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Battleshapingup over

San Luis

candidateBY CESAR NEYOYBAJO EL SOL

SAN LUIS, Ariz. — A city coun-cil candidate here aces a possiblecourt fght to stay on the ballot asher supporters weigh the optioo running a write-in candidatein her place i she loses her battle.

The city council recently ap-proved fling a special statutoryaction in Yuma County Supe-rior Court asking that Alejand-rina Cabrera berequired to proveshe has the Eng-lish uency andliteracy skills re-quired under statelaw to serve on thecouncil.

A hearing onthe fling is set ornext Friday be ore Judge JohNelson in Yuma County SuperiorCourt.

Cabrera declined to commentprior to the hearing, but her cam-paign coordinator said the flinis political payback or two un-success ul e orts she recentlyled to recall San Luis Mayor JuaCarlos Escamilla.

Cabrera was among 10 candi-dates to fle nomination petitionsin December to run or our coun-cil seats in the city’s March pri-mary election.

She is running with ormerMayor Nieves Riedel, ex-coun-cilman Archibaldo Gurrola andcandidate Ricardo Salazar in a joint campaign coordinated byJorge “Toto” Reyes, a ormerSan Luis Parks and RecreatioDepartment employee who or-ganized the city’s youth athleticprograms.

Riedel, a San Luis business-woman, had run against Esca-milla in 2010 when he won reelection.

Beside asking that Cabreraprove English profciency, the fl-ing asks the court to instruct SaLuis City Clerk Sonia Cuello’s o -fce whether to remove her name

rom the ballot.In case Cabrera loses her bid to

stay on the ballot, the campaighas taken out petitions rom theclerk’s o fce to nominate anothercandidate to run in her place asa write-in candidate, Reyes said.The deadline or candidates to pe-tition to include their names othe March ballot has passed.

“We are not discouraged by theact that they are trying to dis-

quali y her; on the contrary, it’s asign that they are worried,” Reyes

ALEJANDRINCABREREA

Wilkinson rebu s mayor on fnancesCity administrator: Krieger’s suggestionof city crisis is ‘100 percent false’BY DARREN DARONCO

@YSDARREND

Mayor Al Krieger implied dur-ing a public address this weekhat the city is on the precipice

o fnancial crisis, saying thathe city’s “rainy day und” was in

“serious jeopardy.”But not everyone in City Hall

agrees with the mayor’s assess-ment.

“The idea that the city is insome sort o fnancial problem isabsolutely, 100 percent alse,” saidCity Administrator Greg Wilkin-

son. “We are in the best fnancialshape in over our years. So weare optimistic or this year.”

Wilkinson said that despitethe budget cuts and und sweeps

rom the Legislature, the inces-sant recession and poor tax rev-enues, city employees have pulledtogether to make the necessaryadjustments to place the city onsound fnancial ooting.

Mayor Krieger said Friday thatthe fnance department and thecity administrator ailed to give

him the in ormation he request-ed.

“Despite repeated requests, Iwas not provided any in orma-tion relative to the fnancial situ-ation in the city o Yuma by theadministrator even though thatis his job. I had no numbers or in-

ormation.”Krieger said other depart-

ments, such as the fre depart-ment, gave summaries o theiractivities, but not the adminis-trator. “I just received two thick

binders rom the fnance depart-ment and nothing else. And Mr.Wilkinson provided me with noin ormation at all.”

Krieger said the in ormatiomay have in uenced the State o the City address he gave Wednes-day.

For evidence o the city’s fnan-cial health, Wilkinson re erencedthe city’s und balance, which isseparate rom the general und

Brewerlooks tochangeschoolunding

BY HOWARD FISCHERCAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES

PHOENIX — Gov. Jan Brewerwill propose a major revamp o

ow the state unds schools, amove that could make more cashavailable or private and parochi-al schools.

In a speech Friday, Brewerboasted o Arizona being a leaderin “school choice,” with parentsgiven options beyond traditional

public schools. That includes notonly a large system o privatelyrun charter schools that also arepublic schools but also state taxcredits to help students attendprivate and parochial schools.

But Brewer told the ArizonaChamber o Commerce and In-dustry that the current undingsystem has not kept pace, withpublic schools getting a fxedamount o money or each stu-dent enrolled. A similar systemexists or state aid to universitiesand community colleges.

