Editorial

Editor’s Note: This editorial will also appear in the December issue of the Modoc Independent News. Date of publication is Dec. 2, 2009.

New Politics
Not Old Politics

If ever there will be a timely election, it will be the one coming on June 8. Two members of the Modoc County Board of Supervisors, among other key county offices, are up for re-election and open to challenge.

We have seen remarkable response to our Daily News Blog, www.modocindependentnews.blogspot.com, calling for a serious house-cleaning when it comes to Modoc politics. Well, now is the time to act.

Already Gary Palmer, Stacy Callaghan and Mike Poindexter have declared their candidacies to succeed retiring Sheriff Mark Gentry.

It’s obvious to those with 20/20 vision. This next election is a prime opportunity to un-seat elected officials who for years have allowed our county to fall into the financial ruins we find it in today.

We suggest Supervisors Dan Macsay and Dave Bradshaw, who have failed to be accountable, give serious thought to seeking re-election. On the other hand, if they do run again, and are opposed, as they should be, their campaigns will certainly make interesting news in these pages.

It’s too bad Patricia Cantrall’s term is not expiring, but then maybe she will resign.

What is needed is a new, well-informed, qualified, majority on the board that has the welfare and best interests of the people of the unincorporated sectors of the county as well as the incorporated as their number one priority.

If we could suggest one criteria for the future welfare of this county, we would strongly recommend avoiding any candidate who believes that, “This is Modoc, we do it differently up here.”

-- Ray A. March

Community News

Bulletin Board

Come in out of the cold. Are you a harried Modoc business owner searching for answers in hard times? Help is on the way. A solid week of free business training and counseling is being offered during the week of December 7 - 10 in downtown Alturas at the Alliance for Workforce Development office, 221 N. Main St.

There will be free one-on-one counseling and discussion on “How to Respond to Customers Who Don’t Buy Locally,” “Marketing Your Business at Little or No Cost,” Quickbook Basics, and “A New Look at Cash Flow and Break Even.” To accommodate your busy schedule, two-hour classes will be held during each of three afternoons and each class will be repeated the same evening.

This worthwhile opportunity is sponsored by the Sierra Economic Development Corporation (SEDCorp) and the Alliance for Workforce Development, (AFWD).

To reserve a seat, call the Alliance for Workforce Development at 233-4161.

Modoc Travel Management Project Finalized

Forest Service officials announced a decision Nov. 12 regarding motorized travel on the Modoc National Forest. Summarized, the main points are as follows:

- Prohibit cross-country travel by motorized vehicles.

- Add 336 miles of unauthorized routes to the National Forest Transportation System. Adopt seasonal restrictions on 20 miles of these roads.

- Adopt seasonal restrictions on 312 miles of NFTS roads.

- Change vehicle class on 513 miles of Maintenance Level 3 roads to allow for mixed use by both highway-legal vehicles and non-highway legal vehicles. Install signs in strategic locations for safety.

This decision is subject to appeal pursuant to 36 CFR 215. Only those individuals and organizations who provided comments during the comment period are eligible to appeal.

Details are available on the web at http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/modoc or call 530/ 233-8754.

Happy Thanksgiving

Editor’s Note: As many of you know Lyn Messersmith is the author of “My Sister Mariah.” Excerpts are published in the Modoc Independent News monthly. We are posting the following because her message is an important one to all of us at this time of year.

Happy Thanksgiving.

--Barbara & Ray March & the Staff of the Modoc Independent News

Beyond This Point

By Lyn Messersmith

Maybe warning signs should be posted at the entrance to our spiritual journeys.

“Enter at your own risk. Those who venture beyond this point are likely to encounter tears, difficult terrain, and weariness and pain, as a result of helping to bear burdens of fellow travelers. Before continuing on this path, make sure you have an adequate supply of tolerance, honesty, and humility. Be aware at all times of your proximity to others, because at some point you may need to ask for help. Because the trail is too steep for carrying extra baggage, you must lay aside self will, material possessions, and blame. Much of the territory ahead is uncharted, and conditions may vary according to the seasons of your spirit. Not responsible for outcomes, including growing pains, broken hearts, serenity, or indescribable joy.”

