>> tonight on kpbs "evening edition", we ask the san diego county water authority why it wants to raise rates by 10%. >>> and there are serious questions about the pension reform measure. kpbs "evening edition" starts now.
. >> hello, thanks for joining us. i'm joanne faryon. >> and i'm dwane brown. san diego county's unemployment rate dropped last month to its lowest rate in three years. it was 8.7% in april, down nearly a full percentage point
from the month before. the graph shows trends dating back to may 2010. the employment development department says san diego's unemployment rate hasn't been this low since february 2009. >>> san diego's city auditor says it's not clear whether
pension reform will save the city any money. eduardo luna says there is just too much uncertainty to know what effect proposition b will have. the measure would switch most new hires to a 401(k) style system and would freeze the pay
of current employees for five years. luna says there may be a cost to that, including a need to increase nonpensionable compensation and employee turnover. he refused to sign off on the city's financial analysis of the
measure. >>> an independent super pac is jumping into the san diego mayor's race with a new tv campaign. >> blue is better! >> red is better! >> the group "i-c purple" debutted this commercial on
behalf of nathan fletcher, who left the republican party to become an independent. he is one of several independent candidates the group is supporting through california. >>> california's nonpartisan legislative analyst has taken a look at governor jerry brown's
revised budget plan, and he says it's reasonable, with a couple of issues. he says closing redevelopment agencies probably won't save as much as the governor thinks, and analyst mac taylor says brown's proposed tax initiative will likely raise less money than
expected. >>> the san diego county medical examiner is trying to determine why a student collapsed and died at san marcos high school yesterday. 18-year-old anthony vaeao was playing a pickup basketball game when he collapsed.
he was pronounced dead at a hospital a short time later. they're awaiting the results of toxicology tests. >>> today a camp pendleton marine was awarded the nation's second highest medal, for combat valor. sergeant christopher faria was
honored for what he did during an hour-long fight in afghanistan's helmand province. the pentagon says his actions allowed wounded marines to be evacuated and kept their patrol base from being overrun. >>> tomorrow morning the navy will commission the new uss san
diego. it's the third ship to be named for san diego and will be stationed there. it's an amphibious transport dock ship able to carry about 800 marines. >>> graduation ceremonies at viejas arena.
today the san diego state university began three days of commencement activities. the no. 1 degrees for the class of 2012 is psychology, followed by criminal justice, liberal studies, and management, and finance rounds out the top 5. commencement ceremonies are
being held at the csu san marcus. >>> san diego county water authority wants to raise water rates by nearly 10%. >> reporter: here to explain the reasons is sandy kerl, deputy general manager of the san diego county water
authority. >> thank you, joanne. >> let's start with the nearly 10% increase. what will that mean for the average family of four at home in terms of their bill every month? >> in terms of the average
family, looking at the wholesale cost of water, which you have to understand wholesale water goes to retail agencies, so the cost of the wholesale water increases about $3 per year per family household. >> so this increase -- >> $3 per month.
>> okay, so it's about $36 a year? >> yes. >> and that's assuming that an average family is using how much water? >> average family is using about 162,000 gallons. >> so we mentioned the cost of
water from the supplier. let's break down the reasons for this increase, starting with the metropolitan water district. >> there are really three drivers for the rate increase. the first and single-highest cause of the increase is the rate increase from the
on april 10th, they adopted a 5% increase, which, for san diego county residents, translates into 8.5% increase because of the way they charge their rates. and i can explain a little bit more about that later. the second driver for the rate increase has to do with our
investment in supply reliability. over the last 20 years, we have invested about 3.5 million dollars to make sure that we have water here in san diego county to support the $186 billion economy and 3.1 million people that live here.
and that investment in reliability comes at a cost. we're experiencing an increase in debt service to pay for those facilities that we've implemented. the latest of the projects we have going on is the dam raise at san vicente reservoir, and
those -- it's under construction, and that's part of the cost increase. the third component has to do with an increase of water from the imperial irrigation district through our qsa, and that is an additional 10,000 acre feet of highly reliable water, and the
cost for that water is going up, as per the agreement under the qsa. >> i want to talk about the water authority looking for new sources of water, of supply, and the cost to people for that, but let's talk about the metropolitan water authority.
