COUNTY ASSESSOR CLERK RECORDER KATRINA BARTOLOMIE replies to one of the State Audit findings:
Auditor Recommendation:
To ensure that the county does not lose property tax revenue because of delayed assessments, the Assessor’s Office should, by March 2026, develop tools such as aging reports showing the length of time since qualifying events, to assist in the management of its assessment workloads. These tools should, at a minimum, allow staff and managers to identify which properties are at the highest risk for lost property tax revenue if the county does not assess them in a timely fashion.
Assessor’s Response:
The Assessor’s office has worked with the County of Mendocino’s Information Technology department and has successfully created an aged report for building permits. The building permits are entered in Aumentum [the County’s property tax manaagerment system that has never worked as intended] as of the issuance date of the permit. In some cases, the permit exists however, the project has not begun. For these instances, the Assessor’s office checks on the project on an annual basis until the permit either expires or is re-instated, if there is a percentage of completed new construction, as of the lien date, January 1, the Assessor’s office will enroll the value for the partially completed new construction and will be included on the annual secured tax roll. [Secured taxes are taxes on property that cannot be moved off the parcel, typically land, buildings, and agriculture. Property that can be moved is “unsecured.”] The permit will remain open in Aumentum until the new construction is completed and a new Proposition base year will be set for the portion of completed new construction, at which time the permit will be completed and the workflow advanced.
The aged report for transfers continues to be a work in progress. Our IT department has met with Aumentum several times and is currently awaiting assistance from Aumentum’s engineering staff. The current issue involves the workflow to PIN relationship in the case of multi-PIN [Property Index Number] transfers by the number of legal parties’ times the document. As an example involving a multi-PIN transfer of 11 PIN’s, with multiple owners, the report should indicate 11 transfers, however, it is listing 111 transfers, which is not correct. We do have the change of ownership date which was not available in our last report, which is an enormous benefit and we are able to identify older events, however, many of these events are not valid transfers as they are conversion issues needed to be researched and addressed in Aumentum.
Mark Scaramella Notes: Translating what we can from the Mendobanianese, we find this reply pathetically inadequate. Building permit aging has nothing to do with when property taxes are lost. Building permits are not related to property transations, but new construction, so a building permit aging report will not address parcels where taxes are in danger of becoming uncollectable. As for the aged report for transfers (sales), the County should work with title companies to come up with a fix for this, not Aumentum. The County has been working on/with Aumentum for more than ten years (a lasting legacy from former CEO Angleo, btw) and they’re still calling it “a work in progress.”
MENDO WANTS TO REIMAGINE FISCAL STEWARDSHIP
by Mark Scaramella
Mendo’s glossy recruiting package for a new CEO includes this summary of compensation:
Nowhere in Maureen Mulheren’s facebook posting of the glossy recruitment brochure photographs is the salary mentioned.
Even though Mulheren’s package includes a supposed (but non-functioning) link to the recruitment package, the actual link just goes to the County’s CEO webpage where there’s no information on where or how to apply. We had to go to the County’s headhunter consultant website to find it. Notice that the application deadline was yesterday, April 6, 2026.
(As if a potential CEO applicant is going to see the posting on Mulheren’s fleeting facebook page…)
(From RalphAndersen.com)
Posted: February 27, 2026
Closing Date: April 6, 2026
Salary: The incumbent earns an annual salary of $250,000, as outlined in an employment agreement that also includes a negotiated severance clause.
Mendocino County is seeking a top-tier professional for the CEO position. Joining the County team means being part of a government that wants to reimagine fiscal stewardship—driving innovation in efficiency, leveraging partnerships and technology, and empowering staff to do their best work even in lean times. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is an at-will executive appointed [sic] by the Board of Supervisors and is responsible for the day-to-day administration [sic, not management] of County affairs. The CEO oversees county government operations and implements decisions made by the Board of Supervisors. The Executive Office oversees the preparation, adoption, and administration of the County’s budget and coordinates the activities of other county departments to ensure the effective accomplishment of the Board’s directions and policies. The CEO’s duties include the responsibility to appoint, transfer, discipline, suspend, or dismiss, as appropriate, any non-elected department head who is not required to be appointed by the Board of Supervisors, after meeting and conferring with the Board.
