Uncle Sam wants ideas...

Not surprising that the federal government is in over its head regarding the number of single family homes it owns now due to the foreclosure epidemic over the last few years.  Over its head to the point of asking for help on ideas on how to deal with the problem.

For sale or rent by distressed owner: 248,000 homes. That’s how many residential properties the U.S. government now has in its possession, the result of record numbers of people defaulting on government-backed mortgages. Washington is sitting on nearly a third of the nation’s 800,000 repossessed houses, making the U.S. taxpayer the largest owner of foreclosed properties.

Read the rest of the article.  As I was reading I couldn't help but to think of years of long ago and the land rush events when the federal government opened up restricted land for homesteading.  Now the politics back then -- and the reasoning why lands were 'restricted' is not the point of this post, just simply I had images of people rushing out to land made available.

Homesteading basically equals self sufficiency, and while what that was back over 100 years ago means something different than what it looks like today.  But the federal government wants ideas and I think they should consider applications of the past.  Hear me out for a second.

Today, no matter how complicated things seem to be, solutions basically come down to price -- simply.  According to the article linked above, the taxpayer of America sits on a quarter million homes (I rounded up).  The article also mentions the BILLIONS of dollars already spent (wasted) on the whole fiasco, the tax payer is not getting that money back in one swoop.  However, the feds could put a price per square foot in the form of a lien.

For this exercise I am just coming up with a number for a goal of raising $10 Billion dollars to the federal treasury.  No, that isn't even close to paying off the enormous debts accrued by the same government over the years -- but it is a healthy number.

I do not have any data that is definitive on the average size, in square feet, a home in the fleet of foreclosed homes owned by the American taxpayer is but I found this and simply picked 2,000 as the average (might be more, might be less, it doesn't matter).

So from those estimates and pure guesses I come up with a $20 per square foot figure.  Before we start the modern day land rush though, let me go a bit further.  I want to get the states involved so my idea is to turn over to the states the fleet of foreclosed homes to the state governments for which they are located.  Once that is done the state government may add on additional costs to account for the administration costs and perhaps a bit more for revenue purposes -- whatever the states want to do.

So maybe another $5 per square foot -- so what??  Another lien.  Maybe the states send the responsibility on down to the counties and/or cities... a few more bucks per square foot in liens.

Now start the land rush. 

Around $30 a foot and buyer's head to banks for loans = business.  Many of these foreclosed homes are likely in need of some repair, this also = business.  Also, real estate as an investment becomes a traditional type of investment as it has been during most of my 40 years on this planet again.  Cash flowing rentals out of the box = a good thing.

I also contend that the true bottom of the local real estate markets would finally be reached in the locations where the problems were the most damaging.  Remember not every local market saw huge increases, and subsequent crashes, over the last decade.  Finding the true bottom is just what the doctor has been ordering (by doctor I mean the market).

Now once the buyer buys, he/she gets clear title (unless financing is used to purchase).  This means the new owner is free to reside, rent, or flip the property as he/she sees fit.  However every owner and financial product service provider must know that there won't be any bail outs.  Can't pay your bills??  The American taxpayer won't be bothered.

Lastly for the federal government, sure they have a role going forward.  The laws dealing with fraud and discrimination are still very much needed -- but government has zero role in the market itself.  All the efforts to provide the silly concept of 'affordable housing' basically led to the conditions that made for the boom and bust cycle that has had a crippling effect on the economy at large.

And that concludes my idea (a very simple one at that).  Now, where do I get a covered wagon at??

Exclusive communities get expensive...

The dirty little secret that the NIMBY's either don't realize themselves, or would rather you not know is that a growing community costs the individual less money in taxes for public services.  Reduce the growth rate and watch your individual contributions to public services grow.

The chart on my last blog post shows clearly the direction the local community is headed.

I've documented the efforts of the no-growth folks to make the community more exclusive on this blog for many years.  I intimated that this day of reckoning was coming the whole time.  But, NIMBY's instead argued that folks like me were greedy... yep... their basic tenant was that anyone that supported growth was greedy, nothing more.

Now many of these same folks are up in arms regarding increased costs for public services and possible sales tax increases (which are more like probable sales tax increases... it would be the easy thing to do... and it has been done many times before).

In the Thursday edition of the KDMiner.com there is this article reporting on a conversation held during City Council meeting last week.  Some highlights and comments to follow...

KINGMAN - What was meant to be a brief budget update Tuesday evening quickly evolved into the City Council's first overt move toward raising the citywide sales tax for the upcoming fiscal year.

...

(Financial Services Director Coral) Loyd said that, due to more than $1.5 million in state cuts and falling gas tax returns over the past several years, the city has had to dip into the general fund in order to make up the difference. She warned that continuing to do so would eventually deplete the general fund balance to the point where it could begin to negatively impact the city's bond and credit ratings. She estimated that that would probably happen once the fund drops to somewhere between $5 and 6 million, which could happen in as little as two years at the current rate.

So here is the situation, the state government is broke and won't be sending road improvement money to the folks in Kingman anymore. This means the folks in Kingman will have to pick up that tab, that is if they want maintained streets. Really, who didn't see this coming a mile away??

More...

At that point, Mayor John Salem acknowledged that the city had already cut "to the bone" and that state-shared revenues were unlikely to return anytime soon. With few other realistic options available, Salem proposed raising the city sales tax .15 percent, which would bring the combined city, county and state sales tax to an even 9 percent from the current 8.85 rate.

"This is an ongoing problem, and I propose this to the Council right now - we're not in an emergency situation, but not to address this I think would be irresponsible," Salem said. "This is probably not very politically favorable on my part, but I think it would be more irresponsible if I were to not do anything."

Sucks to be the mayor right now as I know this is not the sort of thing he wants to do (as I doubt anyone elected to this Council would want to do either). But... choices they be a wee bit limited right now. The choice would be to have crappy roads to drive on in the city or to raise a tax to pay for maintenance of the crappy roads.

