Perata on how he would rate the performance of city department heads or what he would do if he is not satisfied with a department’s performance.

Jean Quan

Quan said listening will be a key element in getting her agenda executed.

“I will hold monthly community town hall meetings,” Quan wrote. “I will hold regular cabinet meetings and collaborative forums on major issues to track progress on main city initiatives.”

Quan also wants to establish and track clear performance measures for city departments.

What we found: A mayor spending extensive time with the public sounds like a breath of fresh air to us, except Quan didn’t connect how her listening tours will actually help accomplish her goals.

Also, Quan didn’t lay out the details of how she would measure the performance of city departments.

Joe Tuman

Tuman said he will regularly meet with department heads (who must present measurable data reports) and set clear goals that must be met by city departments.

“I will actively manage those under my office,” he said. “I will insist that each department head push the limits of their department’s capabilities in defining the particular goal involving that department or departments for the betterment of our city.”

Tuman said he will also participate in all City Council meetings.

“I will maintain constant contact with our Council members to ensure that progress is made in completion of the goal and, if I face intransigence on the part of the Council, will turn to you, our citizens, to rectify this barrier to the advancement of the policies I know are vital.”

What we found: A highly engaged mayor may be just what Oakland needs right now. Ron Dellums’ term as mayor may mostly be remembered for how removed he was from everyday city dealings. So anyone that promises to be actively involved with both staff and City Council as mayor is likely to garner points with many voters. But, Oakland also has a history of strong, hard-nosed mayors (Jerry Brown, for example) whose hands-on manner got mixed results with city staff.

Terrance Candell

“Asked and answered (#11)”

What we found: An incomplete response.

Arnie Fields

Fields said he will personally hold administrative heads responsible for getting work completed in City Hall.

Fields also said, “the entire rainbow” will be represented in his administration.

What we found: There wasn’t a lot of detail in Fields’ response.

Greg Harland

Harland said that in the beginning of his administration, he will meet daily with the department heads to make sure his agenda is on track and his goals are being met.

What We Found: Harland didn’t offer any information on how he plans to make sure city departments stay on track.

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan said that as mayor, she will be responsive to the community and she will work closely with her City Hall staff.

“I will create a 311 system to take and track citizen complaints and service requests. I will meet regularly with my City Administrator and department heads to examine progress to our goals. I will be actively out in the community and plugged in to the community through my staff, non-government institutions and regular public engagements,” she wrote.

What we found: Like other candidates, Kaplan wants voters to know that she will be very engaged in her role as mayor. Given the complexities of the office, it will be critical to stay on top of departments, work with City Council and listen to community concerns and ideas.

A 311 citizens’ call center in Oakland would follow on a trend developing across the country in mostly smaller size cities. The 311 program has generally been well received.

It’s unclear how Kaplan will pay for a 311 system.

Don Macleay

Macleay said he will conduct constant outreach efforts in Oakland.

“I will be the kind of mayor who is at the Council meeting, goes to Sacramento when needed, meets with the business community, who reviews all the open contracts for compliance, who calls, comes and acts.”

What we found: Macleay’s response didn’t directly connect his outreach efforts with successfully accomplishing his goals.

This story is a collaboration between Make Oakland Better Now!, Oakland Local and Spot.us. Thanks to Jen Ward and Michelle Fitzhugh-Craig for their work.

Follow the series here.  Links to all of the questionnaires are available at the Make Oakland Better Now! web site here.

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Posted in Elections, Mayor, Transparency / Accountability

Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part Five: Public Works

Posted on October 29, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Contributing Editor, Oakland Local

(Editor’s note: Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! – MOBN! – have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ response to an online questionnaire from MOBN!. We want to know if candidates are being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions? Each day, Oakland Local will run a fact checking story on seven important questions.)

Today’s Question: How do the mayoral candidates plan to meet Oakland’s public works needs?

Arnie Fields

Fields believes “city government” has run Oakland into the ground.

“If you keep the same people in power it is only a matter of time before they run it into the ground, they have been doing a great job running things into the ground, that is why we need historic change rite here rite now.”

Fields said he will “bring that spotlight to shine on the corruption.”

What We Found: Fields provides no details on how he plans to tackle local government corruption.

Greg Harland

Harland said he believes the general fund has to be balanced in a way that meets all of the city’s needs. “Until we fix the employee compensation issue the budget cannot be balanced,”

What We Found: Harland’s response did not specifically address the question regarding public works.

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan said under her administration, Public Work maintenance repair orders would increase.

“Engaging in repairs early in the cycle costs less than waiting for a road (or other public infrastructure) to get into worse condition,” she wrote.

Kaplan, a former AC Transit board member, said she will aggressively seek outside funds for public works, and will work with agencies like AC Transit and the Metropolitan and County Transportation Commissions to identify funding for road repair in regional transportation funds.

