Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Revenue-sharing funds on the way to District 5 nonprofits

By: Gus Thomson, Journal Staff Writer

After a two-year absence, revenue-sharing funds are flowing to Placer County Supervisor Bruce Kranz's District Five again.

A critic of revenue-sharing funds since before his election in 2004, Kranz was unable to convince the county's other four supervisors to drop the $20,000 per-district allotment for nonprofit causes. He has contended that the revenue-sharing spending amounts to a slush fund for incumbent supervisors that puts challengers at a disadvantage. As a result, he declined to use the fund in either 2005 or 2006.

Kranz set up his own ad hoc committee this spring and took no part in recommendations that went to the board last week for $19,988 - or $1,111 each - in funding to 18 nonprofits.

Kranz was absent from last week's meeting and, with the committee's blanket funding recommendation on the consent calendar, it was approved unanimously.

"I didn't want to be part of the process," Kranz said, noting that approval of the fund dispersal came days before the end of the 2006-07 fiscal year. In the future, the committee - which includes Meadow Vista resident and Taxpayers League of Placer County President Wally Reemelin - will meet on a quarterly basis to make recommendations, Kranz said.

Kranz, who was touring the Angora Fire site on Tuesday with U.S. Rep. John Doolittle, R-Roseville, said the five-member committee has representation from the Tahoe Basin, Foresthill, North Auburn and Colfax. Other members are Russell Poulson, Stephanie Perry, Migan Chillemi and William Baughman.

Don Kleinfelder, of Auburn-based Child Advocates of Placer County, said that the three-year-old organization is relatively new and very thankful for the revenue-sharing funding. The group recruits and trains advocates to find safe, permanent living alternatives for children who have been removed from their homes because of abuse, neglect or violence.

"We're extremely grateful, actually," Kleinfelder said. "We're trying to grow the program to meet the needs of Placer County."

With a budget of close to $200,000 a year, Child Advocates of Placer County has been fortunate in recent weeks, also receiving $10,000 as this year's recipient of the Auburn Host Lions Club Dan Higgins Award and $7,500 from the City of Roseville's Automall program.

Kranz said that until other supervisors decide to change course on revenue sharing, he'd try to keep the committee going in his district to disperse funds while he keeps a hands-off approach.

"I think it worked out fine, this time," Kranz said.

The Journal's Gus Thomson can be reached at gust@goldcountrymedia.com, or post a comment at auburnjournal.com.