Riverside County, California

Portions of this article were taken from Wikipedia.

Riverside County is one of 58 counties in California. It covers 7,208 sq mi (18,669 km2) in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside, which is the county seat. The population of Riverside County was 2,189,641 in 2010.

[edit] Website evaluation

Main article: Evaluation of California county websites

This website was most recently evaluated on 18 January 2012.

[edit] The good

• The names and contact information for all board of supervisor members is available.^[1]
• Board of supervisor meeting agendas, minutes and video streams are available^[2].
• Budget information is posted^[3].
• Audits are posted^[4]
• Information on taxes is provided with the ability to pay online^[5].
• Information on building permits and zoning is available^[6][7].
• Current and awarded bids are posted^[8].

[edit] The bad

• Information on lobbying is not available.
• Admistrative officials and their contact information is not listed.
• A searchable index of public records is available^[9]. However, contact information for the public information officer is not.

[edit] Budget

Riverside County's structural deficit has risen to as high as $130 million in recent years. In 2010, Moody's placed Riverside County on a negative outlook as a result of these rising deficits and shrinking reserves. The FY 2011-2012 Recommended Budget takes steps to eliminate this deficit within two years, initially cutting it to $28 million. Many of these reductions, however, have come through dipping into the county's reserve fund, which has fallen to just 21% of general fund revenue. The county also projects year-over-year increases in retirement costs of over $20 million. Also under the Recommended Budget, most departments (excluding public safety) were cut an average of 19% of net county cost. Public safety departments would be cut an average of 3%-5%. The Recommended Budget is expected to be adopted as the final budget in September, 2011.^[10]

[edit] Public officials

[edit] Elected officials

[edit] Board of Supervisors

Riverside is governed by a five-member Board of Supervisors.^[11]

[edit] Other Elected Officials

Besides the Board of Supervisors, there are five other elected county positions.^[12]

[edit] Administrative Officials

The county's chief administrative official is the County Executive Officer.

Name	Position
Bill Luna	County Executive Officer

A full list of county agencies and departments can be found here. A county employee organizational chart can be found here.

[edit] Pensions

County employees participate in CalPERS, the state's pension system. The county contributes 8% of elected officials' salaries to the pension system, excluding those who have opted out. They are eligible to retire at age 60. Public safety employees are eligible to retire at age 50.^[13]

[edit] Public employee salaries

Main article: Riverside County employee salaries

Key employee salaries are readily listed on the county's website.^[14][15]

Name	Title	Salary
Bob Buster	1st District Supervisor, Chairman	$143,031.20
John Tavaglione	2nd District Supervisor, Vice-Chairman	$143,031.20
Jeff Stone	3rd District Supervisor	$143,031.20
John J. Benoit	4th District Supervisor	$143,031.20
Marion Ashley	5th District Supervisor	$143,031.20
Bill Luna	County Executive Officer	$275,545.92
Larry Ward	Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder	$165,727.28
Paul Angulo	Auditor-Controller	$165,726.91
Stanley Sniff	Sheriff	$223,165.71
Don Kent	Treasurer-Tax Collector	$165,727.28

[edit] Lobbying

Main article: California taxpayer-funded lobbying

Riverside County spent $602,000 on lobbying the federal government in 2010, primarily in transportation related issues.^[16] In 2009, the county spent $610,000 lobbying the federal government. ^[17]

For 2007 and 2008, the county spent $816,676 on lobbying the California legislature. ^[18]

[edit] Transparency & public records

In March, 2011, a statewide audit of county redevelopment agencies found that 18 county redevelopment agencies, including Riverside County, demonstrated a "lack of accountability and transparency." Riverside County's redevelopment agency is the seventh largest in the state.^[19]

This year, Riverside County unveiled a new website aimed at keeping the public updated on ongoing budget, pension, and labor negotiation news.^[20]

