CONTEST __________________ ”CC” ______________________________ ST. NORBERT CHURCH   RATES

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Aug. 29, 2014 Los Cerritos Community News

 

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  • M c M a h o n says:

    Dear ABC Neighbors:

    ABC Public Hearing: Sept 2, 2014. Chan 28-32.
    http://www.united-hoa.org.

    http://www.abcusd.k12.ca.us/pages/ABC_Unified_School_District

    New $195 million ABC Mello Ross bond measure is now officially known as Measure AA, Mello Roos; Voters will need to vote against it on November 4; if you don’t want your property tax to increase by hundreds of dollars each year without knowing why. Attached please find a preview of Measure AA and the ballot statements for and against it. Proponents of Measure AA Mello Roos, need to answer the following questions:

    1. When they say “our schools average 50 years old”, why do they omit the fact that ABC School District has just spent $135 million a mere 10 years ago “modernizing” our school facilities? Gahr High’s roof was replaced in 1999 and 2002, why has it “outlived useful life” in the District’s own words? What other “modernization” achievements in the ABC School District have “outlived useful life”? Nothing mentioned about solar, retro fitting, Cer HS Horticulture Fields, etc. Nothing mentioned, the money from the sale of Encore HOA and development, which was aprox. $6M.

    2. When they claim “over 300 teachers, principals, administrators and community members contributed to the Facilities Master Plan”, can they identify a single public forum or a single postcard sent to the taxpayers who will be footing the bill? Why do they avoid commenting on making this $635 million FMP in less than three months without any project details? Why do they avoid commenting on ABC School District posting this FMP on their website on a holiday weekend exact two days before it was to be approved by the School Board?

    3. When they claim “enrollment trends stabilized five years ago and increased by over 300 in the past two years”, why do they hide the fact that in-district enrollment continues to decline throughout the period they refer to, and that the apparent stabilization or increase in enrollment is completely due to the ever larger number of out-of-district students? ABC wants to import students from outside the ABC district, in order to balance the state funding budget, at the expense of ABC District Mello Roos Measure AA. Importing students from outside the ABC district, will not have to pay towards the Mello Roos Measure AA.

    4. When they say “citizen oversight is real and effective”, why are they oblivious to the disastrous situation in LAUSD where the iPad project funded by millions of bond money with “citizen oversight” had to be suspended because of poor planning and mismanagement? The only way to protect taxpayers is to leave them alone.

    5. Originally the ABC Mello Roos was for aprx $250M, last minute ditch; downsized to $195M, without putting this lower number on the agenda for discussion. Poss. Brown Act Violation, as the public had no input on the $195M revised Bond Sale.

    6) Bond money nationally is dropping. 2002 Yr, over 400M Bonds were sold nationally. Today Bond Market has dwindled to 4M sold.

    7) ABC district is still paying on the 1997 Mello Roos Bond for ABC and continuing to pay on the Cerritos Junior College Mello Roos. If Measure AA Mello Roos Bond passes, ABC district will be paying for 3rd Mello Roos Bond. ABC voters are from the following:
    • Cerritos.
    • Norwalk.
    • Bellflower.
    • E Lakewood
    • North East Long Beach
    • Hawaiian Gardens;
    • Artesia.

    8) Sept- Oct 2014, Cerritos votes will be voting for water increase, (Proxy USPS) by the guidelines of Prop 218. If this passes, Cerritos residents will see a 10% Increase in water bill, per yr, for the next 7 yrs. This will increase Cerritos Water Rates by 70%.

    9) Nov 2014 ballot, Cerritos residents will be voting on Prop 218 Guidelines, to increase the bed tax at Cerritos Sheraton Hotel from 6% to 12%. BTW, Sheraton is subsidized by RDA funds via the Towne Center Ground Lease.

    10) CCC is talking about a Sheriff Tax in order to boost money for policing. No date set.

    11) CCC passed amendment to Tree Ordinance, inorder for the Cerritos residents to pay for trees trimming or removal, under certain circumstances.

    12) Many of the ABC campuses are locked for public sports and general public. Voters in the ABC need to opportunity to inspect all campuses, prior to voting. ABC has failed to hold citywide open house tour of all the facilities and compounds.

    Shame on those who mislead the public!

    ABC District and Cerritos are being taxed to death. Both CCC and the ABC are hungry for our money, while many in the 7 districts are still having under water house mortgages or are sill in Loan Modification Mode, plus the district sill has a high rate for unemployed or underemployed residents. Cerritos alone, have population of more then 47%,which will be hard pressed to pay for the Mello Roos Bonds and increase in public services.

    For more information, please visit our website http://www.united-hoa.org.