The councilmember said she agrees with many recommendations in a report issued last year on  increasing the city’s general fund contributions to the Public Works  Department.

Kaplan cautioned that she would, “seek significant public input before proposing new taxes.”

In addition, Kaplan said she will tap Alamada County vehicle registration fees, and will implement “coherent and effective maintenance and planning”.

Kaplan’s office will also make sure the city’s redevelopment agency is budgeting adequately for infrastructure needs in connection with the plans.

And, as mayor, she wants to implement cost-saving strategies, “such as use of recycled asphalt and having our asphalt locally obtained (to avoid wasted time of repair crews driving out of town to obtain materials).”

What We Found: Kaplan’s public transportation background shines through in her response to this question. The plan is detailed and ambitious. Nevertheless, she’ll have a bumpy road ahead.

First, even with innovative cost measures, the city’s public works department is in a world of hurt. In a recent report, the department said it’s more than $400 million behind in repairing city streets.

Second, Kaplan’s regional transportation agencies have their own challenges; MTC has been accused in the past by both AC Transit and others of focusing too much on rail, and less on supporting bus service. AC Transit meanwhile, is struggling with serious financial problems.

Any new tax proposal for improving Oakland streets will have to garner significant support from residents who may feel overwhelmed with continuous tax proposals.

Don Macleay

Macleay said serious budget  and strong oversight of the city’s hiring practices should be part of the discussion during the mayoral race.

“The report on Hiring Practices should also be part of our discussions when electing our next mayor,” he wrote.

Macleay said budget reform for the city needs to be developed before tackling public works.

“I am not sure how we can deal with our infrastructure problem without a reform,” he wrote. “If we ever get to the point that we actually will put money aside during good times and spend it during downturns in the business cycle, then we could do this in spurts about every 10 years when unemployment is high.

Macleay said stimulus funds and redevelopment funds could be used to improve public works.

What We Found: Macleay’s response did not have an specific information on how he would improve the city’s public works program.

Don Perata

Perata said because he believes the city currently has no plan in place to deal with Oakland’s crumbling streets, so that it’s hard to know the dimensions of the city’s infrastructure problem. It doesn’t help that there’s currently no director for the agency, Perata said.

“I flatly do not believe public works cannot repair and maintain Oakland streets better than it has. The crew workers themselves have straightforward, best-practices solutions to improve performance with money now allocated,” Perata wrote.

However, if he becomes mayor, Perata said he will put in place a variety of measures including having the city’s redevelopment agency pay for street, sidewalk, and storm water capital projects in redevelopment project areas; encouraging sponsors or partnerships for  Public Works’ rehabilitation of its parks and landscaped areas; and tapping the sanitary sewer fund for certain operating expenditures by Engineering Design and Construction Department / CEDA.

Perata said he is also supportive of innovative “green” technology that can address streets and infrastructure needs.

What We Found: If Perata wants to use Oakland’s redevelopment agency to shore up streets and sidewalks, he’ll have to work hand-in-hand with city council on how to redirect the agency’s funds. That may be a challenge if the agency’s budget continues to stay thin.

While Public Works seemingly has used some limited partnership programs in the past, the agency seems primed to develop more programs, perhaps with Alameda County’s public works program.

As for redirecting the city’s sanitary sewer fund  for other projects, Perata will have to go against city code which restricts such actions.

Perata is joining a growing number of politicians calling for more green solutions in dealing with municipal public works.

Jean Quan

Quan acknowledges the challenges facing Public Works and noted that the City has already passed a sewer fee to comply with an EPA lawsuit. She also touched on the backlog in road repairs and the structural deficit in the Landscape and Lighting District, which she said has not received a cost of living increase since 1993.

Quan called for a cost of living increase for park infrastructure, tree maintenance, and lighting costs; otherwise the department will continue to operate in deficit.

“We should also consider construction impact fees to help our streets and hopefully pass Prop 22 this year so the state cannot take gas and vehicle license fees; that will stabilize our street repair funding,” she wrote.

What We Found: Quan didn’t attach any numbers to her response—How much money may be needed for park infrastructure repair, for example. Quan also didn’t say what she will do as mayor if Prop 22 does not pass.

Joe Tuman

Tuman said he believes maintenance, rehabilitation, or outright replacement of sewer lines should be a core priority for Oakland.

“I believe in regular maintenance and prevention,” he wrote. “Failure to repair these problems creates a sizable amount of damage to automobiles (and bicycles!), and clearly can lead to possibilities for accidents. This serves no one’s interest.”

Tuman said how much can be spent to do maintenance and repairs will depend heavily on what decisions are made about closing the deficit in January of 2011.

What We Found: Tuman did a great job summarizing the MOBN! question, but he provided almost no details on what he would do to address the issue.

Terence Candell

Candell said that once he is elected mayor, “the measures proposed by the Friends of Candell, which have already received thousands of signatures, will go to the ballot. Then, we can afford to make complete changes and repairs.”

