Social Media
Twitter:
@PSP_USA
YouTube videos:
PublicSafetyProjecthttp://www.youtube.com/user/PublicSafetyProject
ALERTS
CALIFORNIA ELECTION ALERT !
Tuesday, September 14, 2021 is Recall Election Day in California.
Vote YES on the first question to RECALL GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM; and
Vote for LARRY ELDER on the second question to elect Larry Elder as governor if a majority of the votes counted voted Yes on the first question.
Vote-By-Mail ballots were mailed out to ALL registered voters, dead or alive, moved out of the state or not, legal or illegal. This was done to maximize the opportunity for election fraud and theft to keep Governor Gavin Newsom in office.
The election fraud can include stuffing the ballot box with fraudulent ballots voting NO on the RECALL and NO VOTE for the new governor, and destroying, discarding, or not counting ballots voting YES and LARRY ELDER.
You can vote by mail, but it is probably safer to vote in person at the election poll on or before September 14, 2021 to help ensure your vote gets counted.
-
GREAT WEBSITES TO VISIT REGULARLY:
Prager U
Dennis Prager's 5-Minute Educational Videos
Free Videos. Free Minds. www.PragerU.com
KRLA AM 870 Talk Radio
AM870TheAnswer.com
KABC AM 790 Talk Radio
www.KABC.com
Mark Levin Radio Talk Show:
www.MarkLevinShow.com
Hear or download past shows for free:
www.MarkLevinShow.com/audio-rewind/
Meta
April 2024 M T W T F S S « Aug 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 -
Recent Posts
- Recall Racist and Undemocratic Governor Newsom, Elect Larry Elder – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Michael D. Robbins
- America’s Founding Principles in 250 Words, Including the Title
- Former El Segundo City Councilman Mike Robbins Exposed Evidence of an El Segundo Unified School District Pay-For-Play Scam Involving Bond Measure ES
- Flyer Distributed throughout El Segundo exposing evidence of El Segundo Unified School District Pay-For-Play to Fund School Bond Ballot Measure ES Campaign
- Alert for the Tuesday, November 8, 2016 General Election
Recent Comments
- Why “Hate Crime” Laws are Immoral and Counter-Productive, by Michael D. Robbins | Public Safety Project™ on Hate Crime Law Supporters Weakened Our Criminal Justice System and Self-Defense Rights, by Michael D. Robbins
- El Segundo firefighter Michael Archambault arrested at Costco for allegedly shoplifting five products worth $354.95 (Booking Photo) | Public Safety Project™ on Could Firefighter’s Arrest be the Result of a Culture of Entitlement?
- Special Email – RE: Chevron Chamber Package – 1-4-2012.pdf – Adobe Acrobat Standard | Public Safety Project™ on Are Chevron’s Taxes Too High?
- Special Email – FW: Chevron Chamber Package – 1-4-2012.pdf – Adobe Acrobat Standard | Public Safety Project™ on Are Chevron’s Taxes Too High?
- Eye-Popping El Segundo 2009 City Employee Compensation Data Now Available | Public Safety Project on Eye-Popping El Segundo 2009 Firefighter Compensation Data
Archives
- August 2021
- June 2021
- November 2018
- August 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- January 2015
- October 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2013
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- January 2010
- October 2009
- April 2008
- August 2005
- August 2004
- April 2004
- August 2001
- July 2001
- April 1996
- March 1996
- January 1994
- November 1991
Categories
- 9-11 Terrorism Attack
- ALERTS
- America's Founding Documents
- America's Founding Principles
- American Founding
- ATM Machines
- Babies
- Banking
- Beach Reporter Letters
- Birds
- Bombings
- California
- Crime Control
- Crimes
- Daily Breeze Letters
- Declaration of Independence
- Democrats
- Doug Willmore's Great Chevron Shakedown
- Doug Willmore’s Great City Shakedown
- Economy and Economics
- El Segundo
- El Segundo Chevron Public Records Act Request
- El Segundo Election Coverage
- El Segundo Herald Letters
- El Segundo Hotel Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT)
- El Segundo Measure B TOT Tax Hike
- El Segundo News
- El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases
- Elections
- Elections
- Environment
- Ethics
- Fake News
- Federalist Papers
- Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions
- Firefighter Union Corruption
- Firefighters Commiting Crimes
- Fraud Waste and Abuse
- Genocide
- Government Employee Compensation and Pensions
- Gun Control
- Hermosa Beach
- Historical News
- Humor
- Identity Theft
- Individual Liberty
- Islamic Terrorism
- Israel
- Letters to the Editor
- Library
- Los Angeles Times
- Manhattan Beach
- Manhattan Beach News
- Mass Murders
- Measure A – 5 New Taxes and 6 Tax Inceases
- Measure P – Firefighters Union Initiative
- Middle East
- News
- Police Officers Commiting Crimes
- Police Union Corruption
- Political Corruption
- Politics
- Position Papers
- Public Records
- Public Records Act
- Recall Election
- Recall Election
- Redondo Beach
- Research
- RKBA
- School Teachers Union Corruption
- Security
- Self-Defense
- Self-Defense and Gun Rights
- Tax Policy and Issues
- Terrorism
- U.S. Constitution
- Uncategorized
- Union Corruption
- United States
- Videos
- Violent Crime
- Weapons of Mass Destruction
- Wildlife
Pages
Blogroll
- Documentation
El Segundo Police Officers' Association (ESPOA) Exposed
Response to the El Segundo Police Officers’ Association City Council Endorsements- Pension Tsunami Unfunded pension liabilities and excessive and unsustainable government pensions threaten bankruptcy.