The mayor is right, something has to be done... but really something should have been done a long time ago. Kicking the can down the road didn't help the community then, and it certainly is not helping now.

More from the article...

Salem was met with immediate opposition from Vice Mayor Robin Gordon and Councilwoman Carole Young, who both agreed that a sales tax increase should be a last resort, and that the city should do everything it can to cut internal costs first.

"I don't think we've done that, and until I feel confident that everything's been done," Gordon said. "We heard a lot of suggestions at (last week's) town hall meeting, some may be viable, some may not, but I don't feel we've had that discussion yet, and until I feel confident that's been done, I would not be in favor of any kind of raise in the sales tax."

Young said she did not want to place an additional burden on Kingman's already hurting business sector. She added that the city has never taken the opportunity to hold its own brainstorming session on how else to raise new revenues, something she said the city should do soon.

I wasn't at the town hall meeting so I don't know what suggestions were made that could save the day, but reading through the comments at the KDMiner.com article sort of leads to clues (liquidate assets and lay off city employees, if you don't care to read the comments). Laying off more people in a local economy on the ropes will suck but likely will be done. Selling off assets in a depressed real estate market will equal a drop in the bucket for long term issues like road maintenance.

The two comments I copied above, though, basically amounts to more can kicking down the road. I'm not trying to be critical of the two ladies at all. They are in a tough position with limited options (raise taxes or fire people).

I am basically a Tea Party kind of person. I believe, like millions of others, that us Americans are taxed enough already. I don't care much for federal programs, or state programs, but I get it and pay my taxes accordingly. I'm a bit softer on local taxes and fees only because if properly administered the effects of my tax dollars are tangible. If I am driving around town on well maintained roads, I probably don't miss the fifteen cents for every $100 dollars I spend locally (if a new tax is implemented to pay for road maintenance).

More...

Councilwoman Janet Watson, however, agreed with Salem, saying that Council would be remiss in its duties if it did not create a permanent, reliable funding source for future street maintenance costs.

"When I think about how important it is that we not let our streets continue to deteriorate year after year and we know that the HURF money is going away and what's gone is not coming back, we have no way to cover that cost," she said. "None of us want to raise taxes, I know you don't. But to be realistic, I agree we would be remiss if we didn't put together some type of plan to say ... 'We can't let our streets just become full of potholes and dirt roads.'"

The same people bitching about a possible tax will be the same people that will bitch about the potholes and dirt roads (and yet for years I, and the people with similar views, are the ones being called greedy... go figure).

Last bit from the article...

While the street department estimates it will take about $1.5 million to bring the street repair schedule back up to date, Walker pondered how much that cost would increase if the city were to continue to neglect the streets for another year or two.

"There's never a good time to raise taxes," (Councilman Keith) Walker said. "But I agree if we don't do something to start replacing that HURF money, what's the financial burden going to be on the city long-term if we let these roads get away from us? It's astronomical how much it's going to cost us."

This is precisely what the NIMBY's either intentionally, or just by ignorance, fail to realize. The anti-growth crowd stated at public meetings and even in the local media that they wanted to put the brakes on growth in Kingman. They did it, and now they will have to pay for the exclusivity they demanded... unfortunately so will everyone else that saw this coming from a mile away.  The city government could be eliminated and costs would still continue to rise for the individual in the community.  Inflation is kicking in right now, those costs only get more onerous as we kick the can down the road.

The solution I've favored, and have been called greedy for, involves attracting more dollars to the community.  If anything, to spread those costs around so that public services don't become the burden they will become. 

Really, look at the chart from the previous post.  Realize that the data that is lagging by a year.  There was only a 0.01% rate of growth in the last report, I bet costs have risen more than that since... meaning that yes you will have to contribute more and the choices of either paying more in taxes or reducing public services aren't really choices.  Both will happen.

The short sighted and closed minded NIMBY's will look to blame everyone and everything else... but the wheels were set in motion a few election cycles ago.  They wanted it, they got it... and now they are shocked that they have to pay for it.

Meanwhile I laugh at their expense.

About that 'exploding' growth here locally...

I could have named this post 'Chart Withdrawal' since it has been a mighty long time since I last posted any sort of chart on this blog (and you all know how much I love posting charts).

Today though, I fulfill that need to share some data in charted format... but it won't involve the current local market real estate market conditions (nope, don't have access to that info any longer).

If you remember (heck I barely do) a couple of times I dug up some Census data to get a look at changes in the local population.  My first post including this data was in 2008 and the Census info showed the first drop in the increase of population percentage for the first time last decade between the years 2006 and 2007 (the Census reports lag a year behind and are based on the estimated population count on July 1 of the particular year).  I then made it a point to drum up the same data the following year in 2009, and it again showed a continued slide of population growth.

The report that became available last year I didn't follow up on until today.  As it turns out there is a front page article found at the KDMiner.com site yesterday that sort of highlights the folks that wanted to put a stop to growth in Kingman.  The group went so far as to start a political action committee (yeah... lobbyists) to show just how serious they were in defeating growth in the Kingman area.  Well when you see the chart below, you will see just how effective they and their efforts were.

Okay, chart time...

According to the data, Kingman added an estimated two people to the population between 2008 and 2009.  I've linked all the resources I used to make the chart.  Please take a look for yourself, don't take my word for it.

Keep in mind that it was right around 2006 when anti growth groups began their use of scare tactics to make their case to the folks in Kingman.  It was clear that they wanted to inhibit growth and judging by the data they had an impact.

So it is clear from recent posts of mine that; one, there isn't a water resource shortage at present or even in the near future... and two, Kingman is NOT growing at a pace where it will become a large city in any of our lifetimes. 

So I guess the good news in all of this could be that the traffic problems on Stockton Hill Road will simply take care of themselves... in a few more years.  So we have that going for us.