What We Found: There were no details provided about ‘Friends of Candell’ or the candidate’s forthcoming ballot measure addressing public works issues.

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Posted in City Budget, Elections, Mayor, Public Works

Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part Four: Police Officer Layoffs

Posted on October 28, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Contributing Editor, Oakland Local

Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ responses to an online questionnaire from MOBN!. We want to know if candidates being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions? Each day, Oakland Local will run a fact checking story on seven important questions.

Wednesday’s Question: What did the mayoral candidates say about police layoffs?

Don Perata

Perata said he will find jobs within the city administrative office instead of cutting police officers. “The safety of Oakland cannot sustain firing another 120 cops. Period.”

Perata said that he will look for the support of voters to pass a tax increase that will stop any additional cop layoffs, if money cannot be found in city coffers. Unlike city council, Perata said, “the mayor can make a credible case to homeowners.”

Perata goes on to criticize Jean Quan and Rebecca Kaplan’s actions during the Oscar Grant demonstration and claimed neither council members have “led the front” on major issues including parking, pensions, and public safety.

What We Found: It’s unclear why voters would pass a possible tax increase if, in the past, they voted down others connected to public safety. Even if the Mayor’s office advocated a particular increase, it’s unclear voters would swallow another tax.

As for Quan and Kaplan leading on major city issues, Quan’s supporters would argue that her extensive local government background would benefit the city greatly. One supporter said Quan, help shut down the crime-ridden motel and reinvigorate the Dimond District neighborhood.

Kaplan can point to her work in trying to bring in additional revenue to the city via marijuana production and helping to lead the charge in reforming Oakland’s out-dated nightclub and cabaret laws.

Jean Quan

Quan doesn’t spend too much time in her answer outlining what she would do as mayor regarding this issue. Instead, she offers her thoughts on the current ballot measures: “It is unlikely that V will fail there will be some new revenues. I am still hopeful that BB can pass which would reduce the need for layoffs significantly without raising taxes. I do not believe X has a chance and we will immediately begin negotiations with the OPOA for pension contributions.”

Quan goes on to say that she is hopeful there can be a fair settlement on the pension issue and from there, “the city will review budget and ballot options based on midterm revenue projections.”

What We Found: There’s little in her answer that gives a clear projection of Quan’s actions as mayor on this issue.

Joe Tuman

Tuman’s answer to the question was a bit rambling (he asked if the MOBN! query was a “factual” or “normative” question). Tuman said with layoffs almost certain for police officers in January, he would focus on getting federal dollars from the Justice Department to hire “officers related to gang prevention and drug enforcement.”

Tuman also said that while he is working on dealing with Oakland’s deficit issue, as mayor, he will seek to “extend only on this interim basis to use redevelopment money to hire a limited number of officers.”

Long term, Tuman would like to bring in more police officers by employing, “an innovative policy that blends early retirement and a second-tier for new recruits.”

What We Found: In the last year, Oakland has found some success in tapping federal dollars for public safety. But going forward, it’s going to take a strong innovative mayor to get significant funds from the feds; other cash-strapped California cities are also hoping for federal help

It’s unclear if Oakland’s mayor’s office can in fact try and use redevelopment money for hiring police officers. Back in 2007, Mayor Ron Dellums proposed the very same solution to Oakland’s policing issue.

Terence Candell

Candell said that while he cannot bring back the police officers recently laid off in July,  he has put together an initiative to save the 120 police jobs.

What We Found: Candell outlined his plan in response to another MOBN! question.

Arnie Fields

Fields said that safety is first in Oakland, but he didn’t get specific about what he would do other than to say he would, “will eliminate jobs from the top.”

What We Found: It’s unclear what jobs or what city departments Fields was referring to.

Greg Harland

Harland said if the measures fail, “There are no steps by the new mayor to prevent them.” He said instead, he will “immediately begin the process of rebalancing the budget and rebuilding the force with the ultimate goal being 1050 officers.”

What We Found: Harland gave no detailed follow up plans for how he would “rebalance” the budget or how he would bring the Oakland Police Department ‘s police force up to 1,050 officers.

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan said she did not vote for the July police layoffs and that she believes the best way to “avert the layoffs (is) through a combination of pension reform and the use of retirement incentives as the backup plan if force reduction is necessary.”

Kaplan thinks that, “There is also significant room for negotiation with the Police Officers’ Association on the pension issue.”

Kaplan says she will also support efforts to seek federal funds for public safety in Oakland.

“I will be able to negotiate from a position of strength with an unbiased perspective;”

What We Found: As mayor, most of Kaplan’s success with carrying out her public safety goals will depend quite heavily on having a good relationship with police officers—particular on the issue of renegotiating the pension plan.