- Plugins
- Suggest Ideas
- Support Forum
- Themes
- WordPress Blog
- WordPress Planet
Tag Archives: firefighters union
Post-election Council meeting – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins
Post-election Council meeting
The El Segundo Council meeting after the election should have been a straightforward ceremonial passing of power from the old to the new Council. However, defeated Mayor Bill Fisher made the meeting all about himself, and then his ally, Marie Fellhauer, made it all about attacking newly elected Council members, Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan.
Fisher used his bully pulpit for the last time. He gave a long-winded speech repeating his campaign material, taking credit for the work and accomplishments of others including Carl Jacobson and even myself. As usual, he stated numerous falsehoods and, without any proof, accused others of lying even though they backed up their statements with evidence.
Police union member Marie Fellhauer put an item on the agenda designed to achieve a political end. It read, “Consideration and possible action to discuss the salary and benefits that the City Council members receive and whether such should be reduced or eliminated either voluntarily or through formal action.”
Eliminating Council pay and benefits will make it difficult to attract honest, competent, independent candidates. This will help the police and fire unions elect their own candidates and pack the Council with union puppets. It will also help Fellhauer and Atkinson run for re-election with minimal or no competition.
The election might be canceled due to a lack of candidates, as in 2006, when Fisher was appointed after potential candidates were intimidated by the unprecedented 2004 union and special interest campaign spending. It would have happened this time, if not for Dugan.
Michael Robbins
El Segundo Continue reading
Can We Save Mayberry? – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marc Rener
Can We Save Mayberry?
First council meeting after an election “traditionally” has consisted of well wishes and thanking the people for their vote, turned into 30 minutes of half-truths, lies, condescending remarks and placing blame on others that did not vote their way. We have lost our “Mayberry” traditions by self-serving politicians who prefer a “Santa Monica” version of El Segundo.
Ex-mayor Fisher “claims” he had to “jump in” before “the economic time frame door closed”. No time for “traditional” change of Council leadership. It’s my opinion, in 2012, when Mayor Busch decided not to run, Bill Fisher assumed he was the “heir” to the Mayoral throne. But he wasn’t elected Mayor or re-elected Mayor Pro-tem. He became just an ordinary councilman. Thus started the “plot” to obtain his desired title, which he executed 5/21/13.
As for his frequent misstatement of facts, let’s just take Fisher’s repeated claim that the firefighters union took a 9% cut in salary and a 17.5% cut in compensation in 2010. He repeated this claim in council meetings on 3/4/14, 3/18/14, 4/1/14 and 4/15/14. Fisher has never shown any documentation to verify these claims. He’s just talk.
For years Fisher has refused to examine my documents to disprove me. On 4/15/14 during Public Communications, I again produced these documents. Neither Fisher nor his loyal supporters Fellhauer and Atkinson asked to see these documents during or after any of these meetings. Apparently they think repeating falsehoods often makes them true.
– Marc Rener Continue reading
No on Measure A – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins
No on Measure A
Mayor Fisher claims the “business community” supports Measure A, and the City Council has no control over employee pension costs. Not true.
Most El Segundo businesses oppose Measure A. Ninety percent are not Chamber members, and the Chamber board did not allow its general membership to vote before supporting the tax hikes.
City Council controls pension costs in three ways: (1) Amounts of employee salaries, which are increased by pay raises and “special compensation”; (2) Percentage of total pension contributions employees are required to pay; and (3) Pension plan options the city provides.