The salary for this position will depend on qualifications and career experience. Candidates should be aware that compensation will be further evaluated during the selection process. The incumbent earns an annual salary of $250,000, as outlined in an employment agreement that also includes a negotiated severance clause. The County of Mendocino also offers a comprehensive benefit package, including retirement benefits provided under the 1937 Act and enrollment in Social Security as well as participation in a 457 deferred compensation plan.
Interested candidates should apply by submitting a compelling cover letter, comprehensive resume, and notable accomplishments to [email protected]. Candidates are encouraged to submit early in the process, before Monday, April 6, 2026. Confidential inquiries are welcome and should be directed to Ms. Heather Renschler, Project Director, Ralph Andersen & Associates, at (916) 630-4900. Alternatively, to schedule an introductory discussion, send an email to [email protected].
Detailed brochure available at: https://ralphandersen.com/jobs/ceo-mendocino-county-ca/.
Qualifications
While a Master’s degree is desirable, a Bachelor’s degree in business administration or a closely related field is required. Candidates must have five (5) years of progressively responsible senior management experience in an administrative capacity of similar size and complexity.
(Ralph Andersen & Associates is based in Rocklin, CA.)
Mark Scaramella Notes:
So Mendo wants to “reimagine fiscal stewardship—driving innovation in efficiency, leveraging partnerships and technology, and empowering staff to do their best work even in lean times.”
Funny, they don’t even review their existing financial reports regularly, but they want to “reimagine” them. If by chance a competent manager was to be hired from the outside they will be shocked at what they find. The recruitment package itself is a misleading, bordering on fraud. Mendo has a slew of financial problems, including failure to collect taxes due for years. They don’t care what their staff is doing to address the problems identified by the State Auditor. They seldom follow up on their own directives to the CEO. We can’t think of a single accomplishment attributable to this grossly overpaid board in the last ten years, not even an attempt. Every well-meaning small proposal made by outgoing Supervisor John Haschak died for lack of a second.
And what does this convoluted sentence mean?
“The CEO’s duties include the responsibility to appoint, transfer, discipline, suspend, or dismiss, as appropriate, any non-elected department head who is not required to be appointed by the Board of Supervisors, after meeting and conferring with the Board.”
We also got a nice giggle at Mendo’s desire for a “top-tier professional” at the same rate of pay as the current top-tier professional and her predecessor.
But first, why doesn’t the list of duties include “supervise” or “manage, and set salary levels for…”?
Which positions are “non-elected department heads who are not required to be appointed by the Board of Supervisors”? And what is the CEO’s role with them?
Does this sound like an “innovation in efficiency” to you? Like the innovation in efficiency when they stupidly consolidated the Auditor-Controller office with the Treasurer-Tax Collector office against the considered advice of everyone but themselves, only to “deconsolidate” the offices back to their original separation a few years later after destabilizing the County’s finances for two years in a costly and vengeful attempt to get rid of Chamise Cubbison at the behest of the vengeful District Attorney. Unless, of course, the deconsolidation was part of the Grand Reimagining back to where they started.
Notice that the Auditor-Controller and Treasurer-Tax Collector are listed as separate departments even though they are still combined under one elected Treasurer-Tax Collector/Auditor-Controller, Ms. Chamise Cubbison who still has a pending civil suit against the County for filing false charges, defamation, back wages and damages. Presumably the deconsolidation will be complete after the next election, months after the new CEO is hired. Also note that only eight of Mendo’s 20 departments (including Probation and CEO/Clerk of Board) report to the CEO. And that the “Water Agency” is listed as a separate department even though it is part of the Transportation Department.
KRYSTAL MYERS: Escape Bill Victims Support Group
Would anyone who is or was impacted by the escape tax bills want to meet with a group of us to discuss options we may have? The negligence of this county has negatively impacted so many people's livelihoods and the thought of someone losing their home over this keeps me up at night. I think we have strength in numbers. Open to suggestions of a meeting place. Maybe Caspar community center? Mendocino rec center? We can discuss a date and time that may work for everyone.