Who needs math when you have scare tactics??

Share some comments here in a bit, but first want to share some highlights from this article in the KDMiner.com last Friday...

"The vast majority of people don't understand where their water comes from and it's not a problem or an issue until the water stops," Tom Whitmer said during Tuesday evening's Mohave County Republican Forum meeting.

Whitmer, the Arizona Water Resource Department Regional water planner, covered a variety of water-related issues in the talk.

...

Area aquifers

Some of the results of the study show that the Hualapai Valley aquifer which supplies some of Kingman's water has about 3.8 million to 10.1 million acre-feet of water and recharges at a rate of 2,000 to 3,000 acre-feet a year, Whitmer said. The Sacramento Valley aquifer, which serves both Golden Valley and Kingman, has about 3.6 million to 9.5 million acre-feet of water and recharges at a rate of about 1,000 to 4,000 acre-feet per year. The Detrital aquifer, which serves White Hills and parts of Dolan Springs, has about 1.5 to 3.9 million acre-feet of water and recharges at a rate of about 1,000 acre-feet a year, he said.

Recharge rates are affected by elevation, temperature and rainfall, Whitmer said. The problem comes when people withdraw more water from an aquifer than what is being recharged into it.

In at least two of Mohave County's aquifers, depletion could be a problem, he said. The Detrital aquifer is in the best shape, with less than 300 acre-feet a year withdrawn.

The Sacramento Aquifer is bordering on unsafe yield, he said. Approximately, 3,700 acre-feet of water is withdrawn from the aquifer a year. With a recharge rate of only 1,000 to 4,000 acre-feet a year and the current drought, the area could be taking out more water than is going in.

The Hualapai Valley Aquifer is in the most danger, he said. Approximately, 9,050 acre-feet are taken out of the aquifer every year. The recharge rate of 2,000 to 3,000 acre-feet a year can't keep up, Whitmer said.

Be sure to read the whole thing, I copied from the latter part of the article mostly.  Full disclosure, the only information I have about this meeting where this gentleman shared information comes from the article I linked above.  I'm certain that plenty more interesting bits of information was available... at least I'd hope so (it is not an in depth sit down and interview type of article).

As readers may know this 'water' issue we are having in the Kingman area becomes a topic of great conversation from time to time.

Time to take a closer look at the information shared in the KDMiner.com article.

In at least two of Mohave County's aquifers, depletion could be a problem, he said.

Could be a problem?? To be fair I'd like to know if something more specific was said. Size of the problem... how soon the problem... that sort of thing.

With a recharge rate of only 1,000 to 4,000 acre-feet a year and the current drought, the area could be taking out more water than is going in.

Again with the 'could be' stuff. I should have been at the meeting... long drive, but maybe I would have had these questions answered.

The other thing I'd want to know...

The Sacramento Valley aquifer, which serves both Golden Valley and Kingman, has about 3.6 million to 9.5 million acre-feet of water

Does that mean, on the low side, that there is 3.6 million acre feet of water that can be used??

These are answers I loved to know more about, even if it means adjusting my views on my perception of the 'water problem' we are supposed to be having.

Coming up on two years ago I wrote this blog post and I ask that you give it a read if you have the time. Covers similar examples of putting math to the data that is known, just like I am going to do with the information shared in the KDMiner.com article.

More disclosure, all data collected for the math equations that follow come from either linked media articles or linked government documents from Arizona web sites.

We will solve for the following...

the results of the study show that the Hualapai Valley aquifer which supplies some of Kingman's water has about 3.8 million to 10.1 million acre-feet of water and recharges at a rate of 2,000 to 3,000 acre-feet a year

...

Approximately, 9,050 acre-feet are taken out of the aquifer every year.

I'm up for a challenge... so we'll solve for how long it would take to use up ONLY HALF the water resources in the Hualapai Valley aquifer. Not only that, we will assume that it will never, ever, rain again in Mohave County -- so no recharge.

Still not good enough. So we will double the amount of water used annually, measured in acre feet, and round up to 20,000.

This is going to be simple math -- but double check my work anyway.

Half of the low estimate of 3.8 million acre feet equals 1.9 million acre feet.

Add Zero for recharge

Rate of water used equals 20,000 acre feet annually.

1.9 million acre fee divided by 20,000 acre feet annually equals... 95 years.

95 years to use HALF. Should I say it?? Fine, much can happen in 95 years. Leaving me to ask the question... who are we to decide on a non problem now, for what might not even be a problem then??

Unless the questions I shared earlier are answered, and the answers allows me to be swayed by facts, the math says we don't have a water resource problem. The only potential problem I see is a water resource delivery infrastructure problem... the kind that tax payers pony up for when no one else wants to invest in the area. As a tax payer I know that future costs for such improvements will be needed, even if the area is not growing. Defraying the costs with an additional amount of people equal to the current population would certainly make those high cost types of improvements easier to afford.

And this is why it is a fundamental growth issue. If the community was really thinking about helping our future generations of Kingmanite's (not even born yet) then we should be working hard and competing for local investment and development. IF the planets lined up just right and everything fell into place (which it certainly will not) it is possible that the folks here today wouldn't have to pay for any of it for years. Accounts could be set up to save money for future infrastructure needs perhaps?? (yeah, I'm being waaaayyyy too optimistic there)

I posted on the KDMiner.com site yesterday this tidbit...

Now you watch... the folks that will respond to me won't attack the math or the facts.

That was validated quickly. Too bad because it might actually be an interesting discussion and the sharing of the facts would be something I'd look forward to.

Link to more MOCO posts including public data regarding local water supply.

Maybe we can make it rain...

Yeah, I didn't get this article from a science publication or Popular Mechanics type of thing, but this is what folks are working on that have far less water resources than the few fine folks in the Mohave County area (mostly near Kingman) have.  I also want to state that the technology discussed in the article does not necessarily mean the long term solution for the water resource needs of the few fine folks in Mohave County... but I am entirely more confident that in 30 years or so solutions will begin to appear.

