Letters
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- Written by: Mary Benson
After listening to Patrick Sullivan on the campaign trail, I also see how much our county has been held back by poor policies and practices. We could be enjoying a more robust county budget.
Patrick Sullivan was recruited to work in Lake County three years ago to work on the county administrative officer’s staff to address some of the long-neglected issues in the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office utilizing the experience he had gained working on similar programs in Mendocino County.
County funds were being kept in no or low interest-bearing accounts; he brought in professional money management which will result in a several million dollar boost to our returns over the next five years.
He instituted a program to locate all of the vacation rental properties in the county and ensure they were paying the required taxes to the county — many were not. And, in anticipation of finally making sense of the tax defaulted property situation and whittling down the backlog, Mr. Sullivan worked with the other departments in the county to set up a GIS site on the county website where anyone can view all the properties on a map and the minimum bid required on each. You can see it here: http://gispublic.co.lake.ca.us/portal/home/.
He has many solid ideas that he wants to implement when elected Lake County’s treasurer-tax collector. The defaulted tax rolls contain many properties where the penalties owed are more than the property is worth. They become dumping grounds that blight neighborhoods and cause added strain on code enforcement. There are many programs that can turn these properties into good use by our communities.
Patrick Sullivan wants to speed up the processing of tax payments and add additional payment options for making payments online. It is possible that through greater use of credit card payment acceptance across county departments, the cost to use credit cards for payments could be lowered.
Finally, Mr. Sullivan will work on building a strong staff with cross-training and opportunities for advancement within the department. It makes no sense to abandon programs because the person responsible for it retires. There are also programs we are not using, despite having the software available to do so, that would bring in much needed funds e.g., the ability to intercept state income tax refunds from people who owe money to the county.
It is tough work to rebuild a department, but Patrick Sullivan has the skills and know how to take our Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office to the next level. Please see his list of more than 150 endorsers who agree with me. www.patricksullivanforlakecountytreasurer.com/endorsements.
Please vote for Patrick Sullivan for treasurer-tax collector on June 7. It will be better for all of us.
Mary Benson lives in Lower Lake, Calif.
- Details
- Written by: Pollyann Johnston
In it he states, “Lake County motels have become magnets and safe havens for criminals and a revolving door for the homeless.”
I find this statement to be disrespectful to the motel owners and the homeless.
Motel owners provide a service to our county and are respected and valued business people. Mr. Farrington states that he will work with local code enforcement to fine or jail motel owners that he deems to be noncompliant. Does that mean that a motel owner would need to do background and criminal checks on every guest?
Actually, this a moot point as the DA's Office has no jurisdiction over zoning laws and enforcement.
Regarding “being a revolving door for the homeless,” why is this a problem for Mr. Farrington? If a person without a home gets to spend any time at all in a motel, it is a well-deserved respite from the misery of the streets.
At a debate, Mr. Farrington stated that to combat homelessness we must fund law enforcement. Is that really his solution to helping the homeless? Also, the DA’s Office has no control over funding law enforcement so again, it is a moot point and demonstrates his lack of understanding of the DA’s role.
I am voting to reelect Susan Krones as district attorney. She has a proven reputation for being ethical and a fighter for everyone's rights. She knows the law and what is or is not in the jurisdiction of the DA’s Office.
Experience is everything. Ms. Krones has 26 years of experience in the DA’s Office and 6 years as an Army captain. She knows the laws and keeps up to date on the myriad changes.
Please check her web page to see the multitude of endorsements she has received, and they still keep coming. That is because people in our county know she is the best candidate.
Join us in voting to reelect Susan Krones for DA on June 7.
Pollyann Johnston lives in Kelseyville, Calif.
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- Written by: Michelle Scully
I worked firsthand with Patrick during my tenure as a deputy county administrative officer for the county of Lake.
I was the lead on the initiation and formation of the Lake County Tourism Improvement District, also known as Visit Lake County. The lodging industry had expressed their desire that tourism marketing be conducted by the industry rather than the county and that began the effort to create an independent tourism/lodging entity.
One of the issues we discovered during that process was that the transient occupancy tax, or TOT, which is tied to the available lodging information was very outdated and the short-term rental market wasn't well represented in the information the seated treasurer-tax collector had.