It’s unclear if Kaplan can develop a positive relationship with police as mayor or press hard in negotiations. At one point she was the subject of criticism because of her role in pension negotiations (coming from San Francisco’s police union) Also, there may be some raw feelings regarding Kaplan’s behavior at an Oscar Grant demonstration downtown in July.

Don Macleay

Macleay wants to declare a “budget emergency” if elected.

He declines to give specific examples because, “(the) real budget outcome will be the result of a series of government and union negotiations and a complicated political process with our city council, our county and our state.”

Macleay goes on to say that, “the next mayor should treat our public safety budget as an emergency on day one.”

What We Found: Macleay’s answer was vague at best.

Note: This story is a collaboration between Make Oakland Better Now!, Oakland Local and Spot.us. Thanks to Jen Ward and Michelle Fitzhugh-Craig for their work.

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Posted in City Budget, Elections, Mayor, Public Safety

Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part Three: How Many Police Officers?

Posted on October 27, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Contributing Editor, Oakland Local

Editor’s note: Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! – MOBN! – have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ response to an online questionnaire from MOBN!. We want to know if candidates are being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions?

Each day, Oakland Local and Oaktalk will run a fact checking story on seven important questions.)

Thursday’s Question: How many police officers will Oakland have in 4 years?

Joe Tuman

Tuman said he would like to have close to 900 officers (mid to high 800s) by the end of his first term. If elected to a second term, Tuman said he would like to see Oakland staff 1,100 to 1,200 police officers. “Short of this, I will try to add 20 to 30 officers a year, after replacing for attrition,” he said.

Tuman said that he believes Oakland needs at least three to four hundred more police officers in order to provide public safety for the city.

He also thinks the current city council is too rigid in its belief that it takes $180,000 to pay for officers. As mayor, Tuman seeks lower costs by encouraging voluntary early retirement for the officers (about 15 percent of the force) who are 2-3 years away from retiring; then hiring them back at less than half time (under 1000 hours/year).

“As independent contractors, the city would only pay slightly less than half their base salary, Tuman said.

“I would then take the savings from those retirements and hire more officers at the entry level AFTER reducing base pay for new hires from $85k (what we pay now) to a lesser amount,” Tuman said.

Tuman said he would not touch the existing compensation of current officers. “thus avoiding interest arbitration.”

What We Found: Given the tense relationship between the Oakland  Police Officer’s Union and city hall, it will be interesting to see what specific tools Tuman would bring to office to “encourage” so many police officers to voluntary retire and then be rehired at a lower salary.

But, Tuman’s plan is part of a growing trend of cities using the retire/rehire tool. In the last couple of years,  the  method has been gaining popularity among some California cities.

If Tuman doesn’t get the number of retirees he wants, he should probably avoid following after San Francisco’s fire/rehire program which was criticized in the past.

Terence Candell

Oakland need about 800 officers, “maybe less,” Candell said.

“There are at least 12 other ways to make our streets safe”, he said, providing an ambitious list that includes the city helping to provide a bowling alley, a roller skating rink, a theme park, and longer hours for recreation centers.

Candell also wants to see most of the Oakland police force made up of Oakland citizens.

“Any future officers hired must undergo the customer service training and live in Oakland, preferably in the flats,” he adds.

What We Found: Candell is sure to find a lot of support from many Oakland residents who want to see more youth activities put in place by the city. Also, having more police officers come from Oakland has been a rallying cry for years from grassroots organizations and local residents.

However, Candell’s plans to implement a commuter tax on people who work in Oakland and his idea to put in place a toll tax on roads, may meet stiff resistance. Candell has not offered details on the commuter tax plan, and Oakland cannot put a toll tax on its roads.

Arnie Fields

Fields puts his ideal number of police officers at 817. He said he will bring in “a slew of businesses, eliminating the corruption, eliminating a large portion of crime. Cutting 15-30% of homicides or more and that is a grantee.”

Fields said he will pay for additional officers by developing a new anti-littering program.

“If you could litter on the street you could steal a bike if you could steal a bike you could steal a car if you could steal the car you could break into someone’s house. That situation could become deadly.”

What We Found: The response seems to make light of the MOBN! question and came off as if he was joking. No specific details were provided for the anti-littering campaign.

Greg Harland

Harland’s goal is to have 800 police officers on the force by the end of his first term, saying that “it will take a major restructuring of compensation and benefits”, in order for that goal to be realized.

What We Found: Harland’s brief answer did not provide detailed follow up information about how he would go about restructuring benefits.

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan said she will first work to get the police force to 850 officers, a number successful in Long Beach. Working with the police chief, Kaplan said she would work with the Oakland police chief to expand the force to 950, part of which would be civilian workers.

“In other words, I envision during my four year term seeking to add more than 100 personnel, but some of these personnel will be civilians, which will free up existing officers for other work.”

Kaplan also wants to improve recruitment and academies, and continue to strengthen programs aimed at recruiting Oakland residents.