If you would like to order “My Sister Mariah,” merely write to Lyn Messersmith, 4241 269th Trail Alliance, NE 69301 or email ezrein@bbcwb.net. Use "Mariah order" in subject line. The price for the 333-page paperback is $20, which includes postage and handling. Inquire about discounts for multiple copies or package rate if ordering several of Lyn's books and CDs

Northrup Takes Pay Cut

Stephanie Northrup, clerk of the Modoc County Board of Supervisors, became the first employee to voluntarily take a pay cut Tuesday, Nov. 24 when the board approved her request for a furlough program.

While supervisors Dan Macsay and Patricia Cantrall, in particular, discussed the pay scale for board members at some length, none of the board members volunteered to follow Northrup’s example.

Northrup’s one day-a-month furlough begins Dec. 1 and runs through June 30, 2010, in effect the reminder of the fiscal year. At that time the board can review the furlough again.

Rudometkin’s Remake of IMT

Modoc County’s new interim CAO Rick Rudometkin, right, made a brief presentation to the board of supervisors at its Nov. 24 meeting, stressing the importance of “transparency,” and coined a slogan, “We’re one county and we have got to pull together,” referring to the county’s fiscal emergency.

Rudometkin went on to assure the board and public audience that considerable emphasis will be put on the dissemination of information to the media and the public as the newly re-organized Incident Management Team explores solutions to the fiscal crisis.

(See Nov. 10 post regarding prior Incident Management Team).

He announced that Kelly Crosby, deputy director of public health, will serve as the Public Information Officer for the “Modoc Fiscal Restoration Incident Management Team, Operational Period: 11-23-09 through 12-07-09.” A period of 15 days.

Additional key team members appointed by Rudometkin, who will serve as Incident Commander, include: Diane Fogle, liaison, Darcy Locken, operations, Stephanie Northrup, logistics and Tony Richno, planning.

Health Department Director Karen Stockton has been given the assignment of “restoration of the treasury,’ and will be working with Environmental Health Officer Warren Farnam, whose area of study will be the General/ Non General Fund and also with new Modoc Medical Center CEO, Bob Duncan.

Auditor Alice Marrs is overseeing Cash Flow Management and Rick Hironymous of Public Works has been assigned Department Revenue and Saving.

Rudometkin said there would be a full Incident Management Team report to the board and public in one week.

-- Barbara March

Community News

Leanne Eubank of Ft. Bidwell is traveling to Texas for her cancer treatments and has to leave behind her beloved cats. Cathy Carlock has taken on  finding them all good loving homes. Most of the cats are spayed and neutered. If you are interested in adopting or can donate cat food please call Cathy at 279-2155.

Come in out of the cold. Are you a harried Modoc business owner searching for answers in hard times? Help is on the way. A solid week of free business training and counseling is being offered during the week of December 7 - 10 in downtown Alturas at the Alliance for Workforce Development office, 221 N. Main St.

There will be free one-on-one counseling and discussion on “How to Respond to Customers Who Don’t Buy Locally,” “Marketing Your Business at Little or No Cost,” Quickbook Basics, and “A New Look at Cash Flow and Break Even.” To accommodate your busy schedule, two-hour classes will be held during each of three afternoons and each class will be repeated the same evening.

This worthwhile opportunity is sponsored by the Sierra Economic Development Corporation (SEDCorp) and the Alliance for Workforce Development, (AFWD).

To reserve a seat, call the Alliance for Workforce Development at 233-4161.


Cold weather is on its way. TEACH has funding available for qualified households whose monthly gross income does not exceed the maximum guidelines. You must be a Modoc resident. Call 233-3111 for information.


Take a Second, Make a Difference. 40 Assets. The Modoc County Prevention Collaborative encourages families to start a new tradition this Thanksgiving. Gather your family together to share stories. Made-up or real, long or short. Let the grown ups start to set the example and then go around the room. Tell stories about your own childhood or about your children. How they behaved when they were babies. Or stories about their pets. Most of all, have fun! To find out more on how you can help your children call Tara Sheperd at 233-6319 or De Funk at 233-7128.