KEN MCCORMICK: Apparently the UDJ censors comments on their page by arbitrarily changing comment view settings. Here’s the comment I posted that does not appear publicly: Low jury turnout isn’t the real problem—lost trust is. Juries were meant to be a check on government power, not just follow instructions. History shows juries refused to convict under unjust laws like the Fugitive Slave Act—that was the system working. Today, jurors aren’t informed of the full scope of their authority . Then we hold “compliance hearings” when people disengage? That’s not a participation problem—that’s a system problem resulting from Constitutionally flawed court rules.
MEANWHILE, in San Anselmo, an anthropomorph asks this depraved question:
My 12 year old kitty needs some dental work- has tooth resorption and may need tooth extracted. Quote from vet is just shy of $2,000. I'm wondering if I should get a second opinion. Any cat owners who have experience with this and could recommend a vet for a second opinion? Thank you.
KIRK VODOPALS:
Klamath River mouth has to be one of the sharkiest surf spots I’ve ever seen. I went to check it one day. Wasn’t really surfable with the wind and swell. Plus, as I walked to the south, I saw about 50 sea lions gliding through the face of a shorebreak wave and looked down to see an eel with its head bit off. That place is wild.
Surfed a remote spot in Humboldt County with a few friends a long time ago. Swell was pumping and it was sunny. Was out there for about 20 minutes when I see our “host” paddling in. He said he got spooked cuz a sea lion was tugging on his leash. I looked around saw sea lions all over the rocks on the rocky cape. I asked my buddy if this was an official rookery and paddled in too.
I’ve surfed in France, Spain, Mexico, Hawaii, Indonesia, California and even swam in the North Sea. Never seen a shark. But they probably saw me. Always had more problems with the people.
FRED GARDNER: WEALTH TAX
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is trying to get a tax-the-rich measure on the California ballot in November to fend off the collapse of the healthcare system (which will ensue as Project 25's Big Beautiful Bill cuts $100 billion from California healthcare over the next five years). They need 877,000 valid signatures.
"Local hospitals, clinics, and nursing homes, home care services that we rely on will cut services or close," the union warns. "Skeleton crews will be left on the front lines as 145,000 healthcare jobs disappear, burning out the people who care for our families. Insurance premiums will go up for everyone, and millions of Californians will lose coverage altogether."
The proposed solution: "A one-time, 5% tax paid only by Californians worth more than $1 billion—about 200 people who together hold $2 trillion in wealth, most of which will never be taxed in their lifetimes due to loopholes in state and federal tax laws."
The SEIU measure has been strongly opposed by Governor Gavin Newsom, who makes two arguments: 1) the feds caused the looming deficits, the solution has to come at the federal level. And 2) “Our” billionaires will move to Austin. (Maybe not physically. They all have multiple residences they can call home for tax purposes.)
The signature gatherers you might see outside Safeway get paid by a company with a half dozen clients trying to make the ballot. They aren't activists reminding shoppers "It's time to tax the billionaires!"
Nationwide, the Big Beautiful Bill puts more than 700 rural hospitals at risk for closure –16 in California.
Our Times
As if to ready the reader for a surprise, a NY Times editor put this subhead on a March 15 story by Emma Fitzsimmons: "Mayor Zohran Mamdani says he wants to raise taxes on New Yorkers who earn more than $1 million per year. Some millionaires actually agree with him."
Unsurprisingly, Fitzsimmons had no trouble finding self-congratulating rich people who support Mamdani's measure. A group called "Patriotic Millionaires" provided three for her to quote. But nobody is patriotic enough to point out that in assessing wealth, income is not the defining factor. It's net worth that democratic socialists should be taxing.
Hoop Dreams
Steve Kerr thinks the NBA season should be 72 games, not 82."I know this will not be a popular opinion in the league office,” he told Stephen A. Smith (the Black Howard Cosell). “But it's obvious we need to play fewer games. We need to take 10 games off the schedule… I think it would be a more competitive and healthier league if we played fewer games.”
A few days after Kerr spoke out, I saw this headline on ESPN: "NBPA Calls for 65-game rule change." For a second I thought it meant that the players association was proposing a 65-game season! (Shorter hours and a safer workplace, traditional union demands. And the workers' proposal is –appropriately– slightly more radical than the most enlightened manager's.)