What We Found: Although ambitious, Kaplan’s plans didn’t include the cost for the expansion, nor a timeline bumping up the number of police officers. But, we think working with the police chief on a public safety plan is a good step for city hall, given how sour the police officer’s union is on the mayor’s office.

More than likely, any plans to improve recruitment and academies, along with helping local recruiting, will need some form of capital. Kaplan doesn’t say where that money will come from.

Don Macleay

“I have no idea and have no target number. I think dreaming one up is just posturing,” was Macleay’s response to the question.

Macleay said funding and possible civilian roles within the police department needed to be studied before drawing a conclusion.

Macleay said Oakland police currently pull too much overtime.

What We Found: Macleay did not provide any specific answers to this question.

Don Perata

“Oakland will have enough police officers to keep our city safe,” Perata wrote.

He then referenced his response to another MOBN! public safety question (number 6).

What We Found: Perata also didn’t have a specific answer to this question.

Jean Quan

Quan said her goal for police staffing will depend on how successful “our prevention and intervention programs are.”

Quan said she would like to bring in volunteers to help with youth. Quan calls her plan for recruiting 2000 volunteers to work with youth in need, “ambitious”.

Based on OPD Chief Anthony Batt’s reports, Quan said she would aim to have 950 officers.

Quan went on to say that “per officer costs” for police need to be brought under control and that the cadet pay rate should be lowered.

What We Found: Quan gave no details on her plans for 2000 volunteers, nor did she say how much a program like that would cost.

Quan didn’t specify how she would bring per officer costs under control. She also didn’t say how much she would like cadets to earn.

Note: This story is a collaboration between Make Oakland Better Now!, Oakland Local and Spot.us. Thanks to Jen Ward and Michelle Fitzhugh-Craig for their work.

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Posted in Elections, Mayor, Public Safety

Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part Two: Setting Budget Priorities

Posted on October 26, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Contributing Editor, Oakland Local

Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ response to an online questionnaire from MOBN!. We want to know if candidates are being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions? Each day, Oakland Local and Oaktalk will run a fact checking story on seven important questions.

Tuesday’s Question:
How Will Our Next Mayor Set Budget Priorities?

Oakland’s mayoral candidates provided a wide variety of responses. Some responses were detailed, some were brief. Some responses were ambitious and some focused on the budget problems rather than voicing detailed solutions.

Greg Harland

Harland’s response is that city government is responsible for delivering services and as mayor he will make sure Oakland delivers promised services. “It is not a matter of revenues it is a matter of management and that management has been lacking for many years.”

What We Found: Harland did not write any specific plans for making sure city departments deliver on their promises.

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan is looking to bring in fresh blood if elected mayor. “My first task after being elected Mayor will be to launch a genuine, unbiased, nationwide recruitment process for the new City Administrator and other key management posts (e.g. Budget Director), with the goal of hiring the best and brightest to be the next generation of City leadership,” Kaplan writes.

What We Found: The Oakland City Administrator Office carries out a lot of important functions for the city and finding the right person for Oakland will be a critical key component to ensuring Kaplan can carry through on campaign promises.

The Administrator’s office has only recently been able to settle down from the controversy that swirled around the Deborah Edgerly term in 2008. In 2009, Dellums appointed long-time confidant Dan Lindheim.

Kaplan is also looking to “reverse the downward spiral of cuts to park and road maintenance, because performing maintenance early saves costs for the long run.”

What We Found: As the new mayor, Kaplan will have her work cut out for her in the area of parks and road maintenance. According to city documents, since 2008, the park maintenance staff has been cut by 28 percent.

Currently the Public Works Department is struggling heavily in many of its sectors, including street repairs. In a recent report, the department said it’s more than $400 million behind in repairing city streets.

As a result of the city’s sharp decline in revenue, the department’s capital improvement budget this year (2010-2011), is almost half of what it was the previous year.

Kaplan doesn’t name specific funds when she declares that as mayor she will, “restore information technology funding and use that technology to implement systems (such as an online business permit and tax system) to reduce internal delays and help businesses open.

Kaplan is similarly vague when she says, “Oakland is currently subsidizing several buildings which are not being put to productive use, and I will work to shift those assets in ways to make them revenue-generating.”

What We Found: It’s unclear what buildings she’s referring to and how she would go about making them “revenue-generating.”

As part of developing a more public process with the city budget, Kaplan offered solutions like, publishing a draft budget well in advance of the adoption deadline, “in order to gather more ideas to ensure the document reflects Oakland’s priorities and explores all solutions and efficiencies.”

What We Found: This is an issue that many are eager to see tackled, as the budget process has been criticized in the past for being closed off from public participation.

Don Perata

Perata said he will give his highest priority as mayor to public safety, economic development/job creation, and Oakland youth.