Buy Local - Support
Modoc Independent News Advertisers


2010 models are coming in! Bob Carstens has fuel efficient all-wheel drive cars and trucks waiting for you to try. Check out the 2010 Traverse. It’s a beauty.


4 Corners wishes you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving!


Did you know Modoc Steel & Supply delivers to Big Valley, Burney, Redding, Susanville, Tulelake, Klamath Falls, Christmas Valley, Lakeview and Paisley. Go Jim, go!


L&B Ranch Supply has waterproof Bog boots in stock. These warm, waterproof boots are a must-have during winter weather. Stop by today to pick out yours.

Surprise Valley Demands Payment

(Surprise Valley Healthcare District Administrator Wanda Grove, left.)


While Modoc County’s financial crisis has already left its mark with employee layoffs, cutbacks in services and failure to pay some bills, the full realization that the county is running on thin cash only surfaced Nov. 24 when the board of supervisors met head on with the Surprise Valley Healthcare District.

At issue was a proposal by Auditor Alice Marrs and Treasurer Cheryl Knoch to cut back the disbursement of $165,000 in tax revenues due the district next month.

They plan to disburse a 50 percent payment in December, 40 percent in April and 10 percent in June.

The cut backs would also hit all other agencies and districts that receive tax dollars, but Surprise Valley Healthcare District is the first to react.

“We have a line of credit of $167,000 with Plumas Bank that is due Dec. 10,” Wanda Grove, hospital administrator, told the board. “If the hospital only gets 50 percent, as the treasurer and auditor have said, then the hospital loan will go into default.”

Jim Laacke, a resident of the Surprise Valley Hospital District, told the board it was his opinion that the hospital was being penalized for the inability of the county to stay financially solvent.

This last June it was revealed by former CAO Mark Charlton that an estimated $20 million had been misappropriated from the county’s treasury.

“This is not a game and it will not be tolerated much longer,” Laacke told the supervisors.

In response, Marrs and Knoch contradicted each other, Marrs saying she would like to pay the full amount but didn’t know if that could be done, while Knoch said she had included a $165,000 payment to Surprise Valley Healthcare District in her December cash flow projections but added that a full payment would set a precedent.

It was also pointed out that payment of assessment taxes in the past had always been made before the actual collection of the tax monies.

The supervisors, with Dan Macsay, who represents the district in which the hospital is located leading the way, voted unanimously to make a full payment to the hospital. But that move was moot because the board has no authority over Marrs or Knoch and how they make disbursement payments to districts.

“You are going to hear from us until we get what we want,” Grove said in closing. “If we have to bring legal counsel to the next board meeting we will.”

Cantrall Stands Corrected

Contrary to the assertion by Supervisor Patricia Cantrall that Modoc County is not alone when it comes to the possibility of going bankrupt, there are no counties in the state that remotely compare to what Modoc County is facing.

That position comes from the executive director of the California State Association of Counties, who was interviewed by the Modoc Independent News during the organization’s just-concluded conference in Monterey, which was attended by Supervisor Jeff Bullock.

Asked if there are counties in California that are facing similar troubles as Modoc County, Paul McIntosh said there were not.

“There are counties in California that are facing a tough time,” he said naming Trinity, Colusa and rural counties with low tax rates and low property values.

“Nothing approaches what Modoc County is going through now,” McIntosh said, referring to “Modoc County’s sucking money out of the county’s investment funds,” or treasury.

Cantrall, at a recent meeting of the Modoc County Board of Supervisors, said she believed there were four other counties in the state in the same predicament as Modoc County.

McIntosh said for Modoc County to recover from its financial straits it would be necessary to install internal controls and acquire short-term loans. These remedies are identical to recommendations made by Mark Charlton before the board voted to replace him with interim CAO Rick Rudometkin, who now doubles as director of transportation and public works.

