Political Coruption?

CEAG - A Pleasant Surprise! A Breath of Fresh Air.

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 01:26:06 GMT

We were pleasantly surprised with the response in the Clipper by the Coalition of Ethics and Accountability in Government (CEAG; http://utahceag.org/) to the mudslinging by Bountiful Mayor Joe Johnson’s daughter (http://tinyurl.com/luzcpf), Councilman Marc Knight and Councilwoman Beth Holbrook (http://tinyurl.com/r5lqb3). CEAG was articulate and reasonable, without resorting to name calling. These folks really do have some integrity. Please see their response at: http://tinyurl.com/q7bxqn While we are not a part of CEAG, we are going to support their candidates. They seem pretty sharp. They seem to have ethics.

Some other great letters in the Clipper:

http://tinyurl.com/oexh7v
http://tinyurl.com/phr23j

The attacks have begun! Mayor Joe's daughter is first to sling the mud!

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:40:20 GMT

It did not take long for the personal attacks to begin. Tonight in the Clipper, Jennie Johnson, daughter of Bountiful Mayor Joe Johnson came out swinging. It is admirable that she is defending her father. However, she does not address the particualr issues of Joe's lack of integrity brought to the forward by JoAnn Hamilton in last week's Clipper, but rather she attacked JoAnn Hamilton over what JoAnn has been doing to protect children in Davis County. This attack of course is due to JoAnn's letter to the editor the previous Thursday based on facts regarding Joe as witnessed by JoAnn.

Please see letters headlined "Bountiful needs man like Novak" by JoAnn Hamilton:

http://tinyurl.com/lsu4dp

and "Mayor Loves City with all his heart" by Jenie Johnson at:

http://tinyurl.com/luzcpf

Jennie Johnson in her letter goes after JoAnn Hamilton for orgainizing to have area businesses cover their magizine-rack slots for magazines that are a bit provocative with their cover pictures and article headlines. Jenie states that this does nothing to protect children. Jenie asks of JoAnn, "Who do think you are? And really what have you ever done to help the city? You think that putting up covers over magazines is going to save the children." Jenie states that teaching our children tolerance, love, respect etc is more important. Of course that is important too, but Jenie clearly does not get the point of JoAnn's work. We personally do not know JoAnn nor Jenie and would not want to speak for them. However, the sentiment expressed by Jenie is the typical code talk made by the liberal media, i.e. "You can always change the station if a program offends you". Jenie clearly does not understand the importance of not sexuallizing our children, and protecting them as much as possible. She does not understand the importance of not exposing children, especially young children to this type of information. She does not understand the addiction that occurs through exposure to this type of media. She obviously does not follow her own Church leadership in what they expect their members to stand for and support... We wonder if this is what Joe also thinks? We would guess that Jenie's opinion would have been influenced by discussion with her father.

Another interesting point that she brings up is that her father does not lie, and does listen and respond to his constituents. She additionally states that he struggles and has spent sleepless nights over the affairs of the City of Bountiful. In our case, we can say with a surety that Joe does not respond to the citizens. We have written him several times at his home and at the City Office regarding challenges that we have personally had with the city, asking for his help in coming to an amicable resolution. We have asked to meet with him on several occassions to discuss these problems. We know with a surety that he has never responded to one of these letters or requests for meeting. We also know of a surety that the City Manager, Tom Hardy, has lied to us and others. We know through first-hand experience of inappropriate threats made by Tom Hardy, and that Joe knows of this and has done nothing, as they were made in a public setting. As a reult, we have stuggled with these challenges personally, and have had many sleepless nights over these problems with the City... and not one word from Mayor Joe Johnson at all... If he truly struggles and has sleepless nights, one would think that he would have enough empathy to reach out and talk. Sadly, this is not true. If he has a heart, it is truly cold.