I was dreaming, of course. Here's the ESPN story:
"Detroit guard Cade Cunningham's eligibility for individual honors such as a spot on the All-NBA team is in some doubt because of the 65-game rule for such awards, and the players' association said Tuesday that shouldn't be the case.The National Basketball Players Association –which, through collective bargaining, agreed to that rule as part of the current agreement between the league and its players– said it, at minimum, wants to see the rule amended. "'Cade Cunningham's potential ineligibility for postseason awards after a career-defining season is a clear indictment of the 65-game rule and yet another example of why it must be abolished or reformed to create an exception for significant injuries," the union said through a spokesperson. 'Since its implementation, far too many deserving players have been unfairly disqualified from end-of-season honors by this arbitrary and overly rigid quota’."
“Individual honors” enable players to wrest some money from the owners. It’s all about the Benjamins, alas.
JEFFREY ST. CLAIR
One of my favorite photos of Cockburn, all dressed up (for him), with in his Irish homespun vest, an unstained shirt, a new cowboy hat, in a jolly mood (he mostly was), with his mighty blue Imperial in the background. I vividly recall the day he first came to stay with us in 1992. He pulled up in the Blue Beast, which, when parked in front of our house, occupied about half of the block. He asked me to unload the car's cavernous trunk, while he "made a quick call:" typewriter, fax machine, rolls of fax paper, his own (pre-cell) phone, riding boots (still caked with horse manure), leather satchels, a cooking plate, various pots and pans (mostly copper), two Navajo blankets, a jar of French sea salt, sacks of apples, garlic, onions, potatoes and carrots, implements for making Turkish coffee, bags of his neighbors on the Mattole Joe and Karen Paff's Gold Rush coffee (Guatemalan), bottles of Portuguese wine and French grappa, flowers for Kimberly, a crate of books, quart-sized Ball jars of hard cider, elderberries, and black currents, two strings of dried sausages picked up at Taylor's in Cave Junction, copies of The Nation, New Left Review, and the Anderson Valley Advertiser, a loose stack of vinyl records, blues and 50s R&B, bought at a thrift store in Grants Pass–all of this I Sherpa'd into our little house, as Alex tried to explain to JW, Roane, Katrina or Victor why he was a couple of hours over his Nation deadline, who'd heard it all before. He stayed for the next two days before we drove north in my Jeep for gigs in Olympia and Seattle. The aged, rusting Imperial remained an immobile but imposing presence in front of our house for a week, an object of curiosity for our neighbors, having broken down, the defining characteristic of all Cockburn cars…
UKIAH WAY BACK WHEN: Campaign card of Benjamin F Waldo for Sheriff 1942 (via Ron Parker)
RON PARKER: If you are wondering why you are seeing all these anti attorney adds on TV this is why.
“Uber Technologies Inc. is running anti-attorney ads as part of a multimillion-dollar, multi-state campaign aimed at curbing personal injury lawsuits, lowering insurance costs, and supporting a 2026 California ballot initiative that would restrict attorney fees and influence in vehicle accident cases. The campaign, which included advertisements during the 2026 Super Bowl, accuses personal injury lawyers of inflating medical bills to maximize their own profits at the expense of accident victims and passengers.”
DEB SILVA: THE POSTMARK CHANGES
The second installment of property taxes in California is due April 10th.
I bring this to your attention because there has been a change in the postmarking of outgoing mail. The mail is no longer postmarked on the day you put it in the mail, rather it is not postmarked until it reaches the sorting/distribution centers. This means that your mail will not be postmarked for at least a day or longer. You will incur a late charge if you payment is not postmarked April 10th at the latest.
The only way you can get a same day postmark is to go to the post office and ask the clerk to hand stamp your payment envelope.
Besides taxes, including income taxes, this will affect other time sensitive payments to health, auto and home insurance, DMV etc.
Here's the poop on the postmark changes:
As of December 24, 2025, the USPS changed its postmarking policy to reflect the date mail is processed at a regional facility rather than the date it is dropped into a mailbox
. This shift, designed to improve efficiency, means that items mailed on a deadline day may be postmarked the following day, potentially causing late penalties for tax returns or bill payments. Current Federal Tax Developments +4
Key Details of the USPS Postmark Rule Change
New Process: Postmarks (the cancellation stamp) are now applied when mail reaches a processing hub, which may be days after it was deposited into a mailbox.
Impact on Deadlines: Mail sent on a due date might not receive a "timely" postmark, causing it to appear late to tax authorities or billers.
