SAN DIEGO: Property tax delinquencies rose nearly 13 percent this year as county residents grappled with an economic downturn, higher gas prices and plummeting property values.
County Treasurer-Tax Collector Dan McAllister said yesterday that property owners of 72,184 parcels failed to pay their annual taxes by the April 10 deadline. Each now faces a 10 percent penalty.
McAllister said he'll send notices to the owners this week in an effort to collect the $234 million they owe before the fiscal year begins July 1. The money is split among schools, cities, the county and other public agencies. The delinquencies represent 5 percent of the nearly $4.4 billion in property taxes collected countywide.
If owners don't pay by July 1, they'll face an additional 1.5 percent penalty each month. –C.G.
Public school rankings,
growth targets revealed
The California Department of Education released academic growth targets and rankings for the state's public schools yesterday.
The rankings are based on an evaluation of schools called the Academic Performance Index. The index is determined largely by performance on annual state test exams that students took in spring 2007. –B.L.
Light showers possible;
cool weather to linger
Chances are good that light showers and isolated thunderstorms will hit the region tonight and tomorrow morning, and the weather is forecast to remain cool through the weekend, the National Weather Service said.
Forecaster Miguel Miller said it will be damp for a few days, but temperatures will rise next week. On Sunday, temperatures are expected to be in the upper 60s on the coast and low 70s inland.
On Memorial Day, Miller expects it to be cloudy in the morning and mostly sunny in the afternoon. At the beaches, it might remain overcast, he said.
High surf of 6 to 8 feet is expected through tomorrow. It will drop over the weekend, he said. –H.G.
Marine shot in Mexico
freed on bail by judge
CAMP PENDLETON: A Camp Pendleton Marine who was injured when his private vehicle was shot at by Mexican marines at a roadblock near Rosarito Beach has been released on bail by a Mexican judge, base officials said yesterday.
Marine officials were bringing Pvt. 1st Class Joshua K. Monnett, 24, back to the United States last night, said base spokesman 2nd Lt. Ken Kunze.
Kunze said initial reports indicated that Monnett suffered an eye injury and cuts on his arms. There are “two versions” of what happened in Mexico, and he said the Marine Corps and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service are looking into the incident.
The incident occurred Tuesday morning as Monnett was driving back to Camp Pendleton after visiting “at least one family member” in Mexico, Kunze said.
Military authorities said the Mexican marines asked Monnett to stop his vehicle, then opened fire shortly thereafter. They did not release details of what led them to shoot.
He likely will have to return to Mexico for legal proceedings, Kunze said. –S.S.
2 routine burns planned
near Marine Corps base
MIRAMAR: Fire officials plan to conduct two prescribed burns today and tomorrow on the east side of Miramar Marine Corps Air Station.
The burns are a routine aspect of the base's Fire Breaks and Fire Road Maintenance Project.
Motorists on Interstate 15 likely will see smoke drifting from the fires, but base officials said traffic flow shouldn't be hindered. –H.T.P.
Acle doesn't qualify
as write-in candidate
SAN DIEGO: San Diego school board trustee Luis Acle has lost his bid for re-election – and the polls don't even open until next month.
Acle failed to collect 200 signatures from voters in his District D to qualify as a write-in candidate for the San Diego school board election. He was already knocked off the ballot as a traditional candidate for coming up short on that same requirement.
The San Diego County Registrar's Office received 207 signatures from Acle on Monday, a day before the deadline. Of those, 142 were from people who were not registered to vote, 18 were registered to vote in other trustee districts, and 47 were valid, San Diego County elections officials said yesterday.
Acle was unavailable for comment.
The sole candidate in the race, Richard Barrera, a United Healthcare Workers organizer, needs just one vote in June to go on to the November general election. A single vote in November would make Barrera the winner.
District D includes Barrio Logan, Encanto and North Park.
Acle was elected in 2004. During that campaign, he came up short by about 30 signatures. He took the issue to court and won a spot on the ballot. –M.M.
Staff writers Craig Gustafson, Bruce Lieberman, Helen Gao, Susan Shroder, Hieu Tran Phan and Maureen Magee contributed to this report.