Several in our group voted for Joe Johnson for his first term as Mayor. Many had him as a teacher at Bountiful High and thought the world of him. However, after what we have experienced since Joe was elected the first time around, and his lack of response to the citizens of Bountiful, we did not vote for him again in the second election, and will not this time either. We have been personally attacked and gone after by city employees as a result of our challenges with the City, and have seen first hand the inappropriate use of power by the City. We have personally experienced the retaliation that occurs when one speaks up about problems in Bountiful City government in the Clipper. As a consequence, we will not speak out against Joe in the paper. We do not need to be attacked again. It cost us dearly last time. We will leave that to others.

One last item...that regarding Joe's love of Bountiful City "with all his heart"...When going door to door in Joe's neighborhood a couple of years ago in support of another elective post in which Joe was not directly involved, an unsolicited comment from one of his neighbors caught us offguard. That was this, that "Joe Johnson only does things for Joe, he never does anything unless there is something in it for him." So much for his selfless love of city...

It is indeed time for a change. Hopefully those running against Joe and his ilk are the right people to lead our city.

Note: To see what JoAnn Hamilton is doing for our community, please see:

http://www.strengthenthefamily.net/

We did not know much about JoAnn previously but this has opened our eyes. What a wonderful woman!

On Twitter

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 02:21:20 GMT

SouthDavis.com is now on Twitter at:

http://twitter.com/SouthDavisUtah

Bountiful City Elections - CEAG

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 21:09:26 GMT

Bountiful City elections are coming. The Mayor and two City Council seats will be on the ballot this year (2009). We desparately hope that they will have some honest, open, and transparent folks win the election this year. However, that would have to be somebody other than those who hold these positions currently. We need good leaders.

A new group has popped up called CEAG (pronounced see-j). Please see http://utahceag.org/. A member from our group attended their public meeting last night at the Bountiful City Library. They seemed to be very honest, and one of their overriding platforms is to have transparency in government. They are also pushing a slate of candidates. They seem to be good people that listen and can lead. The challenge that we see, is that they will be mercilessly attacked just as other candidates have been in the past by those in power in South Davis County. We hope that they are above reproach and have enough fortitude to withstand the buffetings of the incumbants and their ilk. It is definitely time for a change in Bountiful City leadership.

The biggest challenge will be voter apathy. It seems to rule the day here in Bountiful. Another factor seems to be the endorsement of Sister Ardith Kapp. She is a great person but is misguided in her support of the current administration. If she knew what bad people these were that currently run the city, and their utter disdain for Church principles, she would definitely change her mind and support. It will be crucial for those running to help her understand this.

One of our members has had a chance to talk to Jeff Novak who is running against the mayor this fall. He seems to be very sharp and principled. We have not yet made up our minds whether to support him yet or not, but we seem to be leaning that way. We have also read several articles and commentaries in the Clipper that would also lean us in this direction. Please see:

http://tinyurl.com/m3ghdz

http://tinyurl.com/pc6q6e

http://tinyurl.com/mhc8jb

It is time for the citizens of Bountiful to shake off their apathy and learn about who they are voting into office. We pray that they will decern who it is that supports that which is right and those that support evil doing, and their own self interests. We need to remember the sacrifice of our fore-fathers in support of Liberty, Justice, and Freedom. Let us not make a mockery of that by voting the wrong people into office. Please take the time to understand what these people are doing and will do in the future. We need the right people in office who will do the right thing for the right reason.

How Elected Officials Take Money from Lobbyists WITHOUT having to Report It?

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 00:49:05 GMT

Q. Have you ever wondered how to take large amounts of money from Legislative Lobby Groups without having to report it?

A. Get a job at a School District Educational Foundation and then run for office. Take a look at Sheryl Allen, who is the Executive Director of the Davis Education Foundation, and her Assistant Director, Louenda Downs. Sheryl is also the Utah State District 19 House Representative, and Louenda is a Davis County Commissioner. Any lobby groups who have business before the Legislature and the Davis County Commission, need only funnel their monies into the Davis Education Foundation, which has no obligation to report to anyone.

Take a look at what Sheryl was doing seven years ago. Please see: www.publicintegrity.org/oi/iys.aspx Do you think she is doing anything different today or is she just frying bigger fish?

