The Almanac 10.13.2010 - Section 2

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VOTER’S GUIDE 2010 ★ ★ ★ ★ October 13, 2010 ★ Section Two ★ ★ ★ ★

A full plate for voters

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oters face lots of decisions on the Nov. 2 ballot. Locally, voters have the opportunity to remake city councils in Atherton and Menlo Park. In Atherton, four candidates are running for three seats. In Menlo Park, it’s six candidates for three seats. (Each council has a total of five members.) Two big measures are on the Menlo Park ballot. Measure L proposes to limit pension benefits for new city employees, excluding sworn police officers. The limits are lower than the benefits received by current city employees. Measure T would amend the general plans to allow the Bohannon Development Company to build a 950,000-square-foot office-hotel complex east of U.S. 101. There are contests for two local school boards: in the Menlo Park City School District and the Las Lomitas School District. In each district, four candidates are competing for three seats. Voters also face decisions about who will succeed Rich Gordon as San Mateo County supervisor in District 3. Since no candidate received a majority vote in the June primary, there is a runoff between former sheriff and Emerald Hills resident Don Horsley and small business owner and coastsider April Vargas. There is also a runoff election for county treasurer/tax collector between entrepreneur Dave Mandelkern and deputy treasurer Sandie Arnott. Two county-wide measures are on the ballot. Measure M would increase the vehicle registration fee by $10 for 25 years. The revenue would be spent on street maintenance, transit options, and other transportation projects. Measure U would change the way vacancies on the San Mateo

County Board of Supervisors are filled. Among special districts, seven candidates are competing for three seats on the Sequoia Healthcare District board. On the state level, Democrat Rich Gordon of Menlo Park and Republican Greg Conlon of Atherton are running for the District 21 state Assembly seat now occupied by Ira Ruskin. There are many other state-level offices up for election, including governor, where Meg Whitman of Atherton and former governor Jerry Brown are in a heated contest. Democrat Leland Yee is seeking re-election in state Senate District 8, which includes Portola Valley and Woodside. His Republican opponent is Doo Park. There are also many important state propositions. On the federal level, Democrat Anna Eshoo of Menlo Park is seeking another term in Congress from District 14. Her Republican opponent is Dave Chapman. Democrat Barbara Boxer is running for re-election to the U.S. Senate, and is facing a significant challenge from Republican Carly Fiorina. The Almanac’s Voter’s Guide focuses on major local contests and issues.

Voter information ■ See the ballot information sent to registered voters. ■ Go to smartvoter.org, the League of Women Voters site. ■ Go to shapethefuture.org for information from the county elections office. ■ Go to voterguide.sos.ca.gov for information from the California secretary of state on state propositions and candidates.

MORE INSIDE ■ Six vie for Menlo Park council seats. Page 22

■ Menlo Park school board race. Page 25

■ Atherton candidates offer ideas for fixing town. Page 23

■ Las Lomitas school board race. Page 27

■ Measure T allows Bohannon to build office-hotel complex. Page 24

■ County races. Page 28

Photo by Michelle Le/The Almanac

Yes on Measure L signs line Menlo Avenue, near El Camino Real, in downtown Menlo Park.

Measure L for ‘Limit’ on pension benefits By Sandy Brundage Almanac Staff Writer

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ublic employee pension plans garnered nationwide attention as the recession chipped away at city financial reserves, and Menlo Park was no exception. With CalPERS faltering, the city could find itself facing a multi-million dollar bill for its pension benefits, because taxpayers must make up any shortfall. The City Council explored pension reform in May, but Measure L is the result of a grassroots drive to let voters decide how to proceed. Changes

Measure L seeks to raise the minimum retirement age for new public employees, excluding police officers, by five years to 60, and also decrease their maximum pension benefits by 0.7 percentage points to 2 percent of their highest annual salary averaged over three years, multiplied by the number of years employed by Menlo Park. Under this measure, a new hire who retired at age 60 after working for the city for 30 years would receive 60 percent of that average salary. Current employees could retire at age 55, and get 81 percent. If a city worker chooses to retire earlier, they would be eligible for reduced benefits. Employees will pay at least 7 percent of their salaries toward retirement, with the city providing

a matching amount. Finally, Measure L prohibits retroactive increases in pension benefits for any employee, current or new. Its supporters say this clause is designed to prevent a reoccurrence of 2007, when the council awarded a 35 percent jump in benefits, retroactive to an employee’s first day on the job. Councilman Heyward Robinson, who voted for the increase, said in exchange public employees agreed to forego a 5 percent raise, which saved the city $200,000. Supporters of the initiative pointed out the “instant pension liability” of $6.3 million incurred by the increase demolished any savings. Who decides?

A key question is who has the legal authority to alter the structure of a city’s pension plan — the voters, or only the City Council? One provision of Measure L is that future benefits could only be increased by a simple majority of voters — not by the council. The Nov. 2 election may indicate how Menlo Park voters would answer that question, although those opposed to Measure L have filed one lawsuit questioning its legality, and may do so again if the measure passes. A pre-election suit sought to keep the initiative out of the hands of voters, but on Aug. 27 San

Mateo County Superior Court Judge George Miram allowed the ballot measure to proceed. The judge said in his decision that the government code that allows voter input on pension systems “raises serious doubt as to whether the Legislature intended to foreclose voter involvement in pensions as the petitioners argue.” City Council candidate Chuck Bernstein helped organize the grassroots campaign by the Citizens for Fair and Responsible Pension Reform that gathered more than 3,100 signatures, enough to get Measure L on the ballot. Two unions, Service Employees International Union Local 521 (SEIU) and American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Local 829 (AFSCME), filed the lawsuit to argue that only the City Council has the authority to change pension compensation. Judge Miram rejected that argument, stating that they didn’t prove that voters aren’t allowed to “instruct their city representatives,” but left open the possibility of post-election review. Menlo Park City Attorney William McClure estimated the cost of defending a lawsuit after the election at $25,000 to $60,000. Those against Measure L find the cost to be a great reason to vote against it. On the flip side, the grassroots See MEASURE L, page 24

October 13, 2010 N The Almanac N 21


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