The "Mailbox Rule" Shift: Legal reliance on the postmark as proof of on-time mailing is affected because the date of mailing no longer guarantees that same date as the postmark.
Why it Changed: This is part of the "Delivering for America" initiative aimed at reducing costs by reducing daily trips between local post offices and regional hubs.
How to Ensure Timely Filing
Manual Postmark: Visit a physical retail counter and request a "round date" hand-stamp at the time of drop-off.
Mail Earlier: Send important, time-sensitive, or legal documents at least 3-4 days before the deadline.
Use Alternatives: Utilize e-filing for tax returns (which provides immediate digital timestamps) or secure online payment portals.
Private Couriers: Use FedEx or UPS, which provide legally recognized proof of the actual deposit date.
Get Official Proof: Use Certified Mail for official tracking.
“THE MEN the American people admire most extravagantly are the most daring liars; the men they detest most violently are those who try to tell them the truth.”
― H.L. Mencken
ON LINE COMMENTS OF THE WEEK
[1] So in a weird, backhanded way, Trump is pushing the rest of the world into renewables. China is looking pretty prescient now aren't they? While we are going backwards. Way to go America!
[2] If you protest for emotional reasons and to get the feeling of community, that is just fine. If you think it really could change anything , think again. These days the power elite owners of the country and their hired henchmen politicians do not give a shit about protests. The only thing that will get their attention and fear is a massive general strike where no one goes to work and no one buys anything non essential for an extended period of time. It's a very tall order since they have made a large segment of this country live paycheck to paycheck and unions have been destroyed. Stop their economic engine and things might change. Walking the streets for a day might be good for the soul, but that's about it.
[3] Trump is going to lose the Congress in the midterms. Reason? I paid $4.78 for a gallon of gasoline yesterday. What used to cost $2.38 a gallon a month ago now is double. Food prices are increasing because truck drivers are forking over $5.35 for a gallon of diesel fuel, which, by the way, is a byproduct of gasoline production. Trump's war in Iran is going to slow and wreck the economy.
[4] I am just an average joe with an opinion, not sitting in any drivers' seats. I am also not naive and consider myself to be a realist.
Yes, I know that the USA has been working to prevent Iran from having nuclear capabilities, hence the reason I scoff at all you war humpers who claim Iran is going to nuke Israel or the USA. I don't believe Iran will blow up the world because they do not have the capability to launch an EMP or dirty bomb to any location other than around their own borders. What I find comical is that you and other war humpers on this blog OBVIOUSLY DO believe Iran has that capability.
If they had an EMP why haven't they used it on Israel, their most hated enemy? If they had a dirty bomb why haven't they used it on Israel, the nation they have sworn to destroy?
Does your obsession and worry over Iran's boogiemen sneaking into your home at night and killing you keep you up at night?
[5] Obama had Iran contained with 1.7 billion of THEIR OWN MONEY… now tens of billions are being wasted, Trump wants hundreds more billions on defense, now he's costing Americans billions at the pump, along with the rest of the world, US debt is the highest it has ever been and growing at an alarming rate… ICE cost 25 billion for nothing, everything in the US is more expensive and will increase not decrease. Now in a war he can't get out of… could it be any worse? Never. Vote. Republican. Again.
[6] Comparing Trump's public Easter message to other President's private conversations is no comparison at all. The leader of the free world should have enough self control to act with civility in public declarations. And enough character to recognize that Easter is a Holy Day and deserves a message to recognize it. The loss of respect we have experienced as a country is devastating because of Trump and will take years to reclaim - if we can reclaim it at all. Beyond that, the content of his message is unhinged. Millions of people have their lives at stake - among them innocent children.
[7] F-BOMB BLITZ, an on-line comment:
I, for one, hate vulgarity. I don't like to hear it in movies, read it in books or hear it in public places. But sadly, I think my husband and I are the last generation that seems to care about this. I've asked, nicely, for teens to stop dropping the f-bombs at the ice rink when there were a hundred little kids present, but then they just call you all manner of other names. I just saw a band in Japan called Nani the F word. And they don't hide the word. The word is on their shirts, their merchandise, everything, including the poster for the event. I tried to enlighten one of the members how vulgar it was but they think it is edgy. Nani means what in Japanese in case anybody is wondering.
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