Pippy Unveils Bill to Protect Taxpayers - and reactions

First, the news release from the PA Senators that is a great example of barking up the wrong tree:

HARRISBURG -- With plans to reform of Allegheny County’s reassessment process bogged down once again, Senator John Pippy (R-37) and Rep. Mark Mustio (R-44) today unveiled legislation to protect taxpayers from being hit with extreme tax hikes following countywide reassessment.

The measure requires that following reassessment municipalities and school districts determine millage rates that are revenue-neutral compared to the previous year. To set a tax rate higher than the revenue-neutral rate, they would have to take a separate and specific vote in a public meeting.

A municipality or school district that violates the limitations would have to refund with interest the excess taxes paid by homeowners.

"This legislation protects taxpayers from extreme tax increases, and ensures that any tax hike that increases revenue following reassessment is done only after public deliberation and a vote," said Pippy. "It helps prevent huge jumps in tax bills that can tear apart a family budget, while providing municipalities and school districts with the latitude to cover legitimate expenses and emergencies."

"We have introduced this 'zero tolerance' legislation to force school districts, municipalities and Allegheny County to roll back their millage rates to the average increase for their respective jurisdictions," said Mustio. "While it does not completely prohibit local government officials from subsequently increasing taxes, it would give taxpayers some extra breathing room until comprehensive and effective school property tax reform is enacted at the state level."

The Second Class County Code permits a taxing body to institute a final tax rate up to five percent greater than the amount it levied on properties the year before. Under the proposed legislation, in cases of dire need -- to purchase new equipment related to public health and safety, for example -- a political subdivision may petition the court for approval to increase the millage rate beyond the five percent that was approved via public vote.

Calculating a "revenue-neutral" millage rate would exclude new construction and improvements to existing buildings.

Common Pleas Court ruled May 12 that Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato’s property assessments plan is illegal and would create more problems for the system.

"Property owners in Allegheny County are still reeling over the last reassessment, with no relief in sight," said Pippy. "The problem has generated many proposals and speeches. This legislation has an advantage over many of the other solutions in that it's both legal and doable."

"For the sake of the local economy and improving the overall quality of life in Allegheny County, our working families and senior citizens deserve the immediate relief that this legislation can provide,” said Mustio. “The real and irrevocable risk is doing nothing or continuing to preserve the status quo while more and more property owners are forced out of their homes due to property tax bills they can no longer afford to pay."

Of course Allegheny County is bogged down once again. We agree on that point. However, when it comes to matters on how to fix the mess, we don't agree.

If the goal is to help consumers, then help the consumer directly. In this case, the individual is the home owner, also known as the property owner. The new bill has a focus on a system at the municipal level and that is not what people care about. The bill does not go to the real source of the pain and problems.

When I get my tax bill, I don't read it and say, "Jeepers, I'm so happy that my school district isn't going to have a windfall this year." The ZERO level is NOT anything that the consumer is going to feel, notice, understand nor appreciate.

When the new tax bill arrives in a person's mail box, that new tax bill has to make sense to that person, that person's budget, the past bills and any changes from one bill to the next. This is a personal struggle. That is where the focus needs to be placed.

A person does NOT care about the sum of all bills throughout the school district.

Very few people care, for example, that the school district saw its average SAT score increase by 3 points. Rather, as a parent, I care about my kid's test results, not the collective. I determine if I'm doing the right thing with my child's education to stay in that situation or not.

Pennsylvania needs "assessment buffering." The new tax bill needs to be buffered with the past tax bill on a household basis.

Freelance Daily, David C's new site

Freelance Daily Every freelance writer knows... Time Is Money.

Hope the site and efforts go well for David Copeland. Here is a link to his new site.

ALLEGHENY COUNTY RIVER DIALOGUES: WATERTRAILS

Community members, regional environmental planners and advisors, municipal leaders and water trail enthusiasts are invited to explore the relationships between Allegheny County river communities, the rivers and their environment.

