YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER ward Winning News al A pa
Vol. 10, No. 4
Including Surrounding Communities
Council delays salary increase by Samie Hartley Staff Writer
The Oakley City Council has postponed its salary raise until monthly staff furlough days conclude in June. The council adopted an ordinance in 2006 to increase each member’s salary from $300 per month to $465.40. The raise was to go into effect last year, but because of the recession, the council chose to forgo the raise for one year. The council was prepared to implement the salary raise at its Jan. 12 meeting but opted to hold off after several residents questioned the move, which would cost the city approximately $28,000 annually. Resident Paul Seger told the council it needs to reevaluate the city budget before considering a raise. “It’s almost $10,000 to foot the bill for the raise, and I think it (the raise) needs to be judged before it actually happens to make sure the budget can afford it. We are still in this economic downturn. Nothing’s changed, so how come all of a sudden we can afford it?”
Seger suggested using the money available for a council salary raise to reinstate the planning commission, which was disbanded last year to help the city save approximately $20,000 annually. Resident Brad Nix said the raise was ridiculous. “You’re literally giving yourself a pay raise at the expense of staff,” who are subject to monthly furlough days through June 18, 2010. Nix suggested using the extra money to videotape council meetings so that the footage can be posted on the city’s Web site, giving more residents access to government meetings. Councilman Bruce Connelley said even with the raise, Oakley council members are still the lowest-paid members in Contra Costa County, and $465.40 a month is below minimum wage. “I don’t think anyone is getting rich over $465,” said Councilwoman Carol Rios. “With all the travel we do and all the time that we spend, it’s a labor
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Waging water war
Staff Writer
You are worth $1,700 annually to your government, and government officials will soon be counting on you to make sure the money keeps coming in. That was the message from Tessie Zaragoza of the U.S. Census Bureau in a presentation last week to the Antioch City Council. “You as a resident can make your own check to the city, county or state by counting yourself,” she said, in reference to tax dollars being allocated based on population. The census also will determine Congressional apportionment and help redraw political district boundaries. A 10-question form will be sent to every residence in the country in mid-March. It will ask the
January 22, 2010
THIS WEEK
Primed for the big day
Let our Wedding Planner help you sweat the details right now so you can relax on your wedding day.
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Locals plunge into Haiti fray When every day and every dollar counts, East County residents waste no time coming to the aid of a neighbor.
Page 3A Photo by Dave Roberts
upervisor Mary Piepho, who represents Oakley and all of Contra Costa County in talks about the future of the Delta, told an audience of business people last week that political science, not true science, is driving the debate over water supplies. The story is on Page 13A.
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Falcons pin Patriots
see Salary page 13A
Uncle Sam needs you to count you by Dave Roberts
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“ You as a resident can make your own check to the city, county or state by counting yourself.
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Tessie Zaragoza, U.S. Census Bureau name, relationship, age, gender and race of everyone in the residence as well as whether the residence is owned or a rental. It does not ask whether residents are in the country legally. Census officials are expecting about two out of three households to mail back the questionnaire. If you don’t mail it back, expect a census worker to knock on your door sometime this spring or summer in an attempt to get the information from you. If you refuse, you could be hit with a $100 fine for every
question you don’t answer or that you answer incorrectly, according to Zaragoza. Two of the 10 questions pertain to race or ethnicity. One question asks whether you are Hispanic, Latino or of Spanish origin and provides boxes allowing you to specify whether you are Mexican, Mexican American, Chicano, Puerto Rican, Cuban or another category. The other question focuses on race, providing 15 boxes to choose from. The first is “White,” the second box is “Black, African
American or Negro.” The third is “American Indian or Alaska Native.” There are also boxes for Asian Indian, Japanese, Native Hawaiian, Chinese, Korean, Guamanian or Chamorro, Filipino, Vietnamese and Samoan. Another option allows you to specify if you’re from another Asian or Pacific Island race. And the last option allows you write in “some other race.” Although Zaragoza assured the council and those in attendance that the individual data is confidential and cannot be accessed by any governmental agency, one person at the meeting was concerned that the aggregated data could be used to round up and incarcerate residents feared to be a threat to the government. see Counting page 13A
Freedom’s mat men threw Heritage for a loss in a leagueopening match that looked easier than it was.
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INSIDE Calendar ..........................15B Classifieds ........................24A Cop Logs ..........................15A Entertainment ................14B Food ................................... 8B Milestones .........................8A Opinion ...........................14A Outdoors ...........................6A Sports ...............................19A Wedding Planner ............. 1B
FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A