While county labor negotiation meetings currently take place behind closed doors, the Service Employees International Union has been permitting any member of the union to sit in on meetings. County Supervisors Bob Buster and John Tavaglione have spoken out against the practice, with Chairman Buster saying ""If they open it up to all of their represented employees, isn't that also inviting anyone to come to collective-bargaining sessions, the public, the press?".^[21]

Riverside County residents pay a county property tax, collected by the Office of the Treasurer-Tax Collector. Taxes are collected on behalf of the county, the county's incorporated cities, school districts, and special districts. Property taxes are governed by California State Law. The Board of Supervisors provides an Assessment Appeals Board for residents to appeal the valuation of their property by the County Assessor.^[22] The county tax cycle calendar can be found here.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

1. ? Board of Supervisors
2. ? Meetings
3. ? Budget
4. ? Audits
5. ? Taxes
6. ? Building department
7. ? Zoning
8. ? Purchasing
9. ? Public Records
10. ? FY 2011-2012 Recommended Budget
11. ? Board of Supervisors
12. ? Elected officials
13. ? Board and Executive Officer salaries
14. ? Board and Executive Officer Salary
15. ? Other elected official salaries
16. ? Riverside County on Open Secrets, 2010
17. ? http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/clientsum.php?id=D000056169&year=2009 2009 Riverside County on Open Secrets, 2009]
18. ? State-Level Lobbying and Taxpayers: How Much Do We Really Know?, Pacific Research Institute
19. ? State Controller finds "lack of transparency and accountability" in redevelopment agencies audit, "Valley News," March 7, 2011.
20. ? Riverside County Budgets, Pensions, & Labor
21. ? Supervisors question union's open negotiating policy, "The Press-Enterprise", May 15, 2011.
22. ? Taxes

Source: http://sunshinereview.org/index.php?title=Riverside_County,_California&diff=234521&oldid=prev

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Space Telescopes Paint A New View of Eagle Nebula

Link Information - Click to View

Space Telescopes Paint A New View of Eagle Nebula
Does the image above look familiar? It shouldn?t, because it?s brand new. But the subject should certainly ring a bell for any space buff ? it?s the same vast nebula that became one of the most beloved, coffee-table-booked, computer-wallpapered images in astronomical history. This new image of the Eagle Nebula shows the value of having space observatories that span the light spectrum.

Source: POPSCI
Posted on: Wednesday, Jan 18, 2012, 8:48am
Views: 17

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/116809/Space_Telescopes_Paint_A_New_View_of_Eagle_Nebula

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Sarah Burke, X-Games Champion Skier, Dead at 29

Sarah Burke, a four-time X-Games champion, has passed away from injuries sustained during a training run last week. She was 29.

The Canadian crashed in Park City, Utah on January 10 and, according to reports, fell into cardiac arrest soon after. She was airlifted to a hospital and underwent surgery to repair a tear in a significant artery before being placed in a medically-induced coma on life support.

But it was all too much and Burke lost her battle earlier today due to a lack of oxygen to her brain, doctors said. She was surrounded by family and friends when she died and donated her organs and tissues. Sarah is survived her husband of two years, skier Rory Bushfield.

"Sarah, in many ways, defines the sport," said Peter Judge, the CEO of Canada's freestyle team, prior to her death. "She's been involved since the very, very early days as one of the first people to bring skis into the pipe. She's also been very dedicated in trying to define her sport but not define herself by winning. For her, it's been about making herself the best she can be rather than comparing herself to other people."

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/sarah-burke-x-games-champion-skier-dead-at-29/

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Video: Gingrich calls Romney campaign ?dirty?

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46046189#46046189

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GOP candidates vie for backing of SC military vets

BLYTHEWOOD, S.C. -- Mitt Romney has ex-POW John McCain vouching for him. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum highlights his time on the Senate Armed Services Committee. And former House Speaker Newt Gingrich frequently calls himself an "Army brat" who grew up on military bases.

While Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Texas Rep. Ron Paul are the only GOP candidates to have worn a military uniform, all of the Republican presidential contenders are emphasizing their military ties these days in a state that's home to 413,000 veterans and eight military bases, with thousands of people on active duty.

"My purpose in life was to never be the president of the United States," Perry says as he campaigns ahead of South Carolina's primary Saturday. "My purpose has always been to serve my country and my state whenever they need or they call. That's our duty as Americans."

Perry's days as an Air Force pilot in the 1970s and his father's B-17 tail-gunner missions in World War II are staples of his South Carolina message as he looks to right his struggling campaign.

Paul, a flight surgeon in the 1960s who made his name as an antiwar congressman, is filling mailboxes with five-page letters that include a picture of him as a young draftee in a full-brimmed Air Force hat. "Let me begin by telling you that the troops know first and foremost that I am one of them," he writes.

There's a reason for the intensive courting: As long as South Carolina has been instrumental in deciding GOP nominees, the state's voters have rewarded candidates with military service. Every GOP primary winner since Ronald Reagan in 1980 has been a veteran.

This year may end that streak. Polls show Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, leading the pack. With the economy pushing U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts to the back of voters' concerns, some in South Carolina argue that GOP voters aren't pining for the biggest hawk this time.

"Financially, people are in dire straits right now," said state Sen. Lee Bright, a backer of Michele Bachmann before she left the race. "They realize that the more money we spend overseas the less money they are going to spend at home."

Nonetheless, most of the candidates have spent considerable time along the South Carolina coastline, wooing active-duty military members and veterans - many of whom lean toward the GOP - clustered around the bases near Charleston that for many years fueled the state's economy.

Perry, for one, has struck an aggressive posture lately, pledging that as president he would send troops back to Iraq to prevent Iran from exerting too much muscle in the region. On one upstate swing, he solemnly inspected a memorial garden and read markers to five Medal of Honor winners. He was accompanied by a former Marine captain with burn scars over half his body from the explosive device that hit his vehicle in Iraq and killed some of his comrades.

That veteran, Dan Moran, delivered a full-throated endorsement of Perry before a rapt audience. "For what it's worth, coming from somebody who had the honor and privilege of being able to spill some blood for his country, this is the man and this is the time," Moran said. "This country needs him."

Perry also has tried the personal touch, at one point pulling up a chair at voter Linwood Mizell's table to share more with the Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient.

Despite the special attention, Mizell held back. "I really haven't totally made up my mind," he said.

Romney, for his part, has campaigned with McCain, the 2008 GOP presidential nominee and Vietnam veteran, and seems to talk up the military everywhere he goes in the state.

"This is a proud military state," Romney said Saturday in Sumter. A day earlier, Romney was on Hilton Head Island for a veterans' event attended by hundreds.

Meanwhile, Santorum has traveled the state arguing that Democratic President Barack Obama is determined to shrink the Pentagon. The Republican insists the cuts will hurt national security and he often seeks out spouses and parents of military members to hear their concerns.

"I will not cut defense," Santorum pledged recently in Charleston. "I will not reduce the budget deficit by cutting the central role of the federal government. In fact, I will allow the Defense Department to grow to make sure that we are not cutting the benefits and the pay of our men and women in uniform."

Associated Press writers Philip Elliott, Jim Davenport and Julie Pace contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/18/2594975/gop-candidates-vie-for-backing.html

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Catholics in Poland parade a ?holy finger?

?It?s a finger from his right hand from which he often gave a blessing to St. Faustina.?

Roman Catholics in Poland is ready to take a "holy finger" out for a stroll.

The Most Rev. Edward Ozorowski, Archbishop of Bialystok, Poland, brought a relic of Blessed Michael Sopocko, who was St. Faustina?s confessor and spiritual director.

The principal celebrant at the Solemn Liturgy on Divine Mercy Sunday came bearing a special gift for the Marians of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

?It?s a finger from his right hand from which he often gave a blessing to St. Faustina,? explained Br. Andrew R. Maczynski, MIC, general promoter of the Association of Marian Helpers.