Thursday, June 2, 2005, 6 - 8 pm

Carnegie Mellon University building in the Pittsburgh Technology Center, 700 Technology Drive (off of Second Ave). Parking is available in the lot in front of the adjacent building (Sunoco).

RSVP by Monday, May 30 to Hannah at 412-481-9400, or via e-mail to: watertrails@pecwest.org.

Friends of the River front (FOR), the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC), and 3 Rivers 2nd Nature (3R2N) will present the documentation of the Allegheny County River Dialogues. Over the last three years, we organized three water trail events in McKeesport on the Monongahela (2002), Oakmont on the Allegheny (2003), and Neville Island on the Ohio (2004). At each event, community members were invited participate in the visioning of the Three Rivers Water Trail. These three events have become the basis for water trail development in the three rivers. Please join us in taking the
next step in t h e development of the Three Rivers Water Trail!

WATERTRAILS report and documentation will be available at the event!

Hannah Hardy
Program Manager
Pennsylvania Environmental Council
22 Terminal Way
Pgh, PA 15219
(412) 481-9400 ph
(412) 481-9401 fax

Maglev, been there, done that. It is fast as advertised.

On our way out of Shanghai, my oldest son, Erik, 10, really wanted to ride the Maglev. His class had covered the technology and science of Maglev. It was a reasonable request, and our tour guide was very clever in working it into our short stay.

I also remember Al's video travel snip of his visit with Maglev. I think that played as a segment to the PCTV show, The Art of News. Now, I've got a similar documentary.

Maglev runs between the new airport and the new part of the city. It only has two stations. And, like Pittsburgh's concept, one terminates at the airport. The new international airport is out of the city a bit. In a van, it took us about an hour or perhaps 75 minutes to go from the airport into the center, older city after our inbound flight.

The new part of the city is 15 years old, or less. Boombing development. And, that part of the city is closer to the new airport.

The ride is fast. The cars are smooth. The turn banks and it is fun to watch a bus on the divided highway below get passed as if they are standing still. The stations are modern. And best of all, the speed in Kpm is on a mini-scoreboard within each of the Maglev's cars. I think the top speed was 480 kpm on our trip.

Our morning had us load up the van at the hotel. The van then drove us 20 minutes to the Maglev station. We left our suitcases on the van and went up and took a ride, buying tickets, catching the next train, arriving at the airport.

The kicker was as soon as we arrived at the airport, walked to the terminal, we were able to meet our van and pick up the suitcases. We walked out of the terminal and our van arrived, like magic without a wait.

All in all, the Maglev, despite its speed, didn't really save any time over the van on the highway.

When we got to the airport, I was kicking myself thinking how we should have taken our bags with us onboard the Maglev. I thought we'd have to wait 30-40 minutes for the bags to arrive. But that was not the case at all. It felt weird to have the van, in essence, tie the Maglev in terms of door-to-door service.

Grant's KQV - Focus on Education - Interview

Grant, 7, was interviewed the other week with a Pgh Public School program, Focus on Education. It aired on KQV the other day. My mom, his grandmother, heard the interview by luck.

The show had a focus on 'history' and the historic South Side. The kids at Phillips have had a lot of exposure with the Pgh History and Landmarks Foundation with neighborhood walks. Plus, a Main Street program pulled more attention to the area.

Volunteers needed for PNC Historic South Side Home Tour

The historic home tour committee is seeking volunteers to work both morning and afternoon shifts during the tour on Saturday, June 4, 2005. Volunteers are needed to assist in tour homes and at scavenger hunt sites. Available shifts are 9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. (morning), and 12:30 p.m. – 4 p.m. (afternoon). Volunteers working both shifts are expected to attend a 9 a.m. orientation where you will receive materials and your assignments. All volunteers are welcome to take the tour free of charge before or after their shift (tour runs from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.). To sign up, contact Amy Camp at arc@southsidepgh.com or (412) 481-0651.

Funny to talk of "history" and be in China

Without Email these days, and our days are before yours.