But even if real solutions don't actually appear for the few fine folks in Mohave County in 30 years... there will still be plenty of water resources for those few fine folks.

Time is on our side.

Important water related blog posts...

I've decided to round up some posts I've written over the years, specifically regarding the alleged water supply issues locally, and present them here on this blog post.  Links to this collection will be available on the sidebar for easy access.  If you ever need to look at readily available and public data, it will be here.  All of the posts will include the links to the data I used for my writing.

I do not have the time to blog as often as I used to so I feel this is a fair and easy way to keep the information readily available for the readers review.

List of blog posts below...

Who Needs Math When You Have Scare Tactics -- February 13, 2011

So How Bad Is the Drought Here?? -- July 13, 2010

Game Changer?? -- August 15, 2009

Fun With Data -- August 31, 2009

What Industry Can Do For Water -- July 31, 2009

13 Million Acre Feet of Water -- July 3, 2009

What Do We Know?? -- August 7, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving...

This year, not only a semi amusing photo to share with you, but also an important quote.

First the comic...

Can't wait to get our hands on the family turkey (currently in the brine).

Now for the quote...

Secure property rights are the key. When producers know their future products are safe from confiscation, they take risks and invest. But when they fear they will be deprived of the fruits of their labor, they will do as little as possible.

Prepare for more private property rights battles in Mohave County in the year ahead. May God be with you and your family on this important holiday.

And one more and this time a video....

It went down like this...

Last week the Arizona Corporation Committee approved Hualapai Valley Solar’s Certificate of Environmental Compatibility (CEC).

Good news -- bad news sort of thing here. I'll start with the bad, the ACC is requiring HVS to only use a water supply of effluent for its water needs. This probably means the project will be put on hold at this point because there is no effluent resources or means of transport of effluent available in the area. The City of Kingman and HVS have been engaging in talks about allowing HVS to use the effluent resources in Kingman, but another problem... it is likely that there isn't enough effluent being produced because the population is not great enough.

Gee, the good news... well the ACC approved the application.

Just as a reminder, the Arizona Corporation Commission is a '4th' branch of government in the state of Arizona. Most folks out in the outer area, the area of Arizona that doesn't make up Maricopa County, watch the ACC put the brakes on economic development in those outer areas. I'm working on getting some information of solar projects similar to the HVS method of energy production in the Maricopa areas just to see if, once again, the ACC screwed the chances for more economic development opportunities in Mohave County.

For now I'll leave you with the press release from HVS.

Arizona Corporation Commission approves Certificate of Environmental Compatibility for Hualapai Valley Solar

Phoenix – The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) voted to approve the Hualapai Valley Solar’s Certificate of Environmental Compatibility (CEC) on Wednesday, October 20th. The CEC, the final State approval required to begin construction, approves the project's power plant, interconnection, and transmission plans. The ACC expressed that there is a shift towards dry cooling in the Southwest USA and that wet cooled power plants are unlikely to get any more approvals. In its decision, the Commission found that the “Project is in the public interest because it aids the state in meeting the need for an adequate, economical, and reliable supply of electric power.”


From the outset, the solar plant was designed to use an evaporative cooling system supplied with reclaimed wastewater. The CEC also allows the company to use hybrid (water and air) cooling technology if sufficient reclaimed wastewater is not available. Hualapai Valley Solar and the city of Kingman are evaluating all possible sources of reclaimed wastewater for use by the project. Since a binding Memorandum of Understanding was signed in December 2009, the city and HVS have been working on a reclaimed water purchase agreement that would supply more than half of the water needs of the project from the city's upgraded Hilltop Wastewater Treatment Plant. The current plant treats approximately 1.5 million gallons per day of wastewater, an amount that is expected to rise over time as residents switch from septic tanks to the city sewer system. The agreement for the output of the Hilltop facility is expected to go before the City Council as early as November.

The Hualapai Valley Solar Project is a proposed 340MW parabolic trough power plant. The plant’s design incorporates 7 to 8 hours of additional output once the sun is down through the storage of heat in molten salt tanks during the day. It is located approximately 28 miles north of Kingman, Arizona, is sited on private land, and has firm transmission located a few miles from the site.

More links

havasunews.com

water resources on the moon... scientists say

Here is the link to the article and a couple of highlights

Scientists have discovered significant amounts of water on the moon—about twice the quantity seen in the Sahara Desert—a finding that may bolster the case for establishing a manned base on the lunar surface.

In an audacious experiment last year, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration slammed a spent-fuel rocket into a lunar crater at 5,600 miles an hour, and then used a pair of orbiting satellites to analyze the debris thrown off by the impact. They discovered that the crater contained water in the form of ice, plus a host of other resources, including hydrogen, ammonia, methane, mercury, sodium and silver.

A couple of thoughts...

First, even with the ammonia, methane, mercury, etc. from above... I bet the water tastes better than Las Vegas tap water, maybe not as dangerous either. I kid.

Another... so the US federal goverment has enough money borrowed from the Chinese to fund an experiment to find water on the moon, but didn't kick in enough to finish the more local USGS survey?? Well... hard to blame the federal government really since there is no water resource problem in Mohave County anyway based on the last report I covered last year.

Lastly, if there really was a way to utilize the water on the moon for something, too bad they couldn't use it right now. Think of the local water worry warts for a second here folks. They insist we have a water problem (but actually do not), they don't like business, corporations, or capitalists, actually don't like anyone living near them or their property -- folks the solution would be easy. Just get the water worry warts on the next lunar module to inhibit the moon. If the lunar water resource was available presently there wouldn't be a water resource issue (like there is NOT one in Mohave County) just like there wouldn't be corporations or other nefarious types of free enterprise or for that matter... many neighbors. Perfect!!

