Politics, Government and Business in Southern California's Inland Empire
April 16, 2013; 07:12 PM
Legislation to restore millions of dollars in 2011 budget cuts to four Riverside County cities has been pulled from its first committee hearing.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
March 26, 2013; 06:02 PM
SACRAMENTO – Inland lawmakers and local officials have taken a new tack to try to restore lost revenue for four Riverside County cities disproportionately hurt by a state budget shift two years ago.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
February 21, 2013; 06:59 PM
Aid packages aimed at stabilizing the finances of two of the county’s newest cities — and staving off the fiscal collapse of Jurupa Valley — will go to Riverside County supervisors next week.
To read story by Sandra Stokley in The Press Enterprise, click here.
January 10, 2013; 06:55 PM
Riverside County senators Richard Roth and Bill Emmerson introduced legislation this week stating their intent to restore lost funding for California cities that have incorporated since 2004.
To read story by Jim Miller and Nelsy Rodriguez in The Press Enterprise, click here.
December 31, 2012; 05:02 PM
Restoring funding to four cities and securing money for health-services are among the top lobbying priorities for Riverside County in the new year.
To read story by Jeff Horseman in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Published: 19 September 2012 – 09:18 PM
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed legislation that would have allocated $14 million to Riverside County’s newest cities, citing the measure’s impact on last year’s shift of some criminal-justice, mental health and other services to counties.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Published: 30 August 2012 – 06:46 PM
SACRAMENTO – For the second year in a row, a group of Inland Southern California cities and lawmakers are making a last-minute push to restore millions of dollars in budget cuts.
To read story by Jim Miller in the Press Enterprise, click here.
THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE
Published: 10 August 2012 05:15 PM
Inland Rep Mary Bono Mack’s legislation seeking to lift taxes on the cash awards received by Olympic medalists gained a key supporter.
To read column in the Press-Enterprise, click here.
BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com
Published: 24 May 2012 08:31 PM
SACRAMENTO Legislation to restore millions of dollars in vehicle-license-fee revenue for four Riverside County cities has stalled in the state Senate and is likely dead for the year.
Friday, May 25, is the deadline for bills to pass their respective houses’ appropriations committees. The Senate Appropriations Committee reviewed dozens of measures that had been parked on its “suspense” file because of the legislation’s perceived impact on the state’s bottom line.
BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com
Published: 18 April 2012 10:22 PM
SACRAMENTO — Legislation that would restore a critical revenue stream for Riverside County’s newest cities cleared its first committee this morning, the first concrete success for the cities and their supporters following months of efforts to roll back part of last summer’s state budget.
Jurupa Valley, Eastvale, Wildomar and Menifee lost a combined $14 million when lawmakers approved an $86 billion budget that diverted vehicle-license fee money to pay for local law-enforcement grants. Officials in the cities warned of fiscal calamity, including possible disincorporation, if there is no fix.
BY DUG BEGLEY
STAFF WRITER
dbegley@pe.com
Published: 27 March 2012 07:49 PM
Four Riverside County cities that took a financial hit in last year’s state budget might get a helping hand from the county, supervisors said Tuesday. But California lawmakers need to solve the problem they created, supervisors added.
Menifee, Wildomar, Eastvale and Jurupa Valley all face fiscal challenges as a result of the state budget passed last summer. The four cities lost $15 million, part of $200 million in vehicle-license fee revenue that the state redirected to pay for local law-enforcement grants.
BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com
Published: 02 March 2012 02:32 PM
SACRAMENTO — Inland Southern California lawmakers are making a new push to restore state budget cuts that threaten the solvency of Riverside County’s newest cities.
Administrator’s Note: This is the same law firm that represents the San Bernardino International Airport Authority, Inland Valley Development Agency and the City of San Bernardino Economic Development Agency.
No reason has been given for quitting, but it comes just as the city resumes a search for a new law firm
BY JOHN F. HILL
STAFF WRITER
johnhill@pe.com
Published: 26 October 2011 04:11 PM
Menifee’s city attorney is stepping down, about two weeks after the city restarted a search for a new law firm.
Karen Feld and her law firm, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, will end their contract with the city Nov. 1.
By PE Politics
September 10, 2011 2:15 AM
Four Riverside County cities that lost up to one-half of their revenue in the June budget deal failed to recover any of it in the final hours of the 2011 regular session that ended early this morning.
10:00 PM PDT on Thursday, September 8, 2011
BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com
SACRAMENTO – Attempts to restore millions of dollars for Riverside County’s newest cities will go down to the wire, amid last-ditch legislative maneuvers to allocate the money this year.