Firefighter and police pensions pay 3 percent of their single highest year salary for each year worked, up to 90 percent. Fisher supported firefighter and police pay raises of 11.25 percent to 32.3 percent over three years, plus additional 5 percent annual “step” raises, approved 4/7/09 and 12/2/08, jacking up pension costs.
The council can save more than $3.3 million yearly by requiring city employees to pay half their total pension contributions, as allowed under state law effective 1/1/13. The city now pays 71 percent to 94 percent of total pension contributions.
The council can save several million more yearly by eliminating automatic additional 5 percent annual “step” raises, and “special compensation” for things that are existing job requirements or unrelated to the job.
These savings must be negotiated with the city unions later this year, after the April election. The Measure A tax windfall will weaken the City Council’s bargaining position and preclude these savings.
See PublicSafetyProject.org for more information. Vote “no” on Measure A.
Michael Robbins
El Segundo Continue reading
Something Fishy About Measure A – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong
Something Fishy About Measure A
Mayor Fisher is threatening to contract out our fire services to County if we don’t approve his Measure A tax hikes. These are empty threats. There’s no advantage in outsourcing. It would reduce services – not save money. 90% of voters rejected Measure P to outsource fire services. Clearly, we can do a referendum against an ordinance to outsource services.
Last year City Council raised Chevron’s taxes by more than $8.5 million average per year for 15 years. And the Council can save many millions of dollars per year by getting the employee compensation and pension cost increases under control.
All residents will pay much more of the $6.6 million annual Measure A taxes than the “Yes on A” campaign mailer claims. We will pay the new business taxes that are passed on to us as customers, in addition to the new taxes on our electricity, water, gas, landline and cellular telephone, cable TV, satellite, and Internet bills.
The money won’t go for schools or infrastructure. The City Attorney said the resolution on how to spend the money is not binding, and only language in the ballot measure can be binding. Fisher chose the non-binding route – he refused to put language in the ballot measure for money to schools and infrastructure!
The money will go for huge past and future fire and police union pay raises and resulting pension cost increases. That’s why the fire union donated $5,000 to the “Yes on A” campaign!
– Marianne Fong Continue reading
City of El Segundo Can Save $3.3 Million Per Year in Employee Pension Costs
by Michael D. Robbins
Director, Public Safety Project, PublicSafetyProject.org
March 14, 2014
El Segundo Mayor Bill Fisher, and City Council Members David Atkinson and Marie Felhauer who give Fisher his Council majority, claim the City Council no control over City employee pension costs. They claim that is all determined by California state law. This is not true. They make this claim to deceive El Segundo voters into approving the massive Measure A tax increases on residents and businesses on the April 8, 2014 city election ballot.
This article explains how the City Council has significant control over employee pension costs, how the City Council increased employee pension costs, and how the City Council can save $3.3 million per year in employee pension costs.
The City Council controls employee pension costs in three significant ways:
- The amounts of employee salaries, which are increased by pay raises and “special compensation” add-ons;
- The percentage of the total CalPERS pension contributions employees are required to pay; and
- Which pension formula and other pension options are provided to City employees.
Every pay raise increased the City’s CalPERS pension costs.
City employee annual pension income is a fixed percentage of their single highest year salary, including all those redundant and non-job-related “Special Compensation” union contract add-ons, for every year they worked. Firefighters and police get annual pension income of 3% of their single highest year salary for each year they worked, up to a maximum of 90%, with full retirement after 30 years at age 50 or 55. This corresponds to pension benefit formulas of 3% @ 50 and 3% @ 55, respectively.
Mayor Fisher supported wildly excessive and unsustainable pay raises for the already over-compensated firefighter and police unions that helped launch his political career with lots of campaign support, and for their managers to prevent “salary compaction”. Fisher supported pay raises ranging from 11.25% to 23% for the firefighter and police unions, in three or four installments over three years, and single pay raises ranging from 14.9% to 32.3% for their managers, during the first three years of the Great Recession. All of the raises were approved well after the Great Recession started, and many included retroactive pay raises effective up to 6 and 9 months before the union contracts were approved. The firefighter and police union contracts included additional 5% annual “step raises”, and additional periodic “longevity raises”. … Continue reading
Feels Measure “A” Too Important – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Scott Houston
NOTE:
This letter to the El Segundo Herald newspaper is proof that Scott Houston supported the ELEVEN tax hikes in Measure A on the April 8, 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Electionu ballot.
Feels Measure “A” Too Important – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Scott Houston
I wanted to stay quiet. But this conversation is too important not to participate in, speak up and urge every El Segundo voter to support Measure A. We’ve been down this road before and, once again, our City finds itself in a precarious financial situation. Even with the additional revenues gained from the Chevron tax settlement agreement, our City will be running significant deficits of nearly $6 million for the foreseeable future if we do not address our structural deficit. That is why I am supporting Measure A.