Inane comments from the water worry warts (again)

Don't have time to slice and dice all the rather stupid remarks that are being made by the folks that pretend to care about water in the Mohave County area.  But for craps and giggles here is one...

The original content found here at this link...

Posted: Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Article comment by: az mac

I am going to say most people here will not qualify for the jobs they will offer. Many of the jobs will be temporary. Now it comes down to the water they will use. I guess they are going to allow them all the water they want. Get ready for a big hike in water rates on top of what is already coming.
Mary Smith
You just may find your self living like they did in the 1800s. If all the taxes come about like planned then prices will go sky high and most will not be able to afford very much. More jobs will disappear. We all ready have over 60 million without jobs and 41 million on food stamps.

Yes this is about the solar plant deal that uses some water to make the thing work.

It is obvious that 'az mac' has no clue about the jobs that will be offered by the power plant -- either that or s/he thinks all of you in Mohave County, or nearly all of you, are idiots.  Barely any of you good people in the Kingman area could qualify for a job at the plant.  The water worry warts don't think very highly of their neighbors and it shows.  They are the most greedy and ill mannered people in the county.

Now on to the water use and again 'az mac' inserts foot into mouth.  The plant will own property, if the plant is ever allowed to be built.  In other words the plant will be an owner of private property in the state of Arizona and the county of Mohave.  Private property owners that have requested the state and other authorities for use of well water get to use all the water they want.  Let that one sink in folks.  There are NO meters on private wells in this area.  Nobody can tell a private property owner with a well that they are limited with how much water to use.  Yet here is a company that will move to Mohave County and agree to use a limited amount of water... thereby giving away some of their property rights.

I'd love to see the state threaten to put in meters on private wells -- as a staunch private property rights proponent I'd be against such a thing of course -- but I'd love to see some of the reactions when the water worry warts own rights are threatened.  And really folks, if the water levels were as bad as the people with zero data say it is, the state or the county would be installing water meters and limiting amounts of water private property owners use.

So big hikes in water rates are right around the corner because some solar plant will be drawing a limited water supply with authorization by the state and local governments??  Just once I'd love to see any one of these idiots back up their idiotic statements.  Again, if they didn't have scare tactics... they'd have nothing.

As for the rest of the remark made by 'az mac' to Mary Smith is concerned, yeah no one wants their taxes raised at the federal level at a time like this... but no one is going to live like it is the 1800's again (hey another scare tactic, wow).

But what do I know... I wouldn't qualify for a job at the plant.  Hmmm... that almost begs a challenge.  I just might have to get out the old resume and apply for a permanent job at the new plant (whenever it gets built).  I'll make a bet now that I can, in fact, get a job at the plant... and I'm a self described big dummy.

One thing for sure... the wells will run dry of water in this county way before the well of stupid asinine comments (like bats will choke to death on dust) from the water worry warts will.  So at least they got that going for them.

in their own words

A closer look...

For kicks I thought I'd take a look at a new law proposed by an Assemblyman in California, from the Entertainment Page at the LA Times...

A proposed law set to go before California's Legislature this month would make one of Hollywood's cherished utterances — "You're not on the list" — carry grave new consequences. It's a measure aimed at making the act of party crashing a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail, a $1,000 fine or both.

Hmmm... Party crashing...

The author of the legislation, Assemblyman Anthony Portantino (D-La Canada Flintridge), said crashers at high-profile events like the Academy Awards and other awards shows pose a threat to public safety that warrants a law in addition to the 25 sections of trespassing code already on California's books. Portantino acted at the request of the Screen Actors Guild after some crashers breached security at the SAG Awards in January but were released because of legal loopholes.

Hmmm again... Legal loopholes... interesting...

"At some awards shows, folks were there without a ticket or credentials; they were asked to leave, and they didn't," Portantino said. "The question was raised whether current trespassing laws were written in a way that covers that sort of situation. We're trying to bring clarity to the whole issue so law enforcement knows how to and has the discretion to handle it."

Wow, discretion for law enforcement... asked to leave but didn't...

Living not in Southern California it is prolly real easy for me to overlook the real problems like party crashing and all the ill affects for the Hollywood jet set.  I guess I just take my life as a regular guy for granted and wouldn't normally notice those that carry the burdens of the extra cost for security and all that at these shin-digs.

Yet I live in Arizona and the story above sure sounds familiar.  I believe our elected leaders passed a bill that would, in essence, deal with people 'not on the list' so to speak.  In fact I remember several elected leaders speak to the threats to public safety if nothing was done.  Heck they even said that they acted at the request of the voters in Arizona that have been asking for help in dealing with problems regarding the issue.  I even remember media articles raising the questions what happens when the folks trespassing in Arizona are asked to leave, far too often the answers tell us those asked to leave do not.  In my opinion the law written would have helped to bring clarity to the whole issue so law enforcement knows how to and has the discretion to handle it.

And by the way... weren't there some communities in California threatening to boycott Arizona for the law we passed??

The lawmaker folks in California need to look up the word hypocrite before they pass the law that was introduced.  I mean I can't tell who is a party crasher or not just by appearance... sounds awfully close to something called profiling.

Lastly, would this law make party crashing... illegal??  Think about it.

I told you they were batty

Folks you cannot make this stuff up.  Who am I referring to as batty??  Think the water worry warts (WWW).

The Hualapai Valley Solar LLC (HVS) project seeks final approval for a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility (CEC) permit from the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) at an upcoming meeting in Phoenix later this month.  While I haven't been blogging about this subject since I began working in eastern New Mexico late last year, I have been following along as best I possibly can.

I ran into some information that I wanted to share to perhaps bring you up to speed (you might know a heck of a lot more than I do at this point) to what has been happening in the process.  Last I heard the HVS group has been subjected to many public meetings and have met with some opposition from the local water worry warts.

