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THREE CALIFORNIA CITIES WIN NLC CULTURAL DIVERSITY AWARDS Three California cities are either winners or runners -up of the City Cultural Diversity Award sponsored by the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials (NBC -LEO). The cities are 1) Lynwood, winner in the category of population 25,000 - 100,000; 2) Stockton, winner in the category of population 100,001 - 400,000; and 3) Oakland, runner -up (along with Chandler, Arizona) in the category of population 100,001 - 400,000. NBC -LEO is a leading voice for African Ameri- can leadership in local government and a constitu- ency group of the National League of Cities. The group believes that diversity should be reflected in the activities of America's cities and towns. It established the City Cultural Diversity Awards as a means of demonstrating quality and innovation in relation to the many aspects of cultural diversity. This award program is designed to: 1) encourage citizen involvement in local government- sponsored activities; and 2) enhance and show the apprecia- tion of cultural diversity as a way of life in our municipalities. The winners and runners -up in each of the four population categories were honored last Sunday in Washington at the NLC Celebrate Diversity Break- fast, held during the Congressional City Confer- ence. LEAGUE PRESIDENT TO SPEAK AT CONFERENCE FOR CALIFORNIA DEBT ISSUERS League President and Oakland City Attor- ney John Russo is among the speakers sched- uled to participate in a conference sponsored by the Information Management Network targeting debt issuers and buyers in San Francisco on April 14 — 15. The conference title, California Resilience: Surviving the California Budget Crisis summarizes the theme of the sessions. Other invited speakers include State Treasurer Phil Angelides and State Controller Steve Westly. The conference organizers will waive the conference fee for issuers if they register by March 21. Details may be found on the Revenue and Taxation page of the League's website ( www cacities oralrevandtax) under Education and Training. THE BUDGET STORY - SOME PRESS QUOTES Editorials, Opeds, Letters to the Editor Sacramento Bee, 3/12/03, Dan Walters: Immaculate taxation — New gimmick in state budget wrangling. 'This week, Davis and his fellow Capitol politicians came up with a new take: an act of immaculate taxation. The Davis adminis- tration and state Controller Steve Westiy unveiled a legal opinion that concluded, in effect, that the car taxes could be restored more or less auto- matically when the state treasury lacked the money to continue paying the backfill. There would be no vote by the Legislature, no signature on a bill by the governor, not even an order by Davis to do it. It would just happen, probably in May." San Jose Mercury News 3/12/03, Finally, cuts. Assembly Takes An $8 Billion Whack At Deficit, But The Tough Work Remains To Be Done. "NO cuts are too little and it's not too late, but had the California Assembly made in Decem- ber the budget cuts it voted for Monday, the state would be much further along the road back to financial equilibrium...... surely if the car fee was reduced on the condition that it would be restored in bad times, the current circumstances qualify. The shortfall equals a third of the general fund." The Long Beach Press Telegram, 3/12/03, That phantom tax hike. VLF: Fees will triple, and it's not even the governor's or legislators' doing. "What really stings is that there has been plenty of money "available' in the past few years for Davis to generously reward his campaign contributors, like the prison guards union, among others. Just this week it was revealed that Davis gave cushy state jobs to about 20 people who worked on his reelection campaign, amid a hiring freeze. Apparently there was money available for that. "Now that all the money has been spent, there's nothing "available' for local governments. And anyone who speaks against raising the car tax is put in the position of defending lower city revenues." Condnued on Page 6 PAGE 2 /PRIORITY FOCUS Visit the League's Official Web Site-- www.cacities.org