“Whether it’s a K-12, commu-nity college or university class-rooms, we can no longer a ordo reward institutions or merely

fnding students to occupy desksor part o the day or part o theyear. Instead, we must invest ourresources to und the schools andsupport the teachers who deliverhe results or our children, no

matter the educational setting.”Brewer stressed that her com-

mitment to und education isinked to “a setting o parents’

choosing.” But Brewer did notpromise to seek any more cash

or either K-12 schools or highereducation — or even to restorehe cuts that she helped to make

during the last two years — evenwith the state having its frst sur-plus since 2006.

Just last year state lawmakers

cut aid to public schools by $183million. Brewer put the fgureat closer to $134 million, with ateast part o the di erence due to

increased ederal aid.But the governor, in a separate

interview with Capitol MediaServices, said she wants to ear-mark some o that extra moneyo paying down the debt Arizona

incurred to balance its books dur-ing the past ew years. And in herspeech Friday, she said now thathe state has a balanced budget,here will be “no restorations.”

In act, there actually could beess money available or public

Buy this photo at Photos.YumaSun.com PHOTO BY CRAIG FRY/YUMA SUNFISHER CHEVROLET BUICK GMC,775 E. 32nd S., cut the ribbon on its new state-of-the-art facility Friday during

the dealership’s grand opening celebration.

Fisher auto dealership openswith green amenities

Owner hopes technologywill reduce costs over the long haul

BY CHRIS MCDANIEL@YS_C_MCDANIEL

The newly constructed FisherChevrolet, Buick, GMC dealer-ship at 775 E. 32nd St. boasts sev-eral state-o -the-art “green” tech-nologies.

The 40,000-square- oot acility,which cost about $5 million tocomplete, includes environmen-tally riendly amenities such asa 240-kilowatt photovoltaic powerplant and water recycling.

There is also a vacuum tubesystem in the garage that at-taches to the exhaust pipes o ve-hicles undergoing maintenance,captures the toxic umes that arecreated and flters the dirty airbe ore it is released into the at-

mosphere.Even though the Yuma econ-

omy continues to struggle, Joe

Fisher Jr., owner o the dealer-ship, elt it was time to invest ina new acility.

“There is a lot o economy inbuilding a new building rightnow,” he said. “Constructioncosts are way down compared tothree years ago. We’ve probablyspent hal o what it would havecost. Everything works on supplyand demand, rom cars to busi-ness. That is the way the economyworks and it was a good time tobuild, cost-wise.”

In addition, the automotivesales in Yuma have increased, henoted.

“We are probably up 15 or 16

percent, which kind o matcheswith national sales.”

Fisher expects all the greentechnology in the building willreduce long-term operating costs.

“We are going to realize a loto energy e fciencies with thisbuilding. The economy o the

new building is defnitely goingto o set some o the costs.”The solar panels should greatly

reduce energy bills, he added.“It will probably generate about

60 to 70 percent o the power weuse, and there are also incentives

rom APS to have a power plantso they can claim the renewableenergy credits. So I am hoping

or 100 percent o our power to bepaid by the system.”

Construction on the acility — which includes a showroom, o fc-es and maintenance departments — began in mid-May 2011. Thebuilding was fnished by Decem-

SEEMAYOR/A

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and is used for contingencyspending and other expens-es.

Every year the city trieso maintain a fund balance

of $11 million, which isabout 18-20 percent of thegeneral fund.

“After cutting costs andnumber of other things, weactually grew our fund bal-ance almost 30 percent andat the end of the year, wewere at nearly $15 million,”Wilkinson said. He addedhat if the trend continues,he fund could be as large

$20 million at the end of his scal year.

“That would be about

40 percent of our generalfund. Any city that nisheshe year with a 40 percent

balance would be jumping

schools if lawmakers ap-prove an expansion of ex-isting programs that allowindividuals to divert someof what they would other-wise pay in income taxesto instead help students at-tend private and parochialschools.

Current law gives indi-viduals a dollar-for-dollarcredit against state incometax for money donated toorganizations that providescholarships for tuition tothese schools, up to $500 forindividuals and $1,000 forcouples. Proponents con-tend this not only increasesschool choice options forparents but can save moneyfor the state by taking chil-dren out of public schools.