There was a meeting back in June at the Powerhouse in Kingman where HVS asked the ACC to lift the stay on the permit needed to proceed.  The water worry warts, of course, filed a response to HVS's request.  HVS then followed up with a letter... and this is the information I ran into.

Wish I could share all of it with you but it is a 18 page PDF document -- but I'll share my observations on a few points I read.  First, keep in mind that the information comes from the legal representation of HVS. The letter is a response to the information the WWW's offered to the ACC.  I don't have the WWW stuff so I'm only going on what is in the letter from the legal representation of HVS regarding this matter.

Okay a few observations...

The first part of the letter is a reminder of information brought forth by the hydrology studies -- that there is plenty of water for all in Mohave County even with the solar plant up and running.  It gets more detailed as it goes along.

This includes a bit about the hydrologist that was hired to do the study.  The hydrologist is a registered geologist with a graduate degree in hydrology and has 30 years of experience investigating hydrogeologic conditions.

The hydrologist has been conducting groundwater studies in the Hualapai Valley since 2005.

The hydrologist put together a comprehensive groundwater flow model that simulates the effect of groundwater pumping on groundwater levels in the Hualapai groundwater basin.  That information was shared with staff hydrologists that work for the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR).  After a thorough evaluation ADWR approved the model.

The conclusion of the reports were included in a technical memorandum issued in November of 2009.

The conclusion basically said that if HVS was to use 3,000 acre feet of water for thirty years, the project's incremental impact will be less than 1 foot of water level change for wells in the nearest residential areas.

Now according to the letter, neither WWW representative provided any evidence to contradict the hydrologist's analysis and conclusions regarding water levels and impacts on wells in the areas in the Hualapai Valley.  In fact the WWW response was mainly a complaint about Mohave County's water related zoning and planning decisions.

Can you believe it??  I can.  The WWW representatives have been wasting official time at public meetings for many years in Mohave County.


But there is more...

Even without one shred of evidence, the main WWW representative insisted that the HVS project would require 8,000 acre feet of further depletion of the Hualapai Valley aquifer.  Just because she (the WWW representative) says so.  Hardly compelling.

Then the WWW representative testified that all of the most recent solar projects in California and Nevada were of the 'dry cooled' variety.  According to the letter from HVS this is incorrect.  Shocking.  I doubt the WWW folks would know dry cooling if it hit them up side the head.

HVS responded by speaking of the Abengoa Mojave Solar project that is in the planning stage in California.  Staff at the California Energy Commission released an assessment on May 25th of 2010 concluding "the proposed use of groundwater for industrial cooling would not significantly impact existing groundwater levels in the HVGB wells, the basin balance, or the quality of groundwater in the basin".  The full assessment can be found at the California Energy Commission's website (docket number 09-AFC-5).  The full assessment suggests the evidence overwhelmingly supports the Commission's decision to authorize wet cooling for that project.

The letter also goes into why it would be more costly to use dry cooling as well as they are less efficient to do what they are supposed to do (create energy).  Fairly interesting stuff... all of it covered in prior meetings.

Lastly I want to share, from the letter, the 'other' reason as to why the water worry warts are against the HVS project.  You will be able to tell that they really racked their shared brain for this one.  WWW representative number two wants the state to do an environmental impact study and a promise to protect wildlife, including bats.  That is correct folks... the WWW's are batty for bats.

According to WWW number two the HVS project would release particulate matter into the air as the water evaporates and that could be toxic to bats.  The particulate matter in this case??  Dust.

Of course WWW number two did NOT provide any evidence that dust is toxic to bats according to the letter by HVS.  An expert that testified in a previous meeting for HVS stated that he is "not aware of any studies anywhere that suggests that bats are dying from eating dust".

So all along it wasn't about water... how could it be??  The WWW's do not have any evidence that water usage in Mohave County right now is detrimental to the future of the area.  So they come back with 'save the bats'!?!?

WWW representative number two also shares a worry that the roads leading to the proposed solar project would get increased use during construction and wants some government agency to include some sort of condition to further impose the folks behind the project.

The WWW sure looks like they pulled out all the stops... all without any documented evidence to back up their claims.  Fantasy world.  What is IN that well water anyway??

This seems to be looking pretty good for the HVS project in terms of getting the required authorizations from all the different levels of government and bureaucracies.  Within the last couple of days the Hualapai Tribal Council approved/signed a Memorandum of Understanding with HVS that will allow them to pursue renewable energy projects together on Tribal Land that will share interconnection and transmission resources of the HVS project. It was another big milestone for the Project.

As for the WWW's... I'd say point and laugh at the most.

The big one...

So maybe you heard about it... it might be kind of a big deal.  Yep folks there is a killer asteroid on the way to earth right now and the estimated time of arrival is the year 2182.

So how does this affect the great folks here in Mohave County Arizona you might ask... I'll get to that in a minute.  First thing though the important bits from the linked article...

The asteroid, called 1999 RQ36, has a 1-in-1,000 chance of actually hitting the Earth at some point before the year 2200, but is most likely to hit us on 24th September 2182.

It was first discovered in 1999 and is more than 1,800 feet across. If an asteroid of this size hit the Earth it would cause widespread devastation and possible mass extinction.

Oh.  Still long odds I see.  Not as long as the other killer asteroid zooming around in space with a chance to give it to us real good in 2036 (a chance as in a one in 250,000 chance) but still.

Let's imagine that science was actually good enough today to be definitive about tomorrow and 1999 RQ36 is locked and loaded with a delivery date of 9/24/2182.  What would we (you or I or they or anyone) do??  I figure it this way.

1) It is the year 2010 right now a goodly number of folks are going to say that they won't be around for the show some 170 years from now so no big deal.  Fair.

2) Some folks will be very pessimistic and feel that nothing will be able to stop the impending collision.  They'll say this today -- maybe even on the Internet -- even though 170 years ago things like the Internet, computers, and space vehicles were impossible in that time.