Specifically, Perata said as mayor he will staff the police department to levels recommended by Chief Anthony Batts. How to pay for this? Perata said it will be, “funded through directed cost savings (including pension contributions, two tier retirement system, and cuts to non-critical city services), new revenues (including ½ cent sales tax).

What We Found: It’s unclear which employee pension contributions Perata is talking about, and for how much. There was no additional information provided by Perata on developing a two tier retirement system or what “non-critical” city services would be on the chopping block.

As for a new sales tax, Perata would especially need the help of city council in trying to push through another sales tax on a tax weary public.

Perata’s says his final component, Oakland youth, would benefit under a Perata administration because he said he will team up with the Oakland Unified School District to share resources and facilities; create a joint tax measure to pay for program services, like after school programs; and to stregthen Oakland Parks and Recreation by developing “public/private partnership with OPR alumni as leaders.”

What We Found: The city has some partnerships with the school district, including Teach Tomorrow in Oakland, but there are still many partnering opportunities that can be taken advantage of and Perata’s goal of increasing the city hall and public schools connection could receive strong support, especially since he was a schoolteacher in Alameda for 15 years.

As part of his cost cutting measures, Perta said he would suspend all city boards and commissions, unless they are mandated by state or federal regulation; eliminate a city staff position before cutting a police officer; and go “line by line” through the budget to find savings.

What We Found: There may be some boards worth cutting. the city has more than 40 boards and commissions, which include the Paramount Theatre of the Arts Board, the Community Policing Advisory Board and the Children’s Fairyland Board. However, it’s unclear what cost savings would be made in cutting the boards and if there would be enough savings to warrant cutting city boards and commissions.

As part of his budget plan, Perata said he would also “identify other non-essential city positions that are either duplicate or create needless layers of bureaucracy, and get rid of them first.” Perata points to Council President Brunner’s suggested cuts totaling $20 million. He said he is the only candidate with a track record of leadership in making such tough decisions and making them work.”

What We Found: Perata doesn’t give examples of non-essential city positions he may be thinking of; Oakland has undertaken serious staff cuts in the last two years. Brunner’s suggested cuts, if put into action by Perata may raise the ire of some communities. One of Brunner’s suggested savings include a 25 percent cut to the City’s Arts Grants Program.

As for his claim of being the only candidate with a track record of leadership in making “tough decisions,” Jean Quan may disagree, after all she voted for the recent police layoffs.

Jean Quan

Quan gives a brief response. She begins by saying, “the weighting of departments is unlikely to change in the short term.” Quan also said while the Oakland police will remain the largest part of the general budget, “the weighting within the budget” for items like over-time for officers will be likely be reduced. “Where possible I will reorganize to reduce administrative costs.”

What We Found: Quan may be correct about there being few short term changes to the city’s immediate budget, save for some reduction of police overtime, but she fails to say what she will specifically do to reduce administrative costs. Given that Quan has sat on the Oakland City Council for two years terms but cannot specify what needs to be cut, her answer is puzzling.

Joe Tuman

Tuman’s response is blunt: “I don’t know what I will cut yet; that will be subject to what I find in the audit.” (Editor’s note: In a previous MOBN! answer Tuman vowed to conduct a financial audit of city hall.)

Tuman also said he was committed to making public safety, public works, parks, and housing a priority in his mayoral term.

What We Found: Tuman’s “I don’t know” answer can be interpreted a variety of ways including either refreshing or troubling.

Terrence Candell

Candell is very ambitious in his plans. “I plan a $100,000,000 Mayor’s Jobs Program, with an on-the-job training component, with a distinct emphasis on “Hire Oakland First”, a committee on which I served for several years, but which had no teeth.”

Candell goes on to say that, “I do not plan to reduce programs. I plan to expand them. That is what you do, when you run successful businesses.”

What We Found: There was little to hang our hat on with Candell’s response. No details are provided about his jobs program idea, nor does he provide information on where he will get the funds to expand city programs.

Fields

Fields would like to “eliminate expenditures by cutting City bureaucracy on the top level. We have double the amount of city employees that we need.”

What We Found: Fields did not provide any specific expenditures or city positions that needed to be done away with.

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Fact Checking The Mayoral Candidates’ Positions, Part One: Oakland’s Structural Budget Deficit

Posted on October 25, 2010 by | Leave a comment

By Jennifer Inez Ward, Oakland Local

Oakland Local and Make Oakland Better Now! have teamed up to take a close look at the accuracy of candidates’ response to an online questionnaire from MOBN!. We want to know if candidates are being truthful and accurate in their responses, or are they veering from facts and offering opinion without any solutions? Each day, Oakland Local and Oaktalk will run a fact checking story on seven important questions.

Monday’s Question: How Will Mayoral Candidates Deal With Oakland’s Structural Budget Deficit?

When it comes to providing specific financial numbers or ideas many of our candidates for mayor fell short. Most of the answers, however, were spirited. Mayoral Candidate Rebecca Kaplan gave the most specific response.