We're without decent email these days. Sorry.

And yes, for us, it is 8:29 pm on May 24. We're 12 hours ahead. The date and time setting is accurate. This isn't a computer glitch, like the one we face for not getting email.

All is well otherwise. Tomorrow, we are going to art class at 9 am. Then violin at 2 pm. Swimming is at 6 pm. So, we don't miss email to a great extent -- yet.

The decompression from the race hsd begun and is well on its way.

Press Release from Libertarians about 42nd Race

Sent: Saturday, May 21, 2005 9:10 PM

Subject: A Different Slant on the 42nd State Senate District Special Election

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- Libertarian Party of Pittsburgh
contact: Harold Kyriazi

Pittsburgh, PA -- May 21, 2005

Increased Minor Party Votes May Signal Voter Dissatisfaction with Badly Broken Two-Party System

Libertarian and Green Party activists were mildly encouraged after this past Tuesday's election, when a Libertarian, whose campaign manager is a Green Party member, received a significant boost over typical results when running in the special election for State Senate in district 42.

While the 7.2% of the vote garnered by Mark Rauterkus is small relative to that received by the two major party candidates, it represents a notable increase for a minor party candidate in a hotly-contested and expensive three-way race.

It also indicates a continued growth in respectability for minor party candidates in a region where most voters traditionally pull the Democrat lever and smaller numbers vote Republican.

Says Timothy Crowley, Chair of the Libertarian Party (LP) of Pittsburgh, "You don't want to make too much out of a loss, but we are pleased to see more locals recognizing that voting for the usual big party candidates only brings about the same old policies that drive away businesses and citizens from this region." Added Crowley, "How many more times will voters let themselves be duped into believing in Democrat or Republican free lunches? It's time to make a change and send a message."

A different view was offered by longtime local LP activist Harold Kyriazi, who said that he is most encouraged that the LP of Pittsburgh has in the past year attracted two of the most serious campaigners it has ever had. "If Mark Rauterkus, on the South Side, and David Posipanka of Homestead, continue to run for office year in and year out as they have indicated they will, they may eventually convince voters that they can trust minor party candidates, and spark a significant realignment of voter sympathies and, eventually, voter registration."

Johannes Ernharth, who maintains the local LP website, commented that "the LP of Pittsburgh hopes more people catch on that voting the same old way for the same old party has nearly bankrupted this region. Voters must realize that sending those same wrongheaded policies to the state level is only going to make things worse for the entire state. Non-voters need to consider that, too."

The LP of Pittsburgh also cautions the region's citizens of a developing trend that is designed to shift the financial irresponsibility of some Pittsburgh politicians onto more fiscally responsible areas of the state. Says Henry Haller, a past candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, "Rather than getting their house in order here in the city, the city's goal is to have state taxpayers pick up the tab. Rural and suburban communities will be getting stuck with the bill, and it appears the Republican Party does not have the political will to say 'no' to the Governor on this. Libertarians would never tolerate such theft."

Added Ernharth, "We all know that outside of government, the real world understands the importance of fiscal responsibility. By shifting the cost, there is no incentive for the city to change its old ways and it will continue to decline."

---

The LP of Pittsburgh represents the approximately 2,800 registered Libertarians in Allegheny County. It maintains a website at www.lppgh.org, and may be contacted there, or by phone at 412-553-6464.

Trib's Tuesday Takes gives upbeat recap

Published one week after election day in the Trib:

The 42nd lesson: Democrats may be celebrating their win in the 42nd Senatorial District race. And Republicans may be continuing to lick their wounds. But Libertarians are upbeat. And with good reason. Their candidate, Mark Rauterkus, garnered 7.2 percent of the vote. That may not seem like much to some, but for those who believe both traditional parties are broken, it's an incredible number. Competition is a good thing, remember?