“We have communicated with Modoc throughout this thing,” McIntosh said, adding that at the time he had yet to talk with Rudometkin. “We will do everything we can to help Modoc,” McIntosh added.

-- Ray A. March

Nine Steps to Being Nice

Editor’s Note: The following editorial, in case some of you missed it, appeared on A2 of the November issue of the Modoc Independent News. We reprint it here because there may be some of you who are wondering why your comments have not been posted to our blog. The reason for this is because in our judgment you failed to meet one or more of the nine points for Civility in Public Discourse.


Editorial

There’s a quiet movement afoot. It started six years ago in Duluth, Minn. In case you have not heard of this movement, it’s called “Campaign for Civility in Public Discourse.”

http://www.dsacommunityfoundation.com/initiatives/Speak_Your_Peace.shtml

We invite you here to learn more about this much-needed remedy to the runaway politics of hate, fear and paranoia, politics that depend on discourtesies, downright nastiness and rudeness in the course of so-called public debate.

You’ve witnessed it at the national level. You’ve witnessed it at the local level (chose your favorite board of supervisors, planning commission or some so-called civic groups).

From this movement came the “Speak Your Peace” campaign, a plan to rid public discourse of disrespectful language and personal attacks. The campaign has nine tools for civility:

1). Pay attention; 2) Listen; 3) Be inclusive; 4) Don’t gossip; 5) Show respect;
6) Be agreeable; 7) Apologize; 8) Give constructive criticism; and 9) Take responsibility.

In other words, be nice.

-- Ray A. March

Modocgate - County's Books Unacceptable

The Modoc County Board of Supervisors has hired Vavrinek, Trine & Day, Co., LLP, to conduct a state-ordered new audit of the county and Modoc Medical Center‘s books. Why?

Because the audit conducted by TCA Partners, LLP not only was deficient in itself, but more importantly because it revealed gross financial deficiencies in Modoc County’s financial practices.

“Based on the nature and extent of the deficiencies identified in this report, (previous audit) … the State cannot rely on the auditor‘s opinion that Modoc County‘s financial statements fairly represent the financial position of the county and that Modoc County complied with federal program requirements,” the State Controller’s office stated in its October, 2009 report.

(See Nov. 9 blog entry “Modoc May Have to Sue For Audit Costs” which gives a detailed statement by the State Controller’s Office).

The scathing report went on to state:

“…bank statements…did not support the amount of cash reported in the county‘s audit report. The bank statements indicated that the county had $12,693,221 in cash on deposit; however, the financial statements indicated that the county had $23,552,153 in cash on deposit.”

Modoc County’s basic internal accounting practices, according to the State Controller, were lacking in the following areas:

“The check sequence is not accounted for when reconciling bank accounts.”

“Voided checks are not canceled and retained and accounted for in the bank reconciliation process.”

“Bank accounts are not reconciled by an individual who is independent of the cash receipts and disbursements function.”

“The county does not periodically assess whether any of the securities are permanently impaired and adjust the carrying value accordingly.”

“Mail is not opened in double custody (by at least two individuals) and a listing is not prepared by individuals who are independent of the cashier and accounts receivable bookkeeping.”

“Checks are not restrictively endorsed upon receipt.”

“Cash receipts are not subsequently compared to the bank statement.”

“Electronic funds transfers are not approved by the controller or CFO.”

“No purchase order system is in place; therefore, purchase orders are not pre-numbered and accounted for.”

“Expenditures over a certain dollar amount do not require another level of approval.”

“There is no approved vendor list.”

“There is no periodic review of purchase prices other than that by someone in purchasing.”

“Accounts payable items are not aged and periodically reviewed by an appropriate level for overdue items.”

“The auditor did not identify and/or disclose that the county‘s internal controls over the fiduciary funds were not adequate to prevent the misuse of the funds.”

-- Barbara March

Bulletin Board

Community News

Come in out of the cold. Are you a harried Modoc business owner searching for answers in hard times? Help is on the way. A solid week of free business training and counseling is being offered during the week of December 7 - 10 in downtown Alturas at the Alliance for Workforce Development office, 221 N. Main St.

