The Apple Valley town manager was hired in January 2018 with financial expertise emphasized to solve deficiencies; assistant town managers were let go. Today, there is no final budget for 2019-20, missing the legal deadline again for a month+. There also is a Prop 218 legal settlement of $3.15 million including $1+ million in legal fees expense, refusal to make any simple column calculation of monthly treasury reports for $50 million investment values management, no fund balances and no monthly department reports.
Continue readingState fines Apple Valley firefighters union $13,000 for violating state election law
APPLE VALLEY — The state’s political watchdog agency said the town’s firefighters union violated state election law during its 2016 efforts to support a ballot measure aimed at increasing funding for the fire district.
Continue readingTown of Apple Valley likely to settle in trash rate lawsuit
APPLE VALLEY — Residents using the town’s trash collection service will likely see some savings on upcoming bills due to a proposed settlement of a lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleged Apple Valley officials overcharged customers and used some of the excess money to fund other government services.
Continue readingThe pot calling the kettle black
Hello Apple Valley Choice Customers! Remember how you were promised that joining Apple Valley Choice Energy would insulate you from those horrible Southern California Edison electricity rates and rate increases? Have you checked the April 9, 2019, Town Council Meeting agenda? Your electric rates are going up. The agenda item even states that amendments to the rates will occur as Edison adjusts its own rates.
Continue readingAnother empty promise (Carloni)
I was fortunate to see the press release from the Town of Apple Valley relative to the LAFCO approval to annex 1,365 acres in the north Apple Valley area. The property is described as “prime freeway frontage,” which “prime frontage” has not seen development in the 28 years that I have been in the Victor Valley. “Revenues will outpace the cost of services to the area,” but no services yet exist. Common sense causes one to ask, “how much” was spent by the town in its two-time annexation approval process (recall it failed in 2009) and how many years of property tax revenue (at .0475 cents of every dollar of property value) will be required before the town sees a return on its investment?
Continue readingStop the water tax
The Town Council has insisted for years that water costs are too high in Apple Valley, and that a majority of the citizens agree.
Continue readingNot much of a choice (Carloni)
The Town of Apple Valley’s Choice Energy program has accumulated at least $70,000 in legal fees (to Troutman Sanders LLP), has hundreds of thousands in other costs (not counting the $250,000 lockbox deposit), and will require $500,000 in administrative fees annually to pay whichever company the Town chooses to operate it. All this for a few pennies off the cost of energy — only to the consumer. The cost to deliver energy over the grid is still billed to the consumer and if the cost to deliver energy goes up, so does your bill.
Continue readingApple Valley budget cuts
Eight months ago the Town of Apple Valley officially acknowledged what concerned citizens had been saying for years: Spending was way out of line (“More cuts to hit Town Hall amid budget crunch,” Daily Press, April 22, 2018). From sky-high salaries and pensions to wasteful practices to downright unnecessary (and in some cases improper) expenditures, the Town had blown through millions in reserves and was facing a $2.6 million budget shortfall. Everyone was going to have to feel the pinch, we were told.
Continue readingUpdate on Neighbors United
| Beneficiary | Amount |
|---|---|
| Emick | $1,050.92 |
| Leon | $1,050.92 |
| Nassif | $1,050.92 |
Vote for change (Carloni)
Apple Valley has been on a downward trend for the last four years. The proof of this is the depletion of its reserves to “zero” in order to balance the budget, despite the Town Council bragging about a balanced, “award-winning” budget, and now borrowing millions in a “payday loan” to continue its lifestyle on credit. It’s spending millions of your dollars on the takeover of a water system it can’t afford, and for which it lacks adequate knowledge to operate. It lost one suit over improperly imposing fees on the residents and another is still pending. The only award I see the Town winning is a “Razzie.”