Editor's Note
For a printable copy of City Advocate Weekly please visit the League's Web site.
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IRS Audits Find Independent Contractors Should Have Been Classified as Employees
The city of Dana Point contacted the League about the results of an IRS audit of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department. The audit concluded that the city had misclassified certain department part-time instructors as independent contractors instead of as employees. Dana Point should have consequently withheld various payroll taxes from the instructors pay, which had not been done. The IRS fined the city and required that it classify part-time instructors as employees going forward. The city intends to appeal the IRS’s audit determination to the United States Tax Court.
[FULL STORY]
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Supreme Court Clears Nearly All Pension Board Members From Felony Conflict of Interest Charges
The California Supreme Court this week issued its decision Lexin v. Superior Court, a case that had the potential to fundamentally change how pension boards operate. The Court exonerated all but one of the pension board members from felony conflict of interest charges.
[FULL STORY]
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Agencies Urged to Update Information for FY 2010-11 State Clean Water State Revolving Fund Program
The State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) will be updating the Clean Water State Revolving Fund Program (CWSRF) Project Priority List (PPL) for FY 2010-11. City officials must log to the Financial Assistance Application Tool (FAAST) to update information regarding their city even if their project is already on the FY 2009-10 PPL.
[FULL STORY]
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April Legislative Action Days Cancelled
Event to be Rescheduled at Future Date
The League officially announced this week that Legislative Action Days, originally scheduled for April 21–22, has been cancelled. The League’s regional public affairs managers were notified of this schedule change a few weeks ago and have been relaying the information to city officials.
[FULL STORY]
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COPS Allocations Available
COPS grant allocations to cities and counties now come from a temporary 0.15 percent Vehicle License Fee (VLF) rate. The rate was imposed May 19, 2009 and now funds a variety of law enforcement programs previously paid for by the state general fund.
[FULL STORY]
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New Estimates Available for Local Streets and Roads Allocations
New estimates of FY 2009-10 and FY 2010-11 Proposition 42 Local Streets and Roads allocations are now posted on the California Local Government Finance Almanac Web site. The estimates are based on recently released state sales tax estimates from the California Department of Finance on Jan. 25.
[FULL STORY]
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Western City is now on Facebook!
Western City, the League’s monthly magazine, now has a Facebook page. The new page will be used to post advertising deadline reminders, links to new content and web exclusives and new features like reader polls results.
[FULL STORY]
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HUD Extends Federal Main Street Affordable Housing Grant Deadline
New Deadline, March 3
Applications for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) HOPE VI Main Street Grants Program are due by March 3. With $4 million allocated through this notice of funding availability (NOFA), the program is designed to assist small communities develop affordable housing connected to a Main Street revitalization effort.
[FULL STORY]
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Drug Free Communities Support Program Funding Available
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), has announced the availability of new Drug Free Communities (DFC) Support Program funding.
[FULL STORY]
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Registration Now Available for the 2010 League Planners Institute
March 24-26, Monterey
The League’s 2010 Planners Institute & Mini Expo is scheduled for March 24-26 in Monterey. This event will host over 500 planning commissioners, planning directors, and department staff, covering a range of topics for novice and seasoned planning officials.
[FULL STORY]
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Upcoming Events
February
9 The HEAL Cities Campaign FREE Webinar “Using Economic Development Funds to Create Incentives for Healthy Retail” – 12:30 p.m. – 2 p.m. The HEAL Cities Campaign, a project of the California League of Cities invites you to attend a free webinar “Using Economic Development Funds to Create Incentives for Healthy Retail.” This webinar will outline how economic development tools and financing mechanisms can be leveraged to work with small corner stores to increase the availability of healthy choices and create new business models for small food retail. Presenters will discuss the opportunities and limitations of economic development tools and offer ideas for how partnerships with local economic development agencies and small store owners can deepen the impact and sustainability of their healthy corner store work. Attendees are required to register in advance. For more information, please visit the HEAL Web site or call Francesca Wright, HEAL special projects coordinator, at (530) 220-4049.
16 California Transportation Plan Workshop – 1 – 4 p.m., Sacramento. The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) invites your input on the next update of the California Transportation Plan and the new California Interregional Blueprint. Location: Secretary of State Building, 1500 11th Street, 1st Floor Auditorium. For details, please visit Caltrans’ Web site.
Upcoming League Events:
February
3 - 5 City Managers Department Meeting
March
24-26 Public Works Officers Institute & Mini Expo
Planners Institute & Mini Expo
[FULL STORY]
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