we've done several stories about litigation, so the san diego county water authority alleges that metropolitan water district charges san diego more, more for the water than other districts, and we're paying for it. but when we look at the increase, metropolitan water
says it's going up only 5%, yet this proposal, for other reasons, is going up by 10%. what is san diego county doing to keep costs down? you allege the metropolitan water authority isn't keeping their costs down. >> that's correct.
we've been very aggressive about reducing the size of the organization, reducing our expenditures, we've laid off employees, we've cut back the organization to be responsible for the environment in which we're dealing in. and the metropolitan water
district has not done that. in addition, their rate increase -- in a time when there's scarce water, you see a reduction in the cost of supply for metropolitan but an increase in transportation costs. and the transportation costs are only paid by san diego county
water users. and that's because we transport water through the metropolitan pipes from the imperial irrigation district. >> is that why you said for san diego it's 8% not of 5%? >> 8.5% versus 5, that's correct.
>> so you also mentioned you're looking for other sources of water. this comes at a cost, a servicing cost. is this when we're talking about desalination and other -- >> it's really when we're talking about emergency storage,
supply reliability, increasing the size of the dam at san vicente will allow us to store more water, to have it available in times of need. in 2009 when metropolitan cut back water to the san diego region by 13%, we had to take only an 8% cut, because we had
local supply here to serve the region. >> now, when we do these stories, i often get emails from people at home saying, "look, i've cut down my water use in the past 10 years, but my water bill continues to increase." and we went to your website and
saw that since 2007, water use for the county has gone down rather dramatically, it's leveling off in the last couple of years, but it went down quite a bit. does that come at a cost? when we conserve water, do we pay higher rates because of the
whole supply/demand rule? >> the cost of water is much more expensive today than it was 10 years ago or 20 years ago. in addition to that, in order to to make sure we have water coming to san diego county, we had to make investments in our infrastructure, to have that
water here. and so the costs are going up. the reduced usage does mean there are less units to spread that cost over, and there is a cost to having reliability. but when you're at the end of the pipe, it's very important that you have sources of supply
so that your region can survive during a drought situation. >> so this is going before the public. do they get a chance to say something, and to speak up about this? the rate hearing will be set at the -- by the administrative and
finance committee at our board meeting on thursday, may 24th, and then -- and there will be a full airing of the rate proposal, and then there will be a public rate hearing on june 28th, and at that date and time the board will consider whether or not to go forward with the
rate recommendation. >> so i want to thank you so much for being here, and for people who didn't write down all that information, we'll have it on our website, and a link to your website, so people can go to kpbs.org. >>> coming up in just a moment,
we'll talk about san diego's pension-reform measure with a financial analyst. >>> and we'll have a look at the debate over an east county wind project. this is kpbs "evening edition". >> you may be too busy dealing with your own retirement fund to
worry about anybody else, but if you live and vote in the city of san diego, you'll have to decide whether the city should offer a 401(k) plan for its employees, or switch. katie orr tells us what the switch could mean. >> i'm standing here in the kpbs
break room with financial planner gabriel wisdom. he is here to help me understand how prop b would change san diego's retirement system. it would freeze the base pay for five years, and switch most new city employees, excluding police officers, from a defined benefit
to a defined contribution system, and this is what gabriel and i are going to focus on to do, and we're going to do it using eggs. >> these bowls are eggs represent three different pots of money. this is the general fund over
here, which the city uses to fix things like streets and provide city services. the bowl in the middle represents the city's pension fund, which it invests in the stock market in the hope it will go up and use that money to give retirees the benefits they've
been promised, and this bowl here is the employees retirement fund. >> we have the general fund, the pension fund, and the individual accounts of the retired workers. >> right. >> so what does the current system look like right now?