Q. Have you ever asked how much these two ladies make in their Davis Education Foundation roles?

A. Go ahead and try...these Education Foundations do not have to tell you, even though their "purpose" is to bring in monies for the kids in the affiliated school districts. We are sure however that their salaries are much higher than the teachers that they are trying to help.

Q. Also, ask who gives them free office space and telephone lines on their telephone switch?

A. The Davis School District, and hence Davis County Tax Payers. So how does that work? A government entity in bed with a foundation that does not have to report anything like a government entity does. Looks like a way to cover up coruption....Take a look at what a secretary of the Weber Education Foundation was able to do. Please see: www.standard.net/live/news/97528/

Comment: It is always interesting to see Sheryl Allen posing for a photo in the Clipper with a big donor to the Davis Education Foundation, and then see our Elementary School Teachers send home notes stating they need monies for field trips, which are to be paid from School District monies. Where is all the money that Sheryl and Louenda are soliciting and obtaining? Oh we forgot, it was to pay the Ross' for their Title 1 books that were produced criminally to line their pockets. Also don't forget the Ross' appear to have been campaign contributors to Sheryl.

Bountiful should take a cue from Syracuse and Fire Tom Hardy

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Sat, 10 Feb 2007 22:40:57 GMT

On February 2nd, the Syracuse City Council voted unanimously to fire City Manager Ken Hubler. This vote was then ratified on February 8th making it official. The reason Ken Hubler was fired was that the Council and Mayor felt that Mr. Hubler was taking Syracuse City in the wrong direction. Please see:

http://tinyurl.com/nnorbd

It's too bad that the Bountiful City Council does not seem to have the fortitude to do the same thing to Bountiful City Manager Tom Hardy. He has been taking the City in the wrong direction for over a quarter of a century. City Councils and Mayors have come and gone, and yet he has been able to remain. He seems to be too powerful to get rid of, as he has orchestrated a base within the City that would make it very difficult to remove.

City Manager Tom Hardy has put a stop to city record keeping so that he does not have to answer for any wrongs done by he and/or his staff. There is no record of any complaints made by citizens regarding anything in the City. When requests for copies of complaints are made, the City Staff simply shrugs its shoulders and says, sorry, we have none, and states that it is City Policy not to maintain written records of complaints. Yet the City acts upon these complaints, or at least the ones that it wants to..... Is this proper? Is this democracy? Maybe, instead of the "assault on democracy" decried by Representative Sheryl Allen about those evil school vouchers, she should be looking into why the City Government that represents her constituents is not keeping records. We would like to see "sunshine" in Bountiful City.

During Tom Hardy's employment, the number of businesses as a percentage of population in the City has decreased. The result of this has put an extra burden upon the residents and the remaining businesses in the City. Tom Hardy has also been very sneaky about making up for much of this revenue shortfall. He has raised power rates several times, and has shuffled surplus power monies into the general fund. Businesses have also been allowed to build on small land lots without adequate parking, etc. just to try to make up for his failings. Look at Del Taco and the old new Carmacks. Fortunately, Iceberg, who bought the old new Carmacks building, also bought the house next door to provide for adequate parking and drive-through facilities. We need better City planning and foresight. This will not come from Tom Hardy. He has had long enough to do something about the same old problems with business development in Bountiful City. He is not a true friend to business and he is certainly not a friend to the residents.

Also, have you wondered why the South Davis Recreation Center has not opened to the public yet? Yes, they had a swim meet for the high schools there a couple of weeks ago, but the general public has still not been given full access to the Center. This was the Center that was supposed to have opened in September, then October, then December, then January, then February. We shall see if it makes it by the end of this month.... This Center, while a South Davis County Project, was driven by Tom Hardy. All along the way, he has made mistake after mistake. He sold the bonds at an unfavorable time to finance the construction. He cut things from the project and then added them back in. He has missed his opening deadlines, one right after another. He got the City to lend the project monies. On top of that, the building is an ugly eyesore. The project management has been abysmal. Yet, Tom Hardy, still maintains his job. He needs to be terminated. If he cannot handle a building project, how can he handle the City of Bountiful?