3) Others will want to do something about the approaching menace.  These folks will begin a concept called problem solving.  Even though in the year 2010 the problem is not going to be felt by the people of this era, there will be people that will begin work on solutions -- knowing that it will be people in future generations that will actually solve the problem.  But the solutions have to start somewhere and for a impending problem as large as total destruction the sooner the better.

4) Still others will simply want to move.  Sure that may be tough to move off this planet right now, but it is an option.

These are just my opinions as to what people would do faced with an impending dire situation.  Because there is only a 1 in 1,000 chance that 1999 RQ36 is going to hit the planet some 170 years from now, I put myself in the first category above.  However I could see being part of the third or fourth category if there was something more definitive about the future.  There may be plenty more options and I won't argue those.  So why share this on a local blog??

Well, we here in the Kingman area of Mohave County are said to have some impending problem in the future.  That's right some of the very brightest and most 'enlightened' minds in the county have said the aquifers from which this community draws its water only has about 100 or 200 years worth of water left before it runs dry.  Yet these same folks haven't a care to actually do anything about changing the future -- well the future they represent anyway.

Just like in my example above the 'enlightened' want to do zilch about the problem putting them in the second category and to make matters worse, not allow anyone else to do anything about the impending problem either.  Think about it folks, anytime someone brings up the beginnings of any sort of possible solution to some far distant problem they scream that it is impossible.  These folks are simply the most greedy among us.  Sad that they cannot see the damage they are doing to the future.

Oh sure, they'll say they are protecting the future -- but they are the ones saying that the water will be all gone come a couple hundred years or so -- just how are they protecting the community for the kids and grandkids??  The grandkids will know that they may only have 50 to 100 years of water left, which will put them in the fourth category from my earlier asteroid example but they will no doubt have many different places to choose from to move to.  The grandkids might be able to find other solutions but their backs will be closer to the wall than if WE had begun to find solution for the problem... if the problem actually exists in the manner the 'enlightened' among us insist it does.

There is no future for Kingman if there is no water.  No matter how much we save today, tomorrow, and the next day we are still using water and will eventually use it all -- again if the 'enlightened' are as correct as they say they are.

The biggest problem for everyone on both sides of this perhaps impending problem is that as of today it doesn't feel like a problem.  Gonna get in a shower today, brush the teeth, make some lemonade, wash the car, run through the sprinklers, and even do some laundry.  All possible right now because for our community water is abundant TODAY.  We have more than we could use TODAY.

But what about tomorrow??  IF the problem is as big as it is represented by the 'enlightened' where are the folks that fall into the third category from my example above??  Maybe many of them have already exercised the fourth category or simply fall into the first one??

So how bad is the drought here??

Depends on who you talk to.

Where are they coming from, where are they moving??

Think back to the year 2008... looking at the IRS data map at the link below...

http://www.forbes.com/2010/06/04/migration-moving-wealthy-interactive-counties-map.html?preload=04015

...It appears there was plenty of out bound migration out of Mohave County. 

Rather interesting map that you can click on any county to look at migration in the year 2008.

All this hub-bub about the new AZ law...

First I'll say that this is dangerous territory for me to post about such a touchy subject but I'm going to give it a go anyway.  The new Arizona law SB 1070 is drawing tons of debate, and rightly so.  In my gut I believe that the law was intended to do just that... bring up a very important issue to the forefront of the national debate.  I'm certainly not a legal scholar so I won't weigh in on whether or not the new law is Constitutional or not.  I'll leave that to the folks that are more qualified.

What I want to do, however, is take a quick look back to what the voters of Arizona have done to try to deal with the very real problems happening in the state that are related to illegal immigration.  Before I do that, for old times sake, a disclaimer...

For the record I believe in and support legal immigration and look to welcome all from foreign lands that would love an opportunity to pursue what millions of others have done in this country's history.  Come one, come all.  Doesn't matter to me your race, religion, orientation, or anything else as long as your intention is make sincere attempts at assimilating into this incredible melting pot and enjoying the kind of liberty that is not often found in many other areas on this planet.  Basically follow the laws of the land, just like I have to... and be willing to deal with the ramifications if you choose not to follow the laws of the land, just like I have to.  I have many special people in my life that come from all walks of life and various backgrounds.  I listened well to the great Martin Luther King Jr.'s lesson to treat people based on the content of their character and not on the color of their skin.

Okay then let's get started.  We are heading back into the year 2004 for our first stop.  The voters of Arizona were asked to approve or defeat a ballot proposition dealing with identification and proof of citizenship to vote and to collect state or locally funded public benefits.  It was Prop 200 and it was approved by voters with 56% of the vote.  (see the voting breakdowns here)

The voters passed this proposition even though there was a lineup of heavy's that were publicly against it, including; both AZ US Senators (one is now running for reelection and has conveniently changed his tune), the then governor of the state and now current US Homeland Security Secretary, the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, the AFL-CIO, the Democrat Party, and yes even the Republican Party.  What strange bedfellows were made.  Still the measure passed by the voters (you know, the ones that really matter).

Of course there were many that played the race card back then.  There's plenty of articles online that cry out that the proposition was racist.  I'm not going to opine on that, but I voted in favor.  Keep in mind that at the time the economy in 2004 was pretty darn good around these parts, but voters knew that if we were to have public safety nets that they should go to Arizonans first, second, and always if at all.

After the election results were posted a restraining order was placed on the proposition. I cannot find who filed for that order but my memory bank inside my head says it was the then governor of the state.  The courts became heavily involved and it is my understanding that the proposition as it was intended is watered down, I guess to the point where nobody seems to remember the voice of the voters from six years ago.  The US Supreme Court had the final say in the requirement to show valid ID to vote which they upheld (again not a legal scholar so I may not being using the correct legaleeze).