    United Homeowners Alliance, A Community Organization
    [email protected]

    https://www.loscerritosnews.net/2014/08/31/aug-29-2014-los-cerritos-community-news/

  • MELLO ROOS BOND says:

    Dear ABC Neighbors:

    ABC Public Hearing: Sept 2, 2014. Chan 28-32.
    http://www.united-hoa.org.

    http://www.abcusd.k12.ca.us/pages/ABC_Unified_School_District\

    Dear ABC Neighbor,

    Here is a compilation of several demographic studies by reputable specialists in this field: http://united-hoa.org/demographic_reality.html. All these studies come to the same conclusion that school enrollment in the ABC School District has been and will continue to be declining. State Department of Education says it’s imprudent not to close schools in this kind of situation. Yet proponents of Measure AA Mello Roos Bond Tax, want us to to invest heavily in all ABC school facilities in spite of school enrollment decline. So they tell us the trend of enrollment decline has been reversed over the past five years, when the fact is the School District has been inflating the number of enrollment by recruiting more and more students from outside of our district. Now we know what the truth is, we need to ask ourselves whether we want to spend a large sum of money to fix up all school facilities including those we no longer need just so we can continue to educate more and more students who don’t even live in our district.

    For more information, please visit our website http://www.united-hoa.org.

    United Homeowners Alliance, A Community Organization
    [email protected]

    https://www.loscerritosnews.net/2014/08/31/aug-29-2014-los-cerritos-community-news/

  • Gavin Riley says:

    To correct another batch of false information, enrollment in the ABC School District is up another 100 students in 2014-15, the fourth year in a row of modest but steady increases. The primary reasons for the increase is a rising birthrate(noted in the 2010 Federal Census), multiple generations living in the same home for economic reasons, declining private school attendance, and the new state law that allows parents to enroll their children in school districts where they work or have child care needs. School districts cannot “recruit” outside their attendance areas and districts rarely will release their own students because they lose revenue. As a sidebar note the state of California and not local tax payers fund nearly all of the cost of the education of students in the state. What the state is now requiring is that the cost of maintaining state school standard facilities(Williams Act) be a local responsibility.
    Also no matter how many times one uses the word “mello roos”(not even the correct word) in a paragraph it is still nonsense!
    Gavin Riley

  • Gavin Riley says:

    To hopefully stick a fork in the Mello Roos silliness I think it is worthwhile to note just ten of the major differences between the Community Facilities Act of 1982(CFA) sometimes referred to as Mello Roos for its authors and Proposition 39 the school bond initiative of 2000.
    1) CFA requires a 2/3 vote while school bonds under Prop 39 require 55%
    2) CFA was a state law enacted by the state legislature in 1982 and can be repealed by it. Proposition 39 was enacted by the voters in 2000 as a state constitutional amendment and can only be repealed by the voters.
    3) CFA was enacted to encourage the development of many services in new communities while Proposition 39 is aimed narrowly at existing school districts needing upgrading and major repair.
    4) CFAs can be voted on at any time including special elections while Proposition 39 bonds must be voted on in general elections during even numbered years.
    5) CFAs do not require oversight or audits by the issuing agency while Proposition 39 requires both.
    6) CFA bonds are usually paid for over ten to twenty years but the residual cost of maintaining the projects created by them can go on forever while Proposition 39 school bonds are fully amortized over 25 to 40 years.
    7) Although paid as a part of the property tax assessment not all CPA fees are deductible on federal and state income taxes while all school bonds under Proposition 39 are fully deductible.
    8) CFA money can be used for operation expenses and salaries while Proposition 39 forbids this in the statute.
    9) Money from CFA can be used for anything from public parks to starting a police department and the cost to maintain them makes the costs extend in perpetuity while Proposition 39 funds can only be used for specific school projects identified in a Facilities Master Plan(FMP)and the cost limited to the size of the bond.
    10) CFA assessments can rise and fall from year to year depending on the ongoing costs of the projects funded by the CFA and is not subject to the limits of Proposition 13. Proposition 39 requires that bonds not exceed $60 per $100,000 0f assessed valuation under Proposition 13.
    Other than these and many other differences the two are the same!
    Gavin Riley

    • M C M A H O N ' S ..... FAMILY says:

      ……….Mello Roos School Bonds…………..

      RE: G Riley Response.

      Property taxes in Calif have (2) types of liens:
      1. Perpetuity Taxes Liens- Infinity of time.
      2. Non-Perpetuity Tax Liens- Definite Time Frame or Mello Roos Bonds.

      Since the school bond tax, has time frame, it is a Mello Roos Bond, per tax code, as used for general improvement of a designated area(s) and can be paid off in full at any time. Many conditions of sale of properties, mandatory the Mello Roos Bond(s) be paid in full. Many lenders will not finance Mello Roos Bonds, so have to be paid off. Since the last 2 Mello Roos School Bonds were place by 2 school districts, many properties have new financing, called National Loan Modifications. Terms of loan modifications will not allow Mello Roos Bonds, so the ABC could be faced with District Litigation to determined the faith of the 2014 Mello Roos School District Bonds. Others have REVERSE MORTGAGES FOR SENIORS AND UNDERWATER LOANS. Most of the financing packages will not allow for MELLO ROOS BONDS.

      Many buyers will not purchase properties with Mello Roos Bonds, so the seller is responsible to pay the Mello Roos Bond ofF, as contingency to completion of the sale.

      Estimated that aprox 33% of the properties in the ABC School District have some degree of Loan Modifications to satisfy financing.

      Many real estate advertisement, read as follows, as said properties are in demand by buyers.

      For Sale: No Mello Roos Taxes, No HOA fees.