The relic, which came encased in a golden monstrance, is about 5 centimeters long. It will be placed in the National Shrine, which is administered by the Marians.

Bishop Ozorowski, in whose archdiocese Blessed Michael Sopocko was beatified Sept. 28, 2008, presented the gift during Holy Mass on Sunday.

?We express our sincere gratitude to His Excellency for making it possible that a relic of St. Faustina?s spiritual director will find its place here in the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy,? said Br. Chris Alar, MIC, during the presentation.

Source: Roman Catholic blogger

This is another detail worth mentioning. It is recorded by another Catholic news site

?The relic will join another relic in the Shrine ? the ?basal phalanx? of a great toe of St. Faustina, to be exact. A larger piece of her relic remains in a reliquary within the Shrine.

Source: padrimariani.org

My comment:

The skull and bone files on News That Matters will now include some hot stuff from Poland.

?Matthew 23:27
?Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.

You have to be completely disconnected to dress up in parade uniform, and start to carry a bone on your shoulders.

?Blessed? Michael Sopocko might have put his finger into a lot during his lifetime. That one of his fingers has been cut of from his skeleton is yet another example of the how the bone collectors of Rome has looted corpses.

It is not so strange that Catholics wants to adore more than just a cut off finger. Inside the Shrine it will be entertained by a piece of a ?holy toe?

Was this toe just axed off, or did the priest take a big bite?

Written by Ivar

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Source: http://ivarfjeld.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/catholics-in-poland-parade-a-holy-finger/

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Geothermal Project to Tap into Volcano for Energy Production (ContributorNetwork)

According to USA Today, Seattle-based geothermal energy developer AltaRock Energy is planning on pumping 24 million gallons of water into Newberry Volcano, a dormant volcano near Bend, Ore., this summer. The project looks to tap into a new green energy source with the hopes that the water will return to the surface hot enough to generate energy.

So far, several investors, including $6.3 million from Google and $21.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, have stepped up to the promising energy project. Here are some facts about geothermal energy in the U.S., current projects, and other major plans to expand production from geothermal sources:

* Geothermal energy originates from the Earth's core, which heats the surrounding layers of rock, including the Earth's crust where it can be tapped into for energy production, according to the University of Wisconsin.

* In numerous cases, underground reservoirs of hot water or steam can be drawn for electricity use while some energy projects include injecting water into geologic deposits to be heated.

* The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. energy consumption from geothermal sources has continued to increase, including a 5 percent increase between 2004 and 2008.

* In 2008, energy consumption from geothermal sources was greater than solar, but still trumped by both hydroelectric and wind energy.

* A report from the Geothermal Energy Association noted that as of March, energy production from geothermal sources was underway in nine states with the U.S. having a total installed capacity of 3,102 megawatts.

* Additionally, in 2011, a total of 123 geothermal projects were confirmed as being under development in 15 different states with Nevada leading the way followed by California, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and Alaska.

* These types of projects are often eligible for federal incentives and funding through the Production Tax Credit and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

* Pacific Gas and Electric began drawing energy from the Geysers Geothermal Field, just 75 miles north of San Francisco, back in 1960 and continues to do so today.

* PG&E sought approval for a brand new geothermal energy agreement with Calpine Corporation in February of 2008, a project that would generate 175 megawatts of power.

* Ball State University's geothermal initiative is one of the largest in the nation, which includes drilling 3,600 boreholes around the campus, and aims to help save the school $2 million a year in operating costs.

* Similarly, the project cuts Ball State's carbon footprint in half and provides heating and cooling to 47 different buildings on the Indiana-based campus.

Rachel Bogart provides an in-depth look at current environmental issues and local Chicago news stories. As a college student from the Chicago suburbs pursuing two science degrees, she applies her knowledge and passion to both topics to garner further public awareness.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/science/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20120114/tc_ac/10835703_geothermal_project_to_tap_into_volcano_for_energy_production

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