Arnie Fields

In his response, Arnie Fields, said city government was mismanaged and that corruption in city hall must be rooted out before positive change can occur. Fields blamed former governor Jerry Brown for most of the modern day problem. He also accused Brown of using his policies to benefit in the sale of his home on Harrison Avenue.

What We Found: Fields was on point in saying that city funds have been criticized for being mismanaged in the past. That was something the state called the city on the carpet for its poor management of federal funds. However, when Fields tried to connect Jerry Brown’s city policies as mayor (Fields used the term “elitist policies”) he failed to provide direct proof that the policies were “elitiest “ and led directly to the former mayor’s home sale.

Greg Harland

Harland’s response is mostly devoid of specific ways he’d go about accomplishing his goals. Harland begins his response by saying, “I would balance the budget by cutting expenses. This will take major structural changes in city employee compensation and benefits”.

What we found: First, the candidate does not say what those structural changes will be. Second, given the current stalemate the city is in with its police department’s union and the strength of the fire fighters union, Harland doesn’t really lay out what he would bring to the table to turn things around for Oakland other than he will convince the union that, “it is in their best interest to do so.”

Rebecca Kaplan

Kaplan gives a detailed response to the question and down to the grit when she says she, “will work immediately to resolve the impasse regarding police pension contributions, seeking a 9% pension contribution as part of a strategy to eliminate police layoffs”.

What We Found: Kaplan has been on city council for two years, but she doesn’t explain what role she played in trying to prevent the impasse, nor what she’ll do this time around as mayor.

Kaplan was also criticized by some police  officers both for her actions during the Oscar Grant protest as well as during pension negotiations, making the effectiveness of her role somewhat challenging.

In her answer to MOBN, Kaplan reels off a list of things she’d like to accomplish with the budget, including long term solution plans. Kaplan wants to “refinance outside debt payments to lower interest rates, and reduce total outside debt, and switch to lower-cost sources, in order to reduce the impact of the structural deficit made up of debt payments.”

What We Found: It’s no secret the city’s debt situation is a hot mess, and Kaplan will have to do a lot of sweet talking and arm twisting to accomplish her goals. Rising pension costs will push the city’s projected deficit to $58.7 million by July 2011. And the biggest portion of that budget shortfall is a debt payment of $43.9 million due July 1, 2011, to the old Police and Fire Retirement System. The payment would be more than 10 percent of the roughly $400 million general purpose fund budget.

Kaplan has also proposed taking on certain short term measures to deal with the budget crisis including, “repositioning City assets that are currently losing money, and personnel management actions such as retirement incentives to lower personnel costs.”

What We Found: Kaplan doesn’t sketch out what “repositioning” is or how much she expects to save with her short term measures. Those measures will have to be effective quickly. According to a recently released City Audit report, the city is looking at fast-approaching deadlines and will possibly need alternative scenerios on paying on its pension obligation bonds.

In addition, many of Kaplan’s potential actions in dealing with the budget as mayor will have to be done in cooperation with City Council.

As part of her plans for generating short term revenue, Kaplan would also “like to see extra enforcement of  blight fines,  which she believes will serve to bring in revenue from the fines themselves, will help reinvigorate our neighborhoods.”

What We Found: Any extra enforcement will likely mean extra duty for city staffers because Oakland has growing areas dealing with serious blight, particularly foreclosed homes. Kaplan doesn’t say how much in additional fines the city can extract, so it’s unclear how much additional revenue the city will receive.

In addition, Kaplan’s office will have to coordinate with a wide variety of struggling city departments, including the police department, and a budget challenged public works department.

Kaplan takes credit for, “successfully advocated to be included in the Alameda County Vehicle Registration fee, and the new free Broadway Shuttle for which I helped land grant funding.”

What We Found: It is true, she has been active on this issue.

In June, the Alameda County Transportation Commission place a transportation improvement measure (Measure F) on the November 2, 2010 ballot that if passed by a majority vote of voters, would provide a Vehicle Registration Fee of $10 that would be used for local transportation and transit improvements throughout Alameda County.

In her response to MOBN about the structural debt, Kaplan also gives some generalities about “cutting red tape” for businesses. She also wants to rewrite the business tax code and zoning code to encourage job growth and economic revitalization. There are no details on how she would go about accomplishing this in her term.

Kaplan also goes on to say that that she’d like to see, “civilianizing certain roles in the police department.

What We Found: Kaplan does not say what specific roles in the department may benefit from civilianizing or how she would help change the relationship between Oakland and the Port Authority.

Kaplan said that under her administration she would make attracting new businesses a priority by, “implementing a clear plan for retail growth; changing zoning, identifying infrastructure needs and revamping recruitment and marketing programs to attract growth industries.”

