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Sierra Madre April 8, 2008 Election Kiwanis City Council Candidate Forum Videos - Coming Soon - Huge files keep getting disconnected during upload
Chamber of Commerce Measure U Forum Video
On the Ballot for the April 8th Election:
On two separate occasions, as it has in the past, SierraMadreNews.Net sent an e-mail to all of the candidates for office. In that e-mail, an offer was made to put three pieces of each candidate's campaign material on the website. A questionnaire was sent asking them to tell us a little more about them. The questionnaire was not about issues, but was designed to let voters to get to know the candidates a little better as people, such things as favorite music, favorite movie, what do they read, etc. We also offered to make a 90 second video, if the candidates so desired.
BTW, I have chosen not to include donation requests. It's not my place to raise money for the candidates, that's their job. I had donation request forms from two candidates, one of whom I'm supporting, one I'm not. Neither of them will be posted.
If a candidate's information is missing below, it will state whether they declined to participate, or if they chose not to respond. If they are participating, you will find a link. Please check back, because it's still early, and some responses may still be received at a later date.
Measures U and UA Ad Hoc Finance Committee Report recommending increase in UUT Measure U - User Utility Tax (UUT) Initiative - click to download the complete 36-page text Measure UA - Advisory Initiative - attempting to get a copy of Measure UA Sample Ballot Arguments re: Measure U City Attorney's Impartial Analysis of Measure U Website for Measures U and UA - www.SM4U.info or www.SafetyMeasure4U.com Website against Measures U and UA - none known
Measure P - Police Officer's Association (POA) Initiative has been abandoned by the POA
City Offices
City Treasurer (Alphabetically)
Rotary to Sponsor Candidates' Forum in Conjunction with League of Women Voters March 10th The Rotary Club of Sierra Madre, in conjunction with the League of Women Voters Pasadena Area Chapter, will sponsor a candidate forum to provide residents of Sierra Madre with a chance to hear the candidates running for City Clerk and City Treasurer in the April 8th municipal election in Sierra Madre. Karma Bell and Nancy Shollenberger, the two candidates for City Clerk, and George Enyedi and Salvatore Tesoro III, the two candidates for City Treasurer have been invited to participate in a forum on Monday March 10, 2008 at 7:00 PM. The forum will be held at Sierra Madre City Hall in the Council Chambers and will be televised on local cable Channel 3. Residents are strongly encouraged to attend and pose questions to the candidates. The Sierra Madre Rotary Club will provide refreshments before and after both forums. Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce to Hold Measure U Forum March 12th The Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce will hold an educational forum about the User Utility Tax initiative, Measure U, and its companion initiative, Measure UA, both of which will be on the April 8th ballot. The Forum is scheduled for Wednesday, March 12th at 6:30pm, in the meeting room at Sierra Madre Congregational Church located at 154 W. Sierra Madre Blvd.. The event is open to the general public. All Chamber members are encouraged to attend, however, because following the Forum, the Chamber members will be polled for their positions on the Measure and the results of that poll will determine the Chamber’s official position on the Measure. Plans as of press time are for the Forum to be presented in one of two formats, depending on availability of participants. If a speaker can be found to speak for the No on Measure U side of the argument, there will be a speaker forum representing both sides, followed by a Question and Answer session. If the Chamber is unable to find someone to speak for the No on Measure U position, then an impartial speaker will be found to speak on the Measure, with a Q and A session to follow afterwards. Anyone who would like to speak for those opposed to the Measure is asked to contact Beverly DeVoy at the Chamber, (626) 355-5111 or info@sierramadrechamber.com. Please be prepared to provide qualifications. Kiwanis To Host “City Council Candidates’ Forum” on March 18 The Sierra Madre Kiwanis Club will host a City Council candidates’ forum on Tuesday, March 18. The forum will give residents the opportunity to hear each City Council candidate’s views on current issues, and hear their answers to questions posed by the audience. The candidates running for City Council include John Buchanan, Enid Joffe, Maryann MacGillivray, Kevin Paschall, and Bill Tice. This event is open to the public and will be held at the Masonic Lodge, 33 E. Sierra Madre Blvd. It begins at 11:30 with lunch catered by Restaurant Lozano. The cost for lunch is $11 per person; reservations for lunch are required. To make lunch reservations, please call Hank Landsberg at 355-3656 no later than noon the day before. Residents who want to hear the presentation but do not want to have lunch may arrive at noon for any available seating. Kiwanis To Host Treasurer, Clerk “Candidates Forum” on March 25 The Sierra Madre Kiwanis Club will host a second candidates’ forum on Tuesday, March 25. The forum will give residents the opportunity to hear the candidates running for Sierra Madre Treasurer and City Clerk. The candidates will comment on current issues, and answer questions from the audience. The candidates running for Sierra Madre City Clerk are Karma Bell and Nancy Shollenberger. Running for Sierra Madre City Treasurer are George Enyedi and Salvatore Tesoro III. This event is open to the public and will be held at the Masonic Lodge, 33 E. Sierra Madre Blvd. It begins at 11:30 with lunch catered by Restaurant Lozano. The cost for lunch is $11 per person; reservations for lunch are required. To make lunch reservations, please call Hank Landsberg at 355-3656 no later than noon the day before. Residents who want to hear the presentation but do not want to have lunch may arrive at noon for any available seating.