From there let us head to the election year 2006 shall we??  There were three ballot propositions dealing with illegal immigration issues that year (a fourth if you want to include one about making English the official language in the state).  Propositions 100 and 102 amended the Arizona Constitution and Prop 300 that called for, once again, the requirement of proof of US citizenship for various publicly subsidized services such as in state tuition and financial assistance.  Prop 100 denied bail to those charged with serious felonies that were in the US illegally, and Prop102 denied the award of punitive damages in civil court cases to persons who are in the US illegally.

The results of the election showed that each proposition passed easily with each issue gathering at least 70% of the vote. (here is a breakdown of the results but it doesn't have all the props included, but you can find some results if you are looking for them in other less official looking places)

I'll stop right here and say that I don't recall the California cities of LA or SF boycotting the state of Arizona after the voters had their say on these issues.  I do remember the race card players came out to play a little but it is just too difficult to do that when 70% (or more) of the voters go a different way.

Back to it now, most of the news article that I run into regarding Prop 300 from 2006 deal with college tuition.  I don't know how the then governor and the Attorney General dealt with the voters wishes to roll back public welfare benefits to illegal immigrants.  I'm guessing the proposition was once again watered down to have practically zero bite.

Before we head to our last stop on how Arizona voters see the illegal immigration issue, the state legislature passed a bill in 2007 called The Legal Arizona Worker's Act -- aka The Employers Sanction Law (see more here).  There was curios reaction to this bill from both sides of the political spectrum.  Once again the race card players were out in force, but this time so was the business community -- aka the evil capitalist pigs (which BTW, I'm totally cool with those folks for the most part, profit is good).  The bill was challenged in court but allowed and went into affect on January 1, 2008.

By the time the elections of 2008 came around a ballot proposition (Prop 202) appeared asking the voters to tone down the requirements of the bill -- on behalf of the business community basically.  I'll let the following explain it...

Proposition 202 changes current Arizona law that prohibits employers from intentionally or knowingly employing an alien who is not authorized under federal law to work in the United States. Under Proposition 202, the definition of "knowingly employ an unauthorized alien" would be changed to require actual knowledge by an owner or officer of the employer.

So you'd think that all us supposedly racist voters (as the race card players call us) here in Arizona would relent and let those evil capitalists off the hook, but you'd be wrong.  Prop 202 was defeated by Arizona voters fairly handily.

I'm just trying to point out the fact that voters in Arizona want solutions to ILLEGAL immigration problems.  The problems range from fairly minor to completely out of control violence.  The state is now broke, the economy sucks, and we simply cannot afford the public assistance programs we are offering to actual Arizonans and other US citizens.  How could we possibly afford to provide welfare for non US citizens at a time like this??  Voters have been speaking out loud and clear even while elected officials remain defiant to our wishes (or simply change their tune when they are up for reelection).

SB 1070 is not the first attempt by the voters of Arizona to deal with the issues.  Not by a long shot.  I feel the other actions of previous elections and legislative acts were a lot less contentious but they ended up being practically thwarted by race card players and politicians in defiance of the people.  SB 1070 may look more aggressive but where can the citizens of Arizona draw the line??  We tried on public benefits, we tried on employers, but now are relying on law enforcement to be involved.  Not really the way I want it to go down as I understand the voices (mostly on the left) that speak to the possibility of racial profiling.  I don't want that, but I also don't want NOTHING done to deal with a very expensive problem we are facing.

In recent days we come to find out that in California's penal code there is language that is pretty darn similar to what is found in SB 1070... but public leaders in CA want to boycott our state anyway.  I've also read about laws in Oklahoma that were singed into law by a governor that was in the democrat party that is also similar to The Legal Arizona Worker's Act we have in Arizona.  Don't remember national outcries of NBA players condemning the state of Oklahoma at all, can you??

I readily admit that I don't have the solution to make all sides happy, but it has become tiresome to be called a racist for having an Arizona residence.  Most of the critics have admitted that they have not read SB 1070, including some that work directly for our current president of this great country (I doubt he has read it either).

America is a beautiful place, I'm blessed to live here and look forward to having more friendly neighbors.  We must find a better way, but we also must have priorities.  Tough decisions come with the territory.  Time for solutions is here. 

When the vacation is over...

... I'll post some photo's on my blog.  Yep, Cabo was great again this year (and no I did not fall for another time share, yay for me!!).

As seen on the local webz...

Read it here...

With great awe I read about city debates and meetings. We read about the bickering, whining, moaning and groaning of elected officials and agencies. These all seem to want growth, but no one wants to be held responsible for the lack thereof.

Is Kingman not a marketable city whereby no elected official or agency wants to take initiative in selling our city to outside businesses? Instead, every week we are reading about another business closure. These businesses are hard to replace and the jobs even harder.

Is our only city revenue-generating business the bed tax? Wal-Mart? But don't touch this money because it is allocated funding for capital improvement projects! Improve what? Where? We have heard from the mayor, City Council, Chamber of Commerce, Airport Authority. None of these agencies of people claim responsibility and do not want the growth initiative in their court. Every month that passes and our city remains unmarketed is a loss of revenue.

The gamut has run full circle and isn't it ironic that the only commission (EDMC) that wants to be where the buck stops has not enough funding to move forward to sell our city.

Not really the owner?? No biggie...

I'll say one thing for the housing market meltdown, it has made for some crazy creativity...

DELTONA -- A Volusia County man was arrested for allegedly filing phony court papers claiming ownership of several foreclosed homes.

Volusia County investigators say Andrew Brown, 29, took down the "for sale" signs at a home on Shadow Ridge Drive, changed the locks, and moved in.

Authorities did not uncover Brown's scam until a real state agent who had been contracted to sell another foreclosed home in Deltona reported that someone was living in the home.

Investigators discovered Brown filed phony liens and default notices on at least four homes.

He was charged with burglary, grand theft and criminal mischief.

Doesn't have to mean that it is always positive creativity.