That program, however,has generated debate amidconcern beyond the lossof tax dollars. One issue isthe question of how muchof that money is going tochildren who would attendprivate schools anyway andfamilies well capable of af-fording the tuition.

Sen. Rick Murphy, R-Glendale, is trying to ex-pand those credits, creatingyet another program withthose same dollar-for-dollarcredits. He said increasingwhat people can give willeliminate waiting lists of parents who cannot affordto send their children toprivate schools.

But to combat claimsthat the moves underminethe budget, the program islargely designed only forstudents who move frompublic schools. Murphysaid that makes the newcredits “budget positive,”meaning the state will loseless in tax revenues thanwhat it would have to payif these students attendedpublic schools.

Gubernatorial press aideMatthew Benson said theconcept already has thesaid. “I would say that it is

scamilla’s personal re-venge against her becauseit was her who promotedhe recall against him.”

Cabrera began circulat-ing petitions to recall Es-camilla in April after the

council hiked utility ratesand approved the layoffs of 12 city employees as partof spending cuts to balancehe budget. Reyes was one

of the laid-off employees.The rst recall attempt

was annulled when the cityclerk’s of ce determined

scamilla’s opponents hadnot complied with state lawwhen collecting petitionsignatures. That prompteda second attempt that failedwhen a review of the peti-ions by the Yuma Countyecorder’s Of ce found

hat organizers had not col-ected enough signatures

from quali ed voters toforce Escamilla into a re-call election.

Reyes said Cabrera ispro cient in English, givenhat she completed high

school in Yuma — at thesame time and school as Es-camilla.

Escamilla conceded he at-ended Kofa High with him.

“But that doesn’t meanshe’s pro cient in English.I know several people whograduated and don’t know

nglish. What we are ask-ing is that she prove shemeets the requirement to

old of ce.”

Reyes alleged the cityled the court action “athe whim” of Guillermina

Fuentes, an opponent of iedel who had worked

in Escamilla’s successfulcampaign for re-election.The city ling stems froma Dec. 14 complaint made to

ber and opened for businesson Dec. 22. A grand openingribbon-cutting ceremonywas held Friday morning.

The building was con-structed by Yuma-areacompanies who did “an ex-cellent job,” Fisher said.

The facility was designedby architect Chris Thomp-son of Patterson ThompsonArchitects. Yuma ValleyContractors oversaw theproject, which was built by15 other local companieswho worked during differ-ent phases of the construc-tion.

“It was really nice to beable to employ them andthey did the job in recordtime and under budget,”Fisher said. “They did agreat job. They are someof the best in the country.They do it well, do it rightand they do it fast.”

The new building was de-signed to make the car-buy-

ing experience more com-fortable for the consumer,Fisher said.

“It is modern, it’s cleanand we actually have moreroom for the customers inthe waiting areas. We aregoing to provide the samegreat service we alwayshave, just in a lot nicer en-vironment.”

The employees will alsobene t, he added. “Theyspend a lot of time here ...and having a surroundingthat is bright clean andnew, this is really going tobe a nice place for our em-

ployees to work.”Fisher is grateful to theYuma community for mak-ing his car dealership busi-ness a success over the past30 years.

“Yuma is a fantasticplace to do business andto live. It’s our communityand we are proud to be partof it. They have always sup-ported us, so this is my con-tribution to Yuma. Becauseof Yuma, we could do thisand not for any other rea-son.”

Chris McDaniel can be reached atcmcdaniel@yumasun.com or 539-6849.

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governor’s blessing.Brewer already has bee

taking other steps to re-vamp education.

One of those occurredwhen the governor choseCraig Barrett, a charter-school executive, to chairher Arizona Ready Educa-tion Council.

In an interview with Cap-itol Media Services, Bar-rett, a former chief execu-tive of Intel, said he intendsto push for a system whereteachers are paid based otheir performance, scrap-ping the current methodwhich is based on both ten-ure and postgraduate cred-its. He also wants to elimi-nate existing requirementsfor individuals to have ateaching degree and be cer-ti ed by the state before be-ing allowed in a classroom.