The Bountiful City Power System has been suffering under the rule of Tom Hardy. He has robbed the monies that should be going to maintenance and upgrades and has been stuffing that money into the general funds to cover up his mismanagement. One of these days, we will all pay for this one. We need to get him out before we have a system-wide failure.

Why oh why have our elected leaders not gotten rid of him? Perhaps, because they are part of the same crowd and clique that maintains power in South Davis County that protect one another at any cost. When will we as an electorate boot them all out? It is time for the good and honest to run for office in this community.

Conflict of Interest with Bountiful City Councilman R. Fred Moss?

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 21:04:10 GMT

R Fred Moss is the current Bountiful City Councilman over Bountiful Power. Please see: www.bountifulutah.gov/MayorCouncil/MayorCouncil.html

Fred Moss is also the owner of Dominion Engineering and Dominion Power Services. Please see: www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20050914/ai_n15363784 Search for "Moss" in the article.

Dominion Power Services is an operator of a power plant in Idaho (Dry Creek Project). Please see line 539 of the following spreadsheet: utility.rti.org/download/EIA867contacts.xls Also please see line 1721 that shows R. Fred Moss as the president of America West Hydro that operates yet another power plant in Idaho (Smith Falls Hydroelectric Project).

The question that arises is whether R. Fred Moss is still in the power production business selling power on the open market? If so, is he selling power to Bountiful City? If he is selling power to Bountiful City, should he have a position of authority at Bountiful Power? Does Bountiful City have an obligation to say who it is buying power from, and is it one of its City Council members? We wonder if Bountiful City keeps records on this or is it like other record keeping at the City, non-existent... or are the records kept by UAMPS in this case?

We believe that all Utah office holders need to declare potential conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from acting in these conflicts of interest. What do you think?

Davis School Employees John and Sue Ross Indicted on 47 Federal Counts

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 14:13:36 GMT

On Wednesday, Federal Officials unsealed a 47-count indictment against former employees of the Davis School District, Susan G Ross, 62, and her husband, John Ross, 64, of Layton. It is alleged in the indictment that the couple defrauded the school district of at least $4.3 million. Federal officials say that they believe that this has been going on since the year 2000, but fear that it may go back to 1985. For details, please see: deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,650209565,00.html and deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,650209574,00.html

The big question is how did all of this go on for so long right under School District Officials' noses? And is this just the tip of the iceburg?

How did this husband-wife team work so closely with one another with such blatent conflicts of interest? How is it possible that these two worked at the same place of employment? In the corporate world, this would not happen in most situations.

How did the husband write the grant proposals for the monies that were used to purchase these books from himself? How does the wife, as Director of the program, buy books from herself? Without making a dime, there is a very big problem here....

Then there is the issue of copyright infringement and inflated prices. How was this allowed to happen and for so long? These are educators to boot. They should know better. Their lawyer's excuse is also deplorable that "[if] I could buy something for 18 and sell it to you for 200 dollars, don't blame me because you're a moron." Please see: www.ksl.com/ Are we not teaching our educators ethics, oversight, and responsibility?

Superintendent Brian Bowles stated that the material that was sold to them by this couple was "crummy." That crummy material was also sold to them at seriously inflated pricing. Please see: www.sltrib.com/ci_4709850 Nobody noticed for years that large amounts of money was spent on crummy materials. They did not notice the fact that for a whole lot less, they could provide so much better. What does this say about how our schools are held accountable for what they teach and at what it costs?

In addition, how did the wife become the Director over so many programs at the District? Please search for the word "Ross" at the following website: www.davis.k12.ut.us/communityrelations/Districtoffice.pdf Where was the division of responsibility?

Also of interest to us, is whether the John and Sue Ross, formerly of 3877 Bountiful Blvd (listed as campaign contributors to Representative Sheryl Allen in 2000), are the same people as the above, or are they just unfortunate enough to have the same names? Please see globe.utah.gov/allcont/allcont.aspx Is there a link between this couple and Sheryl Allen?

Futhermore, could there be a link between this couple and the Davis Education Foundation? Please see: www.davis.k12.ut.us/staff/diane/index.html It would be nice to open the records of the foundation and see what is going on there as well. The manner in which these educational foundations are able to operate in secrecy and impunity needs to change.