10:16 PM PDT on Thursday, September 1, 2011
BY JIM MILLER and SANDRA STOKLEY
STAFF WRITERS
jmiller@pe.com|sstokley@pe.com
SACRAMENTO – New state legislation would reverse deep state budget cuts to four Riverside County cities by partially restoring a higher tax on people’s vehicles.
By PE News
June 7, 2011 11:11 PM
With all precincts reporting, unofficial results show voters in Menifee approved a new Walmart supercenter, while residents in Wildomar and Canyon Lake turned down local tax proposals.
11:17 PM PDT on Monday, June 6, 2011
By JOHN F. HILL
The Press-Enterprise
Today is Election Day, and voters in three southwest Riverside County cities have decisions to make about the future of their communities.
Wildomar, Menifee and Canyon Lake voters will go to the polls to decide on local ballot measures. Many already have voted by mail.
10:45 PM PDT on Wednesday, May 18, 2011
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
PDF: Read the sheriff’s report on a battery allegation against Menifee councilwoman Darcy Kuenzi
Prosecutors will not pursue a misdemeanor battery charge against Menifee Councilwoman Darcy Kuenzi after a police investigation into a resident’s complaint about a heated exchange in the City Hall lobby.
10:00 PM PDT on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
Critics of Menifee Councilwoman Darcy Kuenzi called for her resignation Tuesday night, alleging conflicts of interest and possible voter fraud and citing a recent battery complaint against her.
10:40 PM PST on Friday, February 25, 2011
By JOHN F. HILL
The Press-Enterprise
Mayor Randon Lane said Friday that Murrieta has “weathered the storm” of the recession and that public and private investments have the city poised to recover strongly from the recent economic bust.
10:31 PM PST on Monday, November 8, 2010
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
Three days after Menifee Councilman-elect Tom Fuhrman torched a pile of other candidates’ campaign signs, some are questioning whether he had a right to do so.
Scott Mann, the Menifee councilman who lost to Fuhrman, said he doubted he would press charges for sign theft.
11:18 PM PDT on Saturday, September 25, 2010
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
PDFs: View travel and expense forms from Menifee’s mayor and council members
Councilman John Denver | Mayor Wallace Edgerton | Councilwoman Darcy Kuenzi | Councilman Scott Mann | Councilman Fred Twyman
Some Menifee City Council members are calling for tighter controls over travel expenses after being publicly criticized for poor record-keeping and high spending on trips.
10:14 PM PDT on Monday, May 3, 2010
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
PDF: Read a letter from suspended Menifee finance
The Menifee City Council is set to discuss replacing City Attorney Betsy Martyn with an interim lawyer behind closed doors tonight. Martyn did not return phone messages seeking comment Monday.
The discussion was placed on the agenda by Mayor Wallace Edgerton. He said people should not assume what will happen or that the discussion is related the city’s recent audit of expenditures. When asked why the session was being held, the mayor said the council was going to review the city attorney’s contact.
11:55 PM PDT on Friday, April 16, 2010
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
City-commissioned auditors released an evaluation of Menifee finances on Friday that showed a severe lack of internal financial controls that has left the new city wide open to potential fraud since July 2008.
The auditors’ review of six of the city’s 31 contracts took issue with more than $300,000 worth of billing errors caused by overbilling, backbilling, delayed billing, double payments or unauthorized subcontractor payments.
10:00 PM PST on Saturday, February 27, 2010
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
After knocking on doors for five months, John Smelser collected his 5,500th signature supporting term limits for Menifee council members Friday afternoon.
He stopped mid-driveway, checked off the address on his clipboard and modestly pumped his fist before walking to the next house.
10:00 PM PST on Friday, December 11, 2009
By GAIL WESSON
The Press-Enterprise
Voters on Tuesday will decide the future of health care in the San Jacinto Valley and Menifee area when they consider whether to allow the sale of public hospital assets to a private doctors’ group.
The hospital board in October approved the sale of assets, including Hemet Valley Medical Center and Menifee Valley Medical Center to Physicians for Healthy Hospitals, a group of 132 local doctors, for an estimated $162 million.
It is the second time in recent years that voters have been asked to weigh in on selling Valley Health System’s assets.
10:00 PM PST on Saturday, December 5, 2009
By JULISSA McKINNON
The Press-Enterprise
After one year as a city, political reform has become popular in Menifee, where three petition drives aim to change local government.
A yearlong debate over how council members are elected has spawned two rival signature drives.
One supports a change from five council members representing five districts to four council members representing four districts and a mayor elected at large. Since November, the group has gathered about 2,000 of the approximately 3,300 signatures needed to put a measure on the November 2010 ballot, said Anne Pica, a Sun City advocate and frequent council critic who is leading the drive.
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