They just don’t call it vig.

People would get the wrong idea.

4  1

While key environmental questions about the new garbage contract have thankfully been addressed, it remains unclear to ratepayers and to Council where the $500,000 per year paid to the General Fund will actually come from.

The Ratto Group, PR&R and staff claim that ‘it won’t come from ratepayers.’ That’s the same promise Ratto made to Santa Rosa with their $1.8 Million incentive payments. Similar claims were made by the Ratto Group to all the other cities to extend no-bid monopoly garbage contracts.

Either these collective multimillion dollar incentives come from ratepayers’ wallets, or from Ratto’s profit margin. Ratto isn’t operating a charitable organization, but rather a monopoly utility. If the millions are coming from his profits, then our garbage rates are set too high. If
the millions do come from our ratepayers’ payments, we’ve been sold an expensive lie that this is “free money”.

Unfortunately, before signing the contract, the city council majority failed to have an independent, transparent audit of PR&R and Ratto Group’s charges and costs for Petaluma (and likewise in Santa Rosa and other cities) to demonstrably prove that this $500,000/year does not now, and will not, come from ratepayers. Apparently, the new contract won’t do that auditing either.

This is why monopoly utility contracts are so often abused at the ratepayers’ expense. This is why bidding on monopoly contracts is a very good practice, but sadly not done here.

The Council failed to do their due diligence. Calling this $500,000 “free money” is a fairy tale, unless proven otherwise through regular, independent audits to assure ratepayers that we haven’t been hit with a tax or slush fund through our garbage rates.

So – Press Democrat and Argus reporters – where is the verifiable proof, in writing, and independently and transparently auditable, that the $500,000 promised to the city’s General Fund is NOT coming from ratepayers?

12  3

I am willing to have my rate go up $2.80 per month in return for $500,000 a year to the city’s general fund. Let’s just hope the council uses this money properly and as stated — on street and road repair and NOT on salaries and pensions.

7  6

Recycle = thumbs-up
More landfills = thumbs-down

7  1