it's called the defined benefit system. that means the retirees are guaranteed a certain benefit which is determined mainly by the number of years an employee worked and the salary that they got, so let's say an employee is promised four eggs a year for
the rest of their life. >> okay. >> so we take four eggs, and we put them in the employee bowl. >> the city has to give them four eggs every year. >> okay, but what if something happens, like in the last few years, when the stock market
crashed? so now there aren't enough eggs to cover the required contributions, there are only three, and they need four. >> that's where the general funds fund comes in. when there aren't enough eggs in the general fund -- pension
fund, we take two eggs from the general fund and put them in the pension fund. >> that means there are fewer eggs left to cover city services right? >> so this year the city a's pension contribution is $230 million, which is lower than
expected because the stock market soared. >> but switching to a defined contribution city would mean the city is not subject to the ups and downs of the stock market. >> that's what prop b is proposing. it would change it so the city
only guarantees a certain contribution to their retirement fund, like a 401(k). it doesn't guarantee what will happen to that contribution. this becomes the 401(k). >> yes, but it gets a bit more complicated. let's say the city commits to
putting two eggs a year into the employee's retirement fund while they're working. two eggs into the 401(k) fund. >> and the employee puts one egg a year into the 401(k). >> and now the employee gets to decide how to invest those eggs, those 401(k) eggs in the stock
market. >> so the city's contribution is limited, and the employee has more control over how their money is invested. but what happens if the stock market crashes and they lose a bunch of eggs? >> well, that's on the employee.
>> so the city wouldn't make them whole, then? >> no. under this new system, the city only commits to making a certain contribution. it doesn't have anything to do with what happens to that the employee would have to deal
with whatever gains or losses they take on the stock market, which means they might have to deal with fewer eggs. >> this is what a lot of people in the private sector went through during the recession. >> but there's a difference: most people in the private
sector are enrolled in social security, and city employees currently aren't. >> that's right. >> another bowl. >> got another bowl. this is the social security bowl. so in the private sector, when
the market tumbles and eggs begin to fall, social security acts as a kind of safety net. during their working lives, most people in the private sector and their employees have been paying money into social security. >> so a couple of eggs into social security.
once they're done working, they get some eggs back; right? so if the market crashes and they lose some 401(k) eggs, they can at least count on their social security eggs still coming in. >> so let's say one egg going back into the employee's fund
there. but the city and city employees don't currently pay into social security, so they wouldn't get those eggs when they retire; >> all they i should say supporters of prop b could vote on whether they want to rejoin the social security system, but
those details have yet to be worked out. >> so there you have it, planning your retirement nest egg. it's more complicated than this, but this was meant to give you an idea of the basic changes that will be made to the
retirement system if san diego switches from a pension to a 401(k). thank you for helping to explain it. >> thank you, katie. >> katie orr. you can find more about proposition b on our website,
along with our voter guide. just go to kpbs.org/elections. >>> monday is the last day to register to vote in the june primary. voter registration forms are available at public libraries, post offices, and city halls, as well as the registrar of voters
office. you can also get a form on-line at voteinfo.net. >>> a measure to regulate health insurance premiums could end up on the november ballot. a consumer group turned in 800,000 signatures today to qualify the initiative.
they say it's the same kind of regulation already in place for auto and homeowners insurance. doctors groups and insurance companies say the measure would not reduce healthcare costs but would create a windfall for trial lawyers. >>> a group opposed to
high-speed rail has started a petition drive to stop plans for a bullet train in california. the proposed measure would derail the plan by shutting off state funding. california taxpayers approved $9.9 billion in bond financing, but the total cost of the
project is now estimated at $68 billion. opponents say it's too much. if the group gathers enough signatures, it could be on the ballot in 2014. >>> san diego county's planning commission is considering whether to allow a disputed
wind-power project in the east county to move forward. a portland company wants to put wind turbines in the mccain valley near boulevard. kpbs business and environment reporter erik anderson says both supporters and detractors gave the panel an earful.