Charter schools, like thechain Barrett runs, alreadyare exempt from those man-dates. And Barrett said thefact they are able to surviveon less money than tradi-tional public schools provesthat the answer is not morecash but instead focusinon what works.

Brewer on Friday saidshe shares that goal

‘”We must think abouthow to fund the results wewant, from state govern-ment and from our schoolsand universities,” she said,even speci cally mention-ing the council that Barrettheads.

Brewer’s comments comeas a group of educators andothers are crafting a nesales tax designed to helpfund education.

That is an issue becauseone of the reasons the statehas a balanced budgetand more was not cut fromeducation funding — isthat Brewer successfullypushed for voters in 2010 toenact a temporary one-centhike in the state’s 5.6 per-cent levy. That bump andthe close to $1 billion a yearit generates disappearswhen the tax self-destructson May 31, 2013.

up and down with joy.”Wilkinson said the fund

balance will allow the cityto replace equipment andtend to other obligationsthe city has had to delay

over the past few years dueto a lack of funds.In addition, Wilkinson

said, if the council ap-proves, the city is lookingto cut development fees be-tween 40-60 percent some-time this year. “That is nota picture of a city that is inbad nancial shape.”

Wilkinson added thatwhile the city does havesome problems, they arehardly the kind that couldlead to imminent nancialruin.

“We have bonds we tookout in 2007 to pay for the

water and sewer plant. Andyes, a lot of developmentthat was supposed to oc-cur to pay for it hasn’t hap-

pened. So that’s a problemarea. But it’s somethingthat’s manageable, and weare working on a numberof things to try to help inthat area.”

In other good news,Wilkinson said the city hasincreased revenues, con-trolled expenses and main-tained its Fitch’s bond rat-ing.

“We are actually lookingforward to 2012 becausethings are starting to turnfor the better.”

For a copy of Fitch’scredit rating report on thecity of Yuma, visit www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110622006180/en/Fitch-Affirms-Yuma-AZ-GOs-AA--Improvement.

Darren DaRonco can be reached at539-6857 or ddaronco@yumasun.com.Follow him on Twitter @YSDarrend oron Facebook at www.faceboook.com/YSDarrenD.

the council by Fuentes, whoalleged that Cabrera is not

uent in English.“It’s a shame that the city

would spend $30,000 just onthe whim of that lady,” saidReyes.

He was referring to theamount the council had setas a cap for contesting Ca-brera’s candidacy in court.

Fuentes, herself a formerSan Luis, said neither she

nor the city is acting on awhim.

“The council is doing theright thing. I did somethingthat is within the law, thatthe council did, too. Theyare bothered by that, andthat is understandable. Theonly thing we want is forthat woman to show us, thecitizens, that she is quali-

ed for the public post thatshe is seeking.”

200K jobs added in DecemberASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON — Fourpainful years after theGreat Recession struck andwiped out 8.7 million jobs,he United States may nal-y be in an elusive pattern

known as a virtuous cycle— an escalating loop of hir-ing and spending.

The nation added 200,000obs in December in a burst

of hiring that drove theunemployment rate downwo notches to 8.5 percent,

its lowest in almost threeyears, and led economistso conclude that the im-

provement in the job mar-ket might just last.

“There is more horse-power to this economy than

most believe,” said SungWon Sohn, an econom-ics professor at CaliforniaState University, ChannelIslands.

It was the sixth monthin a row that the economyadded at least 100,000 jobs,the longest streak since2006. The economy added jobs every month last year,the rst time that has hap-pened since 2005.

And the unemploymentrate, which peaked at 10percent in October 2009and stood at 9.1 percentin August, has fallen fourmonths straight. It was 8.7percent in November.

The economy added 1.6million jobs for all of 2011.That is better than the

BY THE NUMBERS

Dow Jones Industrials:–55.78 to 12,359.92

Standard & Poor’s 500Index: –3.25 to 1277.81

Nasdaq Composite Index:+4.36 to 2674.22

940,000 added during 2010.In 2009, the most bruisingyear of the Great Reces-sion, the nation lost morethan 5 million.

But it will take 6 millionmore jobs to get the U.S.back to what it had in De-cember 2007, when the re-cession began.