We worked toward getting everything updated and brought up to speed. Patrick was an integral part of that process, and I always knew if I had a question he either had the answer or would find it promptly.
He's been involved with that office and the responsibilities of it for several years now and would make a seamless transition upon election.
He's smart, hardworking, kind, thoughtful, forward-thinking and most importantly knows what needs to be done and finds the most efficient way toward getting it done.
I'm excited that we have such an excellent candidate and I look forward to casting my vote for Patrick.
Michelle Scully lives in Lakeport, California.
- Details
- Written by: Kent Caviness
Pullman: “I have no problem with the many good teachers in our district, but they are the responsibility of their superintendent and their union and not the school board. The school board has one employee and that is the superintendent. I understand that and my opponent does not.”
• While this is partially correct, that the superintendent is the only employee of the board, it is an oversimplification. It is the board's responsibility to ensure that the CBA is negotiated in such a way that favors the school district. It is also the board's responsibility to ensure that the superintendent is effectively managing his staff, administrators and teachers. The school board's job is to set policy, and the superintendent's job is to implement that policy. It is all the responsibility of the school board at the end of the day.
Pullman: “Our school has spent almost all of a 42 million dollar construction fund without the benefit of a project manager.”
• This is not correct based on the most recent figures from the district office. Of the $42 million in potential funding, only $28 million has been pulled, of that only 8% has been spent ($2.2 million).
Pullman: “As someone with extensive experience contracting to schools I know that the 100k or so that a construction manager would cost would be a fraction of the money that the school has lost in spending this money without that professional assistance.”
• Most people I have spoken to acknowledge that the district should have hired a construction manager. Depending upon the level of service, a typical construction manager would cost around 3 to 5% of the total construction cost. This is a more realistic estimate and would still be well worth it in my opinion.
Pullman: “My opponent is on the record stating that she supports them (vaccine mandates). I am on the record stating that I will fight them. I believe in medical freedom for students.”
• As the candidate points out, most folks are against vaccine mandates without exemptions (including his opponent Charise Reynolds). There has never been a COVID vaccine mandate for children. The Newsom regulation never went into effect and will not happen for the 2023 school year.
Pullman: “I am opposed to CRT and SEL as they are currently offered as they teach racism, they do not work to stop it.”
• Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) classes have not been implemented at MUSD and there are no plans to do so.
• Here is a direct quote from someone who cares deeply about our students but wished to remain anonymous for obvious reasons.
“Mr. Pullman, as someone who is building their campaign on the opinions and voices of parents, I encourage you to post this publicly for all parents to respond. Speaking as someone who observes students’ mental well-being closely. I'm afraid I must disagree with much of what you are saying, but I will mainly focus on your comment about Social-Emotional Learning and its place in our school. Our students have been isolated for almost two years and then quickly expected to readjust to said ‘normalcy.’ Refusing our children the right to learn coping skills, feel actively listened to, safe in their classrooms, and validating their needs is denying them the right to an education. Our students are emotionally struggling and deserve a space that encourages them to feel safe opening up. All parents want to see their children happy and healthy; actively campaigning to deny our students the right to this, is only harming our kids. Many potential suicides have been prevented this year from students that are benefiting from SEL.”
Pullman: “Our state wants to expose students as young as six to transgenderism. Transgenderism affects less than 1% of the population in California. The suicide rate for an adolescent afflicted with this is about 40%, Compared to straight adolescents suicide rate of about 15% ... People who are transgender deserve our help to work their way through their problem.”
• I was troubled by this statement in the candidate’s post. I’m not sure whether or not this statement was meant to be insensitive but it reads like transgender children have a “problem.” Do we really want someone who believes “transgenderism” is an “affliction” on the school board of MUSD?
My closing thoughts as a parent and long time south county resident: The candidate is out of touch with the needs of our district. He is not up to speed on the current funding, bond measures or state of mental health in our district.
We need board members who are informed, compassionate and focused on moving the district forward in a positive way. It appears to me the candidate is less interested in actual MUSD issues and more concerned about national issues in general. I will not be voting for Bryan Pullman in June or November.
Kent Caviness lives in Hidden Valley Lake, California.
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