Absentee Ballots Available Soon for April 8th Election By Bill Coburn
Because PUSD schools will be on spring break during the week of the April 8th election, many Sierra Madre residents may be out of town when the election takes place. So I thought it might be a good idea to provide a little information about the absentee ballot and vote by mail system available for those who will be out of town. According to Sierra Madre’s City Clerk, in the April 17th, 2007 election, of the approximately 3700 votes cast, more than 1,400 absentee ballots (nearly 38%) were absentee, with more than 1,000 of them being permanent vote by mail ballots. First let’s start with the permanent vote by mail system. According to LAVote.net, the official website of the LA County Registrar/Recorder and County Clerk, “Under state law, a voter may apply for permanent vote by mail voter status. As a permanent vote by mail voter, you will no longer have to apply for future elections. A ballot will automatically be mailed to you for each election in which you are eligible to vote. A spouse or other person who resides with you may also want to apply for permanent vote by mail voter status. However, it’s probably too late to get Permanent Vote By Mail status at this time, because according to the Sierra Madre City Clerk, the Vote-By-Mail ballots for already established permanent voters will go out March 10-13. If you haven’t even requested the application as of now, it’s unlikely your request will be processed in time. You can find out for sure by calling (562) 466-1323.
There is another way, though, to still get the permanent vote by mail status in time for the election. According to the City Clerk, at the same time the permanent voter ballots are mailed out, the sample ballots for the election will be mailed out, and those ballots will have a request for a Vote by Mail ballot on the back of them. That request will offer the option of a one-time absentee ballot, or permanent vote by mail status. Voters may send in their applications, which can be processed beginning March 10th, until April 1st. The City Clerk processes all applications at City Hall, using a computer Election Program provided by Martin and Chapman, whose website says they provide election supplies, services and consultation to more than 400 cities, counties and associations in California and Nevada. A copy of the calendar for the April 8th election accompanies this article. All dates are set by the Elections Code of the State of California.
Absentee ballots received by the 8th will be counted. Residents can bring their vote by mail ballots to the polling place if it is too late to mail it and have it received by the 8th. According to LAVote.net, Vote by Mail ballots issued in the last six (6) days prior to an election and on Election Day are called Emergency Vote By Mail Ballots. These ballots cannot be issued by mail. To obtain an Emergency Vote By Mail Ballot, the voter or the voter’s authorized representative must provide a written request to the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.
Martin & Chapman come on election night and count all the City’s ballots. Then another meeting is scheduled for provisional and vote-by-mail that came to the polling places. That meeting is viewed by the public and a final count is made. Then the canvass of the election is completed.
Information for this article was obtained from the Sierra Madre City Clerk, LAVote.net, and the Martin and Chapman website.
A major error has been discovered on the sample ballot that has been mailed to voters citywide. The error is in the "Argument for Measure P." In the argument, which starts out accurately enough, the Utility Users Tax (Measure U) is twice misidentified as Measure P, and the Police Officer's Association (POA) initiative, Measure P, is misidentified as Measure UA. The argument, which is signed by all five City Council members, informs voters that the POA has abandoned the initiative, which they had placed on the ballot after collecting the required signatures. The statement says that the officers had come to the conclusion that their initiative would have "resulted in cutting services the City provides that the Community has come to enjoy and expect." It states that the POA agreed to accept a more modest salary increase than their measure would have provided, and that the City would provide that increase only if it receives the necessary revenue to do so. Up to this point things are accurate. However, in its next two sentences, the argument misidentifies the two ballot measures, stating "Accordingly, the Police Officers Association respectfully asks that the Community vote YES to increase the Utility Users Tax (Measure P) and vote no on the POA initiative (Measure UA)." The Utility Users Tax is actually Measure U, and the POA initiative is actually Measure P. The next sentence incorrectly reads "A YES vote to allow an increase to the Utility Users Tax (Measure P) will provide our public safety employees (police, fire, and paramedics the compensation necessary to keep our experienced and loyal public servants working in Sierra Madre." It should, of course, identify the Utility Users Tax initiative as Measure U, not P. Following the argument are the "signatures" of all five City Council members. The POA initiative,
Measure P,
I will be doing a story to try and get the correct information in the hands of the voters. What should I say the City Clerk’s response is to the error on the ballot argument, which will certainly add to the confusion about the two initiatives? Do you know yet what corrective measures, if any, will be taken by the City?"
About 45 minutes later, she responded "Bill,
We are
aware of the error and are addressing it. Thanks for letting me know." In
the interim, I had received a call from City Manager Elaine Aguilar. The
e-mail I sent to Shollenberger had been cc:ed to Aguilar and City Attorney Sandi
Levin. Aguilar noted that in my e-mail I had stated that the "
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