What We Found: Kaplan doesn’t identify any examples of her proposals, so it’s hard to gauge how her plans could specifically impact the city’s debt.

Kaplan also connects attracting business to making sure our roads and infrastructure are improved, “City road and sewer repair efforts (including seeking outside funding) so these infrastructure costs decrease, rather than increase, over the long term.”

What We Found: Any efforts to deal with problems connected to our roads and infrastructure will have to delve into the Public Works Department financial problems. Even with outside funding, the city is looking at severe public work financial stress.

Don MacLeay

MacLeay decided to be efficient and combine some of his MOBN answers.

MacLeay said he will call a budget summit and a kind of budget “constitutional convention” where we put the whole budget on the table.”

Under this summit MacLeay has a nine point plan that he will advocate including, “Negotiate a transfer of the existing retirement plan to the employees; Start a new retirement plan that pays its liabilities on pay day; Have a plan for the ups and downs of the business cycle.”

What We Found: MacLeay will have his hands full just dealing with those issues. The city’s relationship with its unions is tense, at best. MacLeay doesn’t give an example of an effective alternative new retirement plan that pays its liabilities on pay day. Also, in his response, there’s no follow up details on developing city plans for dealing with business cycles.

MacLeay’s other points also fail to map out his goals. For example, he writes that he’d like to see, “Mandates, such as Measure Y need to become part of the law and policy of city government”, but there’s no specific actions proposed by the candidate.

MacLeay said good relations between city employees and the local government comes from “giving workers a fair work environment. We will not get the partnership we need from our employees and our unions if we do not live up to this promise of good conditions, good benefits, JOB SECURITY and a positive working environment. If we do, then we can work out viable contracts.”

Don Perata

Perata also wants to bring the experts on board to study the city’s growing fiscal problems. “We need experts in public finance to establish a common set of numbers that everyone can agree on in order to work to put together three, five and ten year expenditure / recovery plans for the city,” he said.

What We Found: Convening summits is a popular tool used regularly by elected officials. Dellums oversaw an economic summit with a few weeks after winning the election. And the current mayor regularly attends a variety of summits, yet it’s unclear what specific direct action has come out of these summits.

As part of his answer, Perata also thinks city government is too “top heavy” and as mayor, he would cut some administrative positions.

“I’d be shocked if I couldn’t find 80 jobs in city hall less important than the  80 cops who were laid off,” Perata wrote. “In fact, I’ve identified 30 alone in the city administrator’s office.”

What We Found: Perata did not name the 30 positions in the city administrator’s office that needed to be cut, so it’s unclear how realistic his plan is.

Jean Quan

Quan gives four bullet point responses to Question 2 that lacked any real detail. She said she wants to “Negotiate police pension contributions;(and) extend PFRS payments using existing tax rate.”

What We Found: Quan’s relationship with the police has been strained. Quan was blamed heavily by the Oakland police’s union for the recent layoff of 80 officers. Quan was also right in the middle of the Oscar Grant dustup with Kaplan.

AS for the PFRS payments plan, a recently released report by the Office of the City Auditor shows that it will be a tricky situation given that the city will still have to pay into the system.

In her response, Quan  also said she would like to continue to pay down internal debt.

What We Found: Paying down the debt will be an important thing to continue if the city can dig its way out of this financial disaster.

Reorganizing city services and increasing “retail sector revenue” are also Quan goals although she doesn’t offer suggestions on how to make either of those ideas happen

Joe Tuman

Tuman too wants an outside firm to study the city’s finances. “We will audit to gain a clearer perspective of efficiencies for cost, functionality, and ability to achieve core responsibilities of government,” he wrote to MOBN.

Tuman said as a result of the audit his office, “will act to effect as many cost-saving measures as possible in an effort to reduce the deficit.”

What We Found: Tuman will definitely be cutting to the bone with any cost-saving measures. According to a report  released by the city, since 2008, the city has implemented a number of cost saving measures including, closing City offices through furloughs, eliminating 237 jobs, laying off 150 workers, and closing branch libraries one day per week.

Tuman wants to also meet with labor unions regarding the city’s deficit.

“I will not in this document spell-out what demands I will make on our unions; this kind of information is strategic for negotiation, and only a neophyte would show his hand before the negotiation process has begun,” he wrote.

Tuman said he would also work with “external funding from the state or federal government, which might be used to supplement core functions.”

What We Found: Tuman didn’t spell out what he would do to get extra funding.

Terrence Candell

Candell give a brief two point bullet plan which includes taxing commuters to Oakland one percent on their paycheck; and putting tolls on major Oakland freeways.

What We Found: Candell, a supporter of Oakland’s own currency, doesn’t provide details on how he could push through a unique program like taxing commuters.

Candell’s second idea wouldn’t work because bridge tolls are administered by the Bay Area Toll Authority and the state agency Caltrans.

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Posted in City Budget, Elections, Mayor