Come Live Over Here - cd from a marketing firm

Pittsburgh Perspectives CD-Rom wins national award Elliance, a local eMarketing firm, brought home a gold award in the interactive media/government relations category during the 2005 Summit Creative Awards International Competition for its outstanding work producing the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance's "Pittsburgh Perspectives" CD-Rom, and its accompanying web site, www.pittsburghperspectives.org.

For a modest fee, the disc assists employers in recruiting talented individuals who may be unfamiliar with the region. The Summit Creative Awards was created to ecognize exceptional work by advertising agencies, video production companies, ultimedia firms and other creative groups with annual billings of $15 million or less. It is the only opportunity such firms have to compete internationally. Elliance's web site.

Trib coverage after election

Fontana defeats Diven - PittsburghLIVE.com 'One of the biggest things, I think, in this race was the Allegheny (County) labor endorsement,' said Fontana, of Brookline. 'I appreciate that.'

Comments From Left Field - offered an endorsement

Comments From Left Field Election Day Endorsements
It was my intention to remain as neutral as possible in this election up to the last minute and while I feel that I have been successful in this effort it is not time to throw out some endorsements.

City of Pittsburgh Mayor
- Bill Peduto

Judge of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas
- Jon Pushinsky
- Kathryn M. Hens-Greco
- Wrenna Leigh Watson
- Beth Lazzara
- Sumner L. Parker
- Dwayne D. Woodruff
- Chuck Evans

State Senator
-Mark Rauterkus

Now get out and vote!

posted by Goose3five

Thanks Goose3five!

An endorsement, noticed late, from another blogger. Thanks Nick.

I meant to not say anything about this race as I (by a razor's edge) do not live in the district that will be come the constituency of one of three men after the polls close today - Mark Rauterkus (L), Wayne Fontana (D), or Michael Diven (R). To be brief, Michael Diven is a political opportunist who left the Democratic party because party leaders didn't set his ideas at the top of their priority list, and only joined the GOP to get an opportunity to run for a seat he would never be nominated for as a Democrat. Wayne Fontana has done a reasonably good job on county council and would prove to be a good state senator, despite his transparent stance on assessments and other less-than-desirable stances. Both of these campaigns sent out a barrage of negative mailers and ran negative ads from here to kingdom come. I'm not naive - negative ads win elections more often than not - but it says something about a man's character to run on his good traits and stances on the issues and nothing else. Mark Rauterkus has shown vast knowledge of the issues facing this city, county, and commonwealth in not only this race but various races throughout the region over the years. He has attended various community events, city council meetings, and even written his own Platform for Pittsburgh and has been an active member of the local blogosphere before there even was one. I may not agree with him on every issue, but he is the only man running that has shown the exemplary amount of knowledge and concern required for an undertaking such as State Senator. Jeebas endorses Mark Rauterkus for State Senate.
-- Nick Michaels

Diven experiment minor loss for GOP - PittsburghLIVE.com

Diven experiment minor loss for GOP - PittsburghLIVE.com Republicans took their best shot at gaining a foothold in heavily Democratic Pittsburgh -- and they didn't come close.

The story behind the story is yet to come, IMNSHO.

Inroads

Libertarian Rauterkus Makes Inroads against "Big Two" Parties

Press Release
Libertarian Party of Pittsburgh
www.lppgh.org
info@lppgh.org
412-553-6464

May 20, 2005

Pittsburgh, PA - Imagine three companies trying to sell cars in PA Senate District 42. The "big two" have to spend about $1 million each for marketing, while the principled third company about $3800. The "big two" sell about 32,000 cars at about $63 of marketing per car, while the principled third about 2,600 cars at about $1.50 per car.

Consumer data overwhelmingly reports that the "big two" models have high maintenance costs that grows every year and low customer satisfaction that falls every year. Buying from the "big two" insures that you and your children will be paying for generations to come. Contrast that to the principled third's time-tested philosophy saying that small overhead means customers can keep more of their money.

You've probably guessed that the "big two" aren't automakers, but the Democratic and Republican party candidates. The principled third is Mark Rauterkus, Libertarian Party candidate for PA's 42nd Senate district.