Our City Council has worked diligently to maintain our services with less. And our City employees have borne the brunt of cuts due to our financial state – in fact, there are now about 20% fewer employees at City Hall struggling to provide the same levels of service we are accustomed to. Something has to give. We cannot continue cutting our way out and decimating the community we love.
While not a panacea, I believe Measure A is a major step forward in the right direction to finally address our city’s ongoing budget crisis. Let’s work together as a community to give our next Council the resources needed to balance our city budget. Please vote Yes on Measure A on April 8.
– Scott Houston
NOTE BY MICHAEL D. ROBBINS:
The City of El Segundo’s taxpayers are probably paying about $8 million per year in excess compensation to the city’s firefighter and police “association” (union) members and their managers. That is a great sum of money for small-town El Segundo. The firefighter and police unions ratcheted up their total compensation (salaries, benefits, and employer-paid pension contributions) to wildly excessive and unsustainable levels by endorsing, contributing money to, and campaigning for the City Council candidates who would give them the largest pay, benefits, and pension increases, and raise taxes to pay for it all.
That is why El Segundo firefighters (and those of many other California cities) are paid about $150,000 to more than $330,000 in total compensation each per year. When the firefighter and police union members get large unjustifiable compensation increases, their managers get even larger increases to avoid “salary compaction”.
Scott Houston is a firefighter and police union puppet. He supports them and they support him. Houston supports Measure A on the April 8, 2014 El Segundo city election ballot to pay for past and future excessive and unsustainable firefighter and police union pay raises and the resulting pension increases. The current firefighter and police union contracts expire on September 30, 2014, and the City Council will negotiate new labor contracts with the unions later this year.
If the voters reject Measure A, the firefighter and police unions will have to give back some of the excessive increases they received as rewards supporting the campaigns of City Council candidates. There is a conflict of interest when government employee unions campaign to elect their own bosses who will negotiate with them and decide their pay raises and pension increases in secret meetings.
Scott Houston ran for El Segundo City Council twice – in April 2010 and April 2012. Each time the El Segundo Police Officers Association (union) gave him their endorsement, a huge cash campaign contribution, independent campaign expenditures, and additional campaign support. Houston lost both elections due to strong grassroots campaigns against him.
Scott Houston supported Measure P, the firefighter union’s initiative (4/10/12 election), which was defeated by 90.1 percent of El Segundo voters. It would have disbanded our local fire department and transferred our fire and paramedic services, and firefighters, to the Los Angeles County Fire Department for inferior services. It would have eliminated 31 percent of our on-duty firefighters, two paramedic squads and all three paramedic transport ambulances, doubling hospital transport times. But it would have protected the firefighters from much-needed pay cuts. … Continue reading
April 8, 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election News and Information
Last updated: Friday, May 9, 2014 at 01:45 AM PT.
This page will be updated regularly with links to informative articles about the upcoming April 8, 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election.
Bookmark this page and review it often for breaking news and information.
(Posts are in priority order, not chronological order; newer posts appear in bold text.)
April 8, 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election
Ballot Argument and Rebuttal Against El Segundo Measure A Tax Hikes
City of El Segundo 2014 Measure A Tax Hikes – City Attorney’s Impartial Analysis
Recapping the Election – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins
El Segundo Flyer #1: Vote “NO” on Measure A – Eleven Tax Hikes in One Measure!
El Segundo Flyer #3 – Vote “NO” on Measure A, and Against BILL FISHER!
El Segundo City Employee Unions Contributed $17,500 to Measure A Tax Hikes Thus Far
Have the Measure A Supporters Earned Our Trust?
City of El Segundo Can Save $3.3 Million Per Year in Employee Pension Costs
Welcome to the City of El Segundo $100K+ CalPERS Pension Club!
El Segundo Herald Misreports City’s $6.3 Million Property Tax Revenue as $1 Million
El Segundo Firefighters’ Union is Bankrolling the Measure A Campaign to Hike Taxes
El Segundo Measure A Co-Chair Joe Harding was Against the Tax Hikes Before He was For Them
Wrong Time to Raise Taxes and Fees in El Segundo
Which El Segundo City Employee was Paid Nearly $600,000 in His Last Year?