>> i was born and raised in the east county, and i spend much of my free time hiking and biking and enjoying the beauty of our east county mountains and deserts. they really are like no place on earth. >> reporter: maxwell was among
a group of people hoping to influence the planning commission. many in the room were for the project, and many, like maxwell, were against. donna tisdale sees this as one assault among many on the rural character of her home.
she says it's a beautiful region that sits up above much of the county. >> you can see the lagunas, you can see the incapahs, the jicama mountains, the sierra juarez -- it's a 360-degree view, and it's as far as you can see. virtually every ridgeline in our
community now, every road, will be lined with turbines and new power lines, and we will have a new substation at every one of these projects. and this is where we live. i mean, this is in residential areas. >> reporter: but neighbors are
few and far between in the boulevard area. the rolling hills are coated with dry chaparral that is punctuated by huge boulders. >> the valley itself is kind of a rolling terrain, and then there is a ridge line that runs along the western edge of the
valley that's several thousand feet above the valley, and then off to the eastern edge of the valley is where you drop off into imperial county, into the karisa gorge. >> reporter: there is a reason why they picked the mccain valley.
it's windy here, it's one of the best wind resources in san diego the area already has a working wind farm. the kumeyaay tribe built 25 wind turbines nearby, to generate enough power to light up 30,000 homes. iberdrola renewables wants to
put 66 to 128 wind turbines here, some on that ridge along the western edge of the valley, the rest running east across the valley floor. mcdonald says the project will cost between $250 and $400 million to build.
>> we've got wind. we simply have to go where the wind is, and then to responsibly site a wind farm, you've got to make sure there is low environmental impacts, that there's land owners that want to participate, that you've got some place to put the power, and
it's nearby, and we've got all of that here. >> reporter: mcdonald says the project will generate $3.5 million in tax revenue every year. but most importantly, it will generate enough electricity to light up 60,000 homes.
a key part of the project is connecting it to the power grid. >> if the transmission line, which is going to connect the entire project located here and tie in to the sdg&e boulevard substation here. >> reporter: the power line is one sticking point between the
county and iberdrola renewables. san diego county officials are hoping to run the transmission line underground. the company says that would add significant cost to the project. even so, the energy company hopes to win approval. >> we've got a very good
reputation in this industry. we are known for doing the right thing, and for being a responsible developer. and after seven years of working on this project, we think this is the right spot. >> that was kpbs business reporter erik anderson.
the commissioners decided to continue their decision until june 8th. the company hopes to have the project up and running by the end of the year. >>> some young san diego scientists are big winners today.
the story in just a moment. >>> plus, your responses to our story about a young athlete facing problems because of her immigration status. >> this is kpbs "evening edition". >> welcome back to the public
square on kpbs "evening this week we profiled a 19-year-old track star from chula vista who is also an undocumented immigrant. she was almost deported but was saved by a new obama administration policy. now she remains in legal limbo.
in response to the story, james morketter wrote on facebook: "she should let herself get deported, train really hard in her native country and win gold for that country...shouting 'how's it feel!!?!?' over and over." the user david65 commented on
our website: "just goes to show you, when it comes to immigration we have good reasons to deal with the gray areas. things aren't as black and white as some may think." and the user peking duck sd responded:
"it makes more sense to allow those people to become 'legitimate' so they can actually get work and contribute to our country legally." >> you can still see this report at kpbs.org/eveningedition, and you can follow us on twitter, like
us on facebook, or send me an email directly. >>> recapping some of tonight's top stories, san diego's unemployment rate dropped last month. it was 8.7% in april. overall in california was 10.9%. >>> san diego's improving job
picture may be encouraging for thousands of students graduating. commencement ceremonies were >>> tomorrow the navy will dedicate the new uss san diego. ship that can carry up to 800 marines. >>> finally tonight,
congratulations to four young san diego scientists. today they won $40,000 for their cutting-edge science projects. they were competing against 1,500 teenagers from 70 countries. at the intel international science and engineering fair in
pittsburgh. their winning research projects looked at new ways to treat antibiotic-resistant infections. the teenagers plan to save their prize money for college. >>> you can watch and comment on any of the stories you saw tonight on our website,
kpbs.org/eveningedition. >>> thanks for joining us. you have a great weekend. we leave you with a look at the forecast. >> good night. captions provided by ecaptions.com