Mark Rauterkus made an impressive showing, about 7.2% of the vote for about $1.50 per vote. The Libertarian Party thanks him for his tireless efforts promoting new ideas as a citizen candidate and not as a heavily-bankrolled career politician.

This shows that we are moving closer to the day we can challenge the entrenched, but decaying, political establishment even here in southwestern Pennsylvania. When that day arrives, it will happen because of a resonating message linking freedom, liberty and small government and because of hardworking citizen candidates like Mark Rauterkus.

Libertarian Party of Pittsburgh
P.O. Box 71333
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
www.lppgh.org
info@lppgh.org
412-553-6464

Dem wins nasty race for 42nd District's state Senate seat

Fontana won. But the ink the spilled on the performance from myself, the citizen candidate is false.

Dem wins nasty race for 42nd District's state Senate seat: "A third candidate in the Senate race, Libertarian Mark Rauterkus, finished far behind Fontana and Diven.

Folks, this is why Pittsburgh is going to go much deeper into its death spiral.

The fourth estate is ten times worse than a box of rocks.

The PG and Trib are ten times worse than the mudslinging that we saw from the nasty Fontana and Diven camp. All are not to be forgiven.

O'Connor's victory takes some wind out of the sails of change for the city. But the coverage from the PG and Trib snaps the mainstay. Right track -- ha. Some can't even report on the right ocean.

Plane and simple: Thanks!

Ta.

Plane, because we're getting on a plane to Chicago at 9:30 am. I've got to pack for China. The recap is going to come from the other side of the world. We're out of here for four weeks.

Just so everyone knows, our house sitters move in while we're out of town.

The most at any POLL -- was seven

The turnout was soft. But, the turnout among the non Ds and non Rs was very, very, very thin. I went to 20 or 30 polling places throughout the day. Not a single one had more than seven voters from the ranks of the Indies.

Often there are 40 or so voters in the polling place who are NON-Ds and NON-Rs. Generally there were four or so voters who had voted.

We saved $200,000 by insisting that the vote was held on the primary date. But, that blew the Indies out of the water in terms of getting out the vote.

PennLive.com: NewsFlash - Special elections fill two Senate seats

PennLive.com: NewsFlash - Special elections fill two Senate seats Special elections fill two Senate seats
5/17/2005, 1:11 p.m. ET The Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A pair of special elections Tuesday were expected to restore the Pennsylvania Senate to its full 50-member complement.

Republicans currently outnumber Democrats in the Senate 30-18, with two vacancies left by former Democratic senators who were elected to higher offices in November.

In the 4th District, which takes in parts of Philadelphia and Montgomery counties, LeAnna Washington, a sixth-term Democratic state representative from Philadelphia, was opposed by Republican Ronald Holt, an accountant from Abington.

The winner of that race will replace former Sen. Allyson Y. Schwartz, who was elected to the U.S. House.

In Pittsburgh's 42nd District, state Rep. Michael Diven, a Democrat who switched to the Republican Party in January, faced Democratic former Allegheny County councilman Wayne Fontana and Libertarian Mark Rauterkus.

The winner will succeed Jack Wagner, who was elected state auditor general.

KDKA: Polls Open for PA's Primary

KDKA: Polls Open for PA's Primary In Wagner's former Pittsburgh district, former Allegheny County councilman Wayne Fontana, a Democrat, is competing with Democrat-turned-Republican Rep. Michael Diven and Libertarian Mark Rauterkus.

Voters in Allegheny County will also decide today whether or not they want to eliminate some of the row offices.

But if political anaylsts are correct, voter turnout for this primary will only be around 20-percent of the 9.6 million Pennsylvanians who are 18 or older.

The Allegheny County Elections Department projects that only one-third of the county's Democrats and a quarter of the republicans will show up at the polls today. If those projections are correct, it would be one of the lowest turnouts involving a city mayoral election in recent years.