      —————————————

      RE: Increase Enrollment.

      Mr. Riley, you directly stated, while addressing the CCC during August 2014, “you felt the need to import students from outside the district, to satisfy state educational subsidizes”. Why should the residents of ABC pay for student’s education, which lives outside the district and no not pay property taxes to ABCUSD? Currently, only practice which is legal for living outside the district, if the parent of the student is willfully employed with in the district, its student can be educated within ABC. Should not be the responsibility of property holders within the ABC to finance Mello Roos Bond Tax, to advertise for students outside the district.

      Mr Riley, the blueprint you are drafting, stick Mello Roos Bond tax to the property dwellers within the ABCUSD, to bait students in to the ABCUSD from all over state of California.

      More questions for former teamster Union Leader, Mr. Riley. Why have you never addressed the vacant horticulture plot at Cer HS, nor the disassembly of woodshop classes to be replaced by STEM classes. Isnt the teachers teamster union being racist, pertaining to field trips to China and Japan, when bypassing other countries such as:
      1. Canada
      2. Europe
      3. S America
      4. Africa
      5. Russia.

      Mr Riley, you wear ABC on your clothes and poss. inked to your skin. If you are so proud of ABC and the city of Cerritos, why is your Cerritos home equipped with security grill bars, over all your windows , doors and skylights? You mentioned during the ABC Meeting for Mello Roos and repeated during CCC hearing, that your #1 investment is your dwelling. Dont you feel that all the dwellers in ABC, there #1 investment is their Property, hence, dont want their title marred by MELLO ROOS LIENS?

      https://www.loscerritosnews.net/2014/08/31/aug-29-2014-los-cerritos-community-news/

  • M C M A H O N ' S ..... FAMILY says:

    ABCUSD | Yellow Bus Tour Of Campuses.
    WHITE GLOVE- Guided Tour of ABC District Campuses.
    Check to see if the campuses really need Mello Roos Bond.

    Friday, 9/26/2014.
    Friday, 10/17/2014
    9am-noon

    Call for free Reservations: 562) 926-5566 X 21197

  • Gavin Riley says:

    Thank you McMahon for proving the point. Cerritos and the surrounding cities served by the ABCUSD are not in a Community Facilities District(Mello Roos)even though the community passed a school bond in 1997. Likewise Downey, Norwalk-La Mirada, Fullerton, Anaheim, and dozens of other school districts in our area did mot become CFDs when they passed their own school bonds in 2002 nor will they become CFDs if they pass new school bonds on the ballot in 2014.

    • M C M A H O N ' S ..... FAMILY says:

      Gavin, can we talk??

      You can call it whatever you like, it is still packaged as a tax….Most Realtors, homeowners, buyers, real estate attorneys, escrow reps, title ins, know this as a common name of Mello Roos.

      If this tax is not paid in full each year, it becomes lien on the property, property will be foreclosed in order to pay off the Mello Roos School Bond. Tax is tax and payable ea. yr.

      Whisper Word around town, from trustees, council persons, etc, ABCUSD is looking to import students from Gardena, Garden Grove, Westminster, Fullerton, Monterey Park and Montebello, in order to boost the Asian Populace in to the district.

      Bottom line, we need to keep this district affordable, so the district can start attracting first time homeowners, especially newbies from the HEARTLAND OF AMERICA.

      FYI, since Cerritos, which is part of the ABC, is not diversified per past census 2010; city is not getting full compensation from the Feds per decade; AKA prorated down!!!!

      Taxes, bonds, mello roos etc, will make it more difficult to first time buyers in to any parts of ABCUSD. We need to strive for affordability and diversity & stop pandering to China, Japan, India and Asia, as these areas are great, but America is composed of the world.

      https://www.loscerritosnews.net/2014/08/31/aug-29-2014-los-cerritos-community-news/?replytocom=202001#respond

  • Teachers | Families | Common Core Education says:

    Free educational event featuring expert speakers from Irvine Unified School District, Tustin Unified School District and University of California, Irvine

    IRVINE, CA (September 9, 2014): The Irvine community is invited to attend the Mayor’s Education Forum on the Common Core State Standards on Wednesday, October 8 from 6-8 p.m. at the Irvine Civic Center.

    This event features a panel of experts from Irvine Unified School District, Tustin Unified School District and University of California, Irvine, who will discuss the newly implemented Common Core State Standards for kindergarten through 12th grade.

    Presentation topics include:
    . What are the standards and how are they being implemented?
    . How were the standards developed?
    . How has teaching and learning changed in the classroom and how can parents support learning?
    . How is standardized testing different under the Common Core?
    . How are teachers being trained on the Common Core?

    Panelists will answer questions submitted in advance of the event to [email protected]. Questions not addressed during the forum will be answered and posted online at http://www.cityofrivine.org/spcyf no later than November 26, 2014.

    Admission is free. Registration is encouraged, but not required. To register online, visit http://www.irvinequickreg.org, (class number 149987) or call 949-724-6610.

    For additional program information, call 949-724-6680.

    https://www.loscerritosnews.net/2014/08/31/aug-29-2014-los-cerritos-community-news/#comments