Robert Marini for Mayor of Milpitas.
For the last 4 years I attended the city council meeting to represented the residents of Milpitas in an effort to make Milpitas a better place to live and improve the quality of life for residents. The city has opposed these efforts by overcharging for utility services. Your paying over a million dollars more today for just sewage service then last year.
Is your life better today then 4 years ago? The city was increasing your water rate by 14% ever year. This year your fee went up from $2.63 to $ 6.43 this is a 145% increase . You sewage charge increased 14.5% in just one year. These rate increases are way above the rate of inflation and now Milpitas water rates are the highest in Santa Clara county. Milpitas also has the sewage rates in Santa Clara county.
The following is my platform.
1. Uphold the constitution of the state of California.
I have informed the city council that they violated California constitution Article XIII D section 6, which pertains to utility rates. The city council members have ignored this over the last three years. The council members represent the city against your interests. They ignore the state constitution laws because there is no penalty for ignoring state law. The basis requirement of a city council member is to uphold the laws of the state .
The city's council members have ignored the following laws:
California constitution Article XIII D section 6 1:
The city does not provide the basis of the calculated fees in the written notice sent to the public. This means is the city has not disclosed the cost, number of parcels, gallons per day and persons per household parameters necessary to calculate the fee, which is required by section:
California constitution Article XIII D section 6 (B) 1
The city violated this law by overcharging parcel owners for sewage service. The total fee collected was exceeded the money needed to pay the expenses for the sewage charge. The city had a reserved fund of $8 Million and still overcharged the residents by $291,000.
California constitution Article XIII D section( B) 3
was violated because the sewage fee is not proportional fee. A proportional charge means your not charged for what you use, which is a fee per HCF (748 gallons), just like your water fee, but instead are charged a fixed fee. This means no matter how much sewage is generated your charged the same. The flat rate method of charging for services overcharges parcels that have less then the average people per household and under charges parcels that are over the average.
Seniors are the most negatively effected by a flat rate charge, because there is less then the average number of people per parcel. The type of parcel you live in effects your fee.
It assumed that there are 3.35 people in single family and 2.05 people in multifamily units. Single family units now pay $208 more for the same service that over 7 thousand multifamily parcels pay even if both parcels create the same discharge of water into the sewage system.
Seniors in single family parcel that have only 2 people or less are overcharged service. They should be charged 2/3 of 86.92. If you're on vacation for two months and do not create any sewage water your still charged the same. Business are charged for what they actually use. They are charged proportional to what they actually use, but residential parcels are not.
2. There should be a moratorium on new housing development because of the drought. The city is asking a you to voluntarily conserve 20% more water but the city is always increasing the number of parcels every year. Next year it will be mandatory 20% reduction in water usage. How is the city going to decease the water usage if it increase the number of parcels every year?
3 No pensions for part time employees. The city council members do not work full time and are paid $100/hour for 23 hours a month. That is very generous salary for part time work but they are also getting a pension. Most council members have full time jobs which provide for a pension. Now they are getting two pensions from multiple sources.
4 The city should stop wasting the tax payer's money for nonsense projects. The city gave a grant of 1.5 million dollars to SunPower just to hire 80 minimum paying jobs. The city hired a consultant for $175,000 to tell the city what goals to achieve based on community input. With all the commissions the city has it should not need to ask an outside consultant. The city spent $175,000 just for a statue and the city council members approved $60,000 for a feasibility study for a skate park.
5 The public need to set a term limit of 8 years for service because the council members are taking money from private interests groups. Once they get in office the public can not get rid of them because of the campaign contributions. One council members is a real estate agent and is always approving new development because she make money selling homes in her private business.
6. We need to support our schools and provide for a junior collage. With the number of students in school this could help students to get a higher education while remaining in Milpitas.
7. The city should be open and transparent in providing the costs and other parameters so the residents can determine if they are charged fairly for utility service. The city employees should obey the laws of the constitution of the state of California and the council members should uphold the laws and honor the oath they took.
It easier to vote a council member out of office then oppose a unjust utility fee increase. It takes over 9,500 parcel owners to over turn a fee increase and not one person need to support a tax increase. All you need to remove a council members is a simple majority of votes for the opposing candidate in office.
We need a Mayor that will represent the residents of Milpitas instead of what we have today, which is a Mayor that defends the city against the residents and does not care that your overcharged for service and will not uphold the laws of the state of California.
Please consider Robert Marini for Mayor.