2009-2010 City of El Segundo Separations due to Budgetary Reasons Mostly Early Retirements
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
April 15 Council Meeting – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Mike Robbins
Post-election Council meeting – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins
Council pay procedures – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong
Fellhauer is a Union Puppet – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong
Can We Save Mayberry? – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marc Rener
Recapping the Election – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins
Fire Union Bankrolling “Yes on A” Campaign – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong
No on Measure A – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins
Not happy with Measure A – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong
No on Measure A – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Mike Robbins
Something Fishy About Measure A – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong
NO ON “A” – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Art Lavalle
A Correction is In Order – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Mike Robbins
No on Measure A – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Helen Armstrong
Frustration – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Richard J. Switz
Measure ‘A’ – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Richard J. Switz
Continue reading
Which El Segundo City Employee was Paid Nearly $600,000 in His Last Year?
by Michael D. Robbins
Director, Public Safety Project, PublicSafetyProject.org
March 3, 2014
Firefighter and Police Unions are Breaking the City’s Budget
Generally, El Segundo sworn firefighters and police officers are by far the highest paid City employees. Their “associations” (unions) endorse, contribute money to, and campaign for the City Council candidates who will give them the biggest pay raises and increases in benefits and pensions, and then raise taxes and fees on residents and businesses to pay for it all. Their total compensation, including salary, benefits, and pension contributions paid by the City’s taxpayers, has been about $150,000 to more than $330,000 per individual per year.
The managers’ salaries, benefits, and pensions are increased along with those of their subordinates, to prevent “salary compaction”, and to maintain a minimum 5% higher level of compensation than their subordinates.
Existing sworn police and firefighter employees, including managers, can retire as early as age 50 (police) or 55 (firefighters) with a guaranteed annual pension income of up to 90% of their single highest year salary, including all the “Special Compensation” add-ons in their union contracts for things that are already a requirement of the job or are unrelated to the job.
Thus, Mayor Bill Fisher increased the employee pension income and the pension cost to the taxpayers for the police and firefighter employees (and for all City employees) every year of the Great Recession, because he gave them all excessive and unsustainable raises every one of those years!
City of El Segundo $100K Pension Club
Here is a list of retired El Segundo City employees in the “$100K Pension Club”, i.e., with CalPERS pensions paying them in excess of $100,000 per year guaranteed by the taxpayers regardless of pension fund investment performance:
http://www.FixPensionsFirst.com/calpers-database/?first_name=&last_name=&employer=EL+SEGUNDO
Highest Paid El Segundo City Employee in Calendar Year 2009
Former El Segundo Police Chief David Cummings was the highest paid City employee in calendar year 2009. He retired in 2009 with about eleven weeks left in the year, and had total 2009 compensation of about $596,657. This included his City contract income and his CalPERS pension income while he continued working as the El Segundo Police Chief after his retirement. Cummings’ post-retirement City employment contract acknowledged that he would be receiving his $210,000 per year CalPERS pension income while he continued working as the City’s police chief after his retirement. …
Continue reading
State Ballot Measures – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins
Please vote “yes” on Proposition 32 (bans direct union and corporate contributions to candidates) and “no” on Propositions 30 (income and sales tax hike), 34 (repeals death penalty), 36 (three-strikes dilution), 38 (income tax hike), and 40 (gerrymandered redistricting plan).
Proposition 32 helps prevent El Segundo and other South Bay and California cities from being pushed toward bankruptcy by city employee unions and corporations that buy influence with politicians who then pay them back with our tax money and raise our taxes and fees to pay for it. Typical payoffs are one million tax dollars for every thousand donated.
Corrupt and wildly overpaid firefighter and police unions are spending millions of dollars in deceptive campaign ads to defeat Proposition 32. These unions have been bankrupting our cities and jacking up our taxes and fees, so they can get total compensation of $150,000 to more than $300,000 per year, and retire at age 50 or 55, with a guaranteed pension paying up to 90 percent of their single highest year salary. … Continue reading
New negotiation strategy – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins
Advice to the Hermosa Beach City Council for fire/police union contract negotiations to avoid bankruptcy:
Start negotiating from a blank sheet of paper to eliminate decades of union lawyer tricks and traps that ratcheted up costs.
Read, analyze, understand and price every provision and phrase in existing and new union contracts. Negotiate a not-to-exceed total contract cost based on specified staffing/service levels. Don’t write blank checks with taxpayer money as pension and insurance costs increase.
Do not base compensation on formulas involving compensation in other cities or costs will spiral upward. Do not give up inherent management rights to determine staffing levels, work assignments and layoffs, which are the city’s most important cost-control and bargaining tools.
Include a burden-sharing mechanism that includes thresholds and triggers which automatically reduce total contract costs by specified amounts, and optionally reopen negotiations, when unbudgeted, uncontrolled expenses and revenue declines exceed specified thresholds. … Continue reading