RSM City Council Race Battle Lines Drawn – in the Mud

Posted by CotoBlogzz

Ranch Santa Margarita, CA - the RSM City Council battle lines are not only drawn, but are also well defined -  voters will have a clear choice between the good old boys or new change:

The candidates vying  for Rancho Santa Margarita's two available four-year seats on city council in the November general election include Tony  Beall,  Carol Gamble and Kenney Hrabik.  The former two candidates represent the status quo in more ways than one, while Hrabik represents change and is endorsed by Councilman Jesse Petrilla.

A year ago, Councilman Jesse Petrilla, representing the new, proposed term limits, a motion defeated earlier this year  3-2. According to Petrilla,  term limits  creates a fresh perspective with innovative ideas from new blood  encouraging new people to  enter into public service.   Tony Beall, Jerry Holloway and Carol Gamble opposed the motion arguing that term limits eliminate candidates with experience as well as on matters of priority.

Currently, City Council members serve terms of four years at a time with no limit on how many terms they can serve. Elections are usually staggered so that every four years, two seats are open. Then, in the next election, three seats are open.

 Carol Gamble kicked off her campaign last Friday saying that she was  “…deeply disturbed by the deceptive campaign tactics employed by certain candidates in the most recent 2010 RSM City Council election…  Sadly, I expect one or more candidates will once again try to deceive our residents in this year's election.    She goes on to provide examples attributed to her opponent with her version of the truth:

FALSE CLAIM:   National surveys rank the RSM business climate behind New Orleans, Philadelphia and even El Centro

…

THE TRUTH!:  No such national survey exists -- the RSM business community is thriving! 

FALSE CLAIM:  The City of RSM has a more generous public pension system than San Francisco. 

THE TRUTH!:  The OC Register compared every OC city and the costs of their City’s pension plans to their residents on a per capita basis and confirmed: “Spending the least were Rancho Santa Margarita…at less than $3 per head.” 

THE TRUTH!:  The City of RSM was one of the first cities to adopt Pension Reform to ensure future solvency and sustainability. The City of Rancho Santa Margarita has NO unfunded pension liabilities. 

KENNEY’s FALSE CLAIM:  City Council Members have “exploited loopholes” to pay themselves full time pensions.

THE TRUTH!:  RSM City Council Members do NOT receive pensions.

KENNEY’s FALSE CLAIM:  RSM City Council Members have wasted hundreds of thousands of tax dollars and engaged in "greed, corruption and unjust enrichment."

THE TRUTH!:  This is really insane!  There is no “greed, corruption and unjust enrichment”!  You know I would never put up with such a thing! The City of RSM has a balanced budget and finished last year with a $1.2 million surplus and $19 Million in reserves!   

K FALSE CLAIM:  Our city has seen the rights of voters trampled on by the City Council.   

THE TRUTH!:  In a new 2012 RSM citizen satisfaction survey, 99% of RSM residents surveyed rated RSM as an excellent or good place to live; and 92% rated our City government as excellent, good or fair.   

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The candidates’ statements emphasize the Old Vs. the New:  Beall and Gamble in essence want the status quo, whereas Hrabik wants change as illustrated below:

The candidate statement for Tony Beall, who is vying with Carol Gamble and Kenney Hrabik for Rancho Santa Margarita's two available four-year seats on city council in the November general election.

Hrabik	Tony Beall	Carol Gamble
Hrabik's Statement	Tony Beall's Statement	Carol Gamble's Statement
Fight for the Rancho Santa Margarita Taxpayers End Benefits Paid to Part-Time City Council Members Disclose Benefits Paid from Boards and Commissions Always keep Public Safety as my Highest Priority Protect our Children from Sex Offenders and Predators Bring Conservative Disciplined Fiscal Responsibility Maintain a Balanced Budget and Protect Reserves Operate a Lean Limited Transparent Government Create Economic Development and Business Retention Recruit Quality Businesses Creating Local Jobs Assure RSM has a Pro-Business Friendly Environment Cut Fees and Regulatory Bureaucratic Red Tape I Will Never Vote to Raise Fees or Taxes Oppose Annexation of Coto de Caza Complete Development of Chiquita Ridge Sports Park Install Term Limits for City Council Members	Continue to support policies promoting: lower taxes; conservative fiscal policies; strong families; vibrant local businesses; reduced traffic; and safe neighborhoods and parks. .	I will continue to work to: ensure our City remains fiscally strong; conduct City business openly and transparently; promote robust business and job opportunities; maintain public safety as a top priority; and ensure we all enjoy a high standard of living.

When Jesse Petrilla was first elected to the RSM City Council we k=asserted that whether you liked him or hated him, one thing was a given.  Petrilla is a change agent.  We were spot on.

We dare say something similar about Kenney Hrabik

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