There will be free one-on-one counseling and discussion on “How to Respond to Customers Who Don’t Buy Locally,” “Marketing Your Business at Little or No Cost,” Quickbook Basics, and “A New Look at Cash Flow and Break Even.” To accommodate your busy schedule, two-hour classes will be held during each of three afternoons and each class will be repeated the same evening.

This worthwhile opportunity is sponsored by the Sierra Economic Development Corporation (SEDCorp) and the Alliance for Workforce Development, (AFWD).

To reserve a seat, call the Alliance for Workforce Development at 233-4161.


Cold weather is on its way. TEACH has funding available for qualified households whose monthly gross income does not exceed the maximum guidelines. You must be a Modoc resident. Call 233-3111 for information.


Take a Second, Make a Difference. 40 Assets. The Modoc County Prevention Collaborative encourages families to start a new tradition this Thanksgiving. Gather your family together to share stories. Made-up or real, long or short. Let the grown ups start to set the example and then go around the room. Tell stories about your own childhood or about your children. How they behaved when they were babies. Or stories about their pets. Most of all, have fun! To find out more on how you can help your children call Tara Sheperd at 233-6319 or De Funk at 233-7128.




Buy Local - Support Modoc Independent News Advertisers


2010 models are coming in! Bob Carstens has fuel efficient all-wheel drive cars and trucks waiting for you to try. Check out the 2010 Traverse. It’s a beauty.


4 Corners wishes you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving!


Did you know Modoc Steel & Supply delivers to Big Valley, Burney, Redding, Susanville, Tulelake, Klamath Falls, Christmas Valley, Lakeview and Paisley. Go Jim, go!


L&B Ranch Supply has waterproof Bog boots in stock. These warm, waterproof boots are a must-have during winter weather. Stop by today to pick out yours.

Who Is Rick Rudometkin?

Editor’s Note: Efforts by the Modoc Independent News to interview Rick Rudometkin have been frustrated by his apparent conflicts of scheduling so we went to public sources at his last place of employment to learn what we could about this hastily-appointed interim CAO for Modoc County.

Prior to arriving in Modoc County about two years ago as director of transportation and public works, Rick Rudometkin worked for Dana Point, a city of about 35,000 in Orange County.

It is only coincidence that Orange County went bankrupt in 1994 and that Modoc County is facing that possibility in 2009.

Rudometkin’s entire tenure at Dana Point was as streets manager and public works inspector, reporting to the director of public works, according to the city‘s personnel analyst.

He held that position from August 2003 to November 2007.

Dana Point’s web site describes the position of streets manager as the following:

“The Streets Maintenance Division is a division of the Public Works Department and is responsible for properly maintaining publicly owned streets and all associated right of way improvements. Said improvements include, but are not limited to, asphalt pavement, concrete sidewalks, curb and gutter, concrete hardscape, concrete cross-gutters, storm drains, diversion facilities, storm drain filters, and traffic signals.

“In addition to maintaining all of the infrastructure improvements on publicly owned streets and rights of way under the City’s control, this Division is responsible for street sweeping and monitoring needed maintenance in areas controlled by other agencies within the City.

“The Streets Maintenance Division is also responsible to oversee or inspect permitted work in the City’s streets by developers, residents, contractors, and utility companies.”

While this description dos not include reference to any budgetary responsibilities, Dana Point’s personnel analyst did say the job requires “knowledge of municipal government budgeting principles.”

Rudometkin was appointed Modoc County interim CAO Nov. 10 by the board of supervisors in a move to oust Mark Charlton , who had resigned when it became apparent the board did not support his public handling of the county’s financial crisis.

Charlton, who exposed the board’s misappropriation of an estimated $20 million from the county’s treasury, was not scheduled to leave his position until Dec. 3.

Initially, Rudometkin was named both chief administrative officer and chief executive officer, but the latter title was dropped apparently because the board did not have authority under its governing ordinances to make an appointment that carried such broad powers as chief executive officer.