Please note that Sue Ross' Secretary, Stella Smith, was also indicted for allegedly running her own fraud skeem. Where there is smoke, there is fire, and this has been smoking for a long time. However, instead of putting out the fire, some people have been asking where the barbeque was so they could stuff their faces too. How many others are running such a skeem?

These are all questions that need some answering....

For those of you who believe the public trust has been betrayed by a public officeholder or someone in a position of public trust, you can call 1-866-50-BRIBE (1-866-502-7423). The time to call is now. Let's stop corruption in South Davis County.

Salt Lake County Votes to Declare North Salt Lake City Property Open Space - The Epitome of Hypocrisy

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 03:38:46 GMT

The Salt Lake County Council voted 6-2 this morning to declare 80 acres of North Salt Lake City-owned property as open space if North Salt Lake succeeds in disconnecting the property from Salt Lake City. Please see: www.sltrib.com/news/ci_4699944

This is the epitome of hypocrisy. Salt Lake City has butchered the hill along Beck Street for years with the literal removal of all moveable dirt and gravel from the mountain side, exposing great gashes for all to see when coming into the City from the north. Salt Lake City, in a successful attempt to block the extention of Bountiful Boulvard into Salt Lake City, allowed the gravel pit operations to move up the hillside, thereby removing the bench where the proposed road would be placed. The South Davis County Legislators including Sheryl Allen tried without success to change this through State intervention. They failed... So much for Sheryl's ability to carry the day.

North Salt Lake City wanted to add some homes and a cemetery on the property in addition to placing most of the property in park and trails. What could Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County see in this evil? ...especially after what they have allowed to happen to the nearby mountain side...

This would be a great return on investment for North Salt Lake City, and would be a benefit to its citizens. The property in question is also not directly accessable from any point within Salt Lake City or Salt Lake County. This is just bad government, where the powerful exert their will on the weak.

This is something that our new representative in District 20, Paul Neuenschwander; longtime District 19 Representative Sheryl Allen; and Senator Dan Eastman should be pushed into action on. Let's see how they respond. Committe meetings have been occuring on the hill the past couple weeks. Do you think this has been discussed?

Bountiful City Manager Tom Hardy should also be showing support for his sister city. We wonder what his thoughts on the subject are? Let's see how he helps with North Salt Lake City when their chips are down. He sure expects the other cities in South Davis County to always help and follow him.... Want to bet that we will hear narry a peep?

Secrecy in Government Challenged - Judge Issues Restraining Order Against Davis County School District

The South Davis Fourteen (SD14) — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 13:35:39 GMT

This past Thursday, 2nd District Court Judge Michael G. Allphin issued a restraining order against the Davis School District on the basis that the Boundary Advisory Committee's closed meetings violated the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act. Basically, the school district's policy of closed meetings of advisory committees has been struck down. Please see: www.deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,650208126,00.html

We understand that it is always tough in redrawing school boundaries, and no matter what the District comes up with, there will be disgruntled parents. Nobody believes that this process is an easy one. However, the climate of secrecy around making decisions that permeates through South Davis governments needs to stop. Government needs to operate in the open. Tough decisions need to be worked out in the light of day. Minutes of these tough decisions need to be made public. People need to see what their government is doing. This is the chief cornerstone of a free democracy.

The challenge now is to take this ruling and apply it to all government entities in South Davis County. It is one thing when committees in secret mess with people's children and where they go to school, and yet another thing when cities and counties do not operate in the open, when it affects only a few people. People in southern Davis County seem to be so apathetic to what is going on in their communities unless it directly affects them. What they don't understand is that a clandestine government does affect everyone, and chips away at the fundamental freedoms of our American way.

When government is allowed to operate in secrecy, arbitrary and capricious decisions are made. Favors are granted and harm can be done. Recourse is limited and injustice is perpetrated. Corruption is allowed to seep in and everyone loses.

Please make your thoughts known regarding open government in each of your communities in South Davis County. This is an important right that needs to be preserved.