Annual Earthquake Drill returns to California 

On Thursday, October 18 at 10:18 am,  all school sites in the Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD) will take part in California’s annual earthquake disaster drill. Students will begin the drill in their third period classroom. Parents and guardians are requested to not visit the school during the drill unless directed to do so as a volunteer. The entire drill should take a few hours from start to finish. The drill is intended to prepare the staff and students for a disaster if and when one occurs.

The PUSD has adopted an extensive Emergency/Disaster Plan based on an international Incident Command System (www.ready.gov). All District and Site personnel have been trained in the implementation of this Plan through drills, workshops and periodic staff reviews.  For more information on PUSD emergency information go to the PUSD site.

Many organizations in California improve their earthquake preparedness in annual drills. The “ShakeOut” drills began in California and have now been organized in other states and countries.  In 2011, 8.6 million Californians participated.

ShakeOut.org has new recommendations for earthquake safety including specialized recommendations for providing for the safety of people with disabilities.

The PCA website is currently experiencing a problem with receiving letters and information.  Until the problem is resolved, we ask that contributors send all submissions to editors@piedmontcivic.org.  Please include your name and Piedmont address. (Addresses are not published.)

PCA welcomes all points of view and information on civic matters.

Thank you for your interest and participation.

Piedmont Civic Association

Editorial Board

Deadline Approaching to Register to Vote on Nov. 6-

If you are registered to vote, you should have received your sample ballot booklet.  If not, you may want to check your voter registration status online.  If you have moved recently or missed several elections, you may have to re-register.  You can renew your registration online, by mail (registration forms are widely available at most County buildings, post offices, libraries, Department of Motor Vehicle [DMV] offices), or in person at the Alameda County Registrar of Voters’ office in Oakland, 1225 Fallon Street, Rm. G-1, Oakland, CA 94612.  The Registrar of Voter’s office is open 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM Monday through Friday.

The voter registration deadline is always 15 days before an election. Voters who register after the 29th day before an election should receive notice of the location of their polling place in the mail, but they may not receive a sample ballot with information about candidates and measures due to the short turnaround time for mailing.

October 25th meeting has been rescheduled to October 23 – 

The date and time for next week’s Piedmont Unified School District Budget Advisory Committee meeting scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 25 at 3:30 p.m. has been changed to Tuesday, Oct. 23 from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. The meeting will be held in the District Administration office 760 Magnolia Avenue.   This change has been made to accommodate those who are unable to attend an afternoon meeting and to provide for a meeting before the next Board of Education meeting, which will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 24. This meeting will provide an opportunity for members of the community to give input on the proposal for the School Support Tax Election.

The following are other scheduled meetings of the School District Budget Advisory Committee:

Resident urges voters and Council to demand projections –

Measure Y proponents on the City Council have been quick to make gloomy prophecies about what will happen if Measure Y is defeated. But none of the Council’s self-described “numbers guys” have ever backed-up these prophecies up with real fiscal projections.  > Click to read more…

Municipal Tax Review Committee member responds to recent statements by Mayor John Chiang.

The several million dollars wasted by the City of Piedmont on the Piedmont Hills undergrounding debacle and city costs for the “gift” of Blair Park have consumed revenues equal to most of the $6 million collected by Piedmont’s parcel tax in 2009-2013. Yet Mayor John Chiang tells us that renewing the parcel tax (Measure Y on the November ballot) is essential “to maintain the excellent city services which assure the safety of our citizens and keep Piedmont an attractive place to live.”  > Click to read more…

School District Counting on Voter Support-

The Piedmont Unified School District supports the passage of both Proposition 30 and Proposition 38 because each would provide needed revenue to public schools.

Since the onset of the state‘s fiscal crisis in 2008, public schools statewide have experienced unprecedented funding reductions and apportionment deferrals totaling more than $20 billion. State funding to Piedmont has decreased from $5,837 per student in 2008 to $5,255 in 2012, for a reduction of $582/student and a cumulative loss of $7M in State funding since 2008. California public schools now rank 47th out of the 50 states in average per-pupil spending, and Piedmont receives even less than the California average.

The 2012-13 California state budget is predicated on voters approving Prop 30 on November 4. Failure of Proposition 30 will trigger automatic cuts to K-12 education throughout California. The effect on Piedmont will be an immediate reduction of an additional $1.1 million dollars annually from the state. Passage of Proposition 38, which is also on the November ballot, would direct billions of dollars to public schools, although we would still have the trigger cuts described above. If both measures pass, then the one with the most votes would go into effect. Voters will not be taxed twice.

Because the Piedmont Board of Education is committed to making policy and financial decisions to help the school district provide quality educational programs and services, we support both measures that provide funding for public education.

Andrea Swenson,

Trustee and Vice President, Piedmont Board of Education

Link:  BOARD RESOLUTION

Editors Note: The Piedmont Civic Association does not support or oppose candidates or ballot measures.

League of Women Voters program: Should California Kill the Death Penalty?

The League of Women Voters of Piedmont will host a program featuring Piedmont resident, Cliff Gardner, who will discuss Proposition 34, a measure on the November 6 California ballot.  The program will be held at 40 Highland Avenue in Piedmont on Wednesday, October 24, 2012, from 7-8:30 p.m. The public is invited.

Proposition 34, the SAFE California Act, would replace the death penalty in California with a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

With over 30 years of practice in criminal law, Cliff Gardner has extensive experience representing clients in post-conviction proceedings, specializing in death penalty appeals and habeas corpus. He has represented clients in many high profile cases, including Scott Peterson and one of the Menendez brothers. He has tried more than a dozen cases before the California Supreme Court and briefed and argued several in the United States Supreme Court. In 1999, he co-authored Proposition 36 – the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act, which was approved by 61 percent of California voters. An advocate of abolishing the death penalty, Mr. Gardner will talk about why this is an important proposition to pass.

The League of Women Voters of California is endorsing Proposition 34.

Editors Note:  The position taken is that of the League of Women Voters. The Piedmont Civic Association does not support or oppose ballot measures.

Resident urges focus on key issues-

Measure Y has attracted widespread attention, as well as yet more divisiveness in our City.

I do not believe that the most important issue is either the amount or history of the parcel tax.  Rather, the real issues are:

• What, if any, so-called essential services would be adversely impacted if Measure Y were defeated, and
• How has it come to pass that both the MTRC and BAC have opined that the current compensation and benefit levels for employees , even after the recent negotiations, are unsustainable and out of control?  > Click to read more…

Resident identifies Council’s misstatements –

I do not support the proposed parcel tax. The city’s official position statement, written by (Mayor John) Chiang and  (Councilman Jeff) Wieler, has material factual misstatements.

The Council (except Keating) who are mostly attorneys, the City Administrator and City Attorney have been less than forthright about things the past few years. They previously spread misinformation and scare tactics on the proposed and defeated sewer tax. The deceptions and the arrogance that leads to this behavior needs to stop.  > Click to read more…