Argus (Newspaper) - May 15, 1974, Fremont, California Fremont reforms urged in scandal's wake By KEITH JONES Against a backdrop of the city's first scandal representatives of two zens groups came before city councilmen last night to suggest potential changes in city Jon Fox president of the Federation of mont Residents appeared in a more con- mood than he did last week when he blasted the five councilmen for allegedly lowing a pervasive influence of developers to intrude on local government Fox urged councilmen to set up a citizens to investigate local government and offer recommendations for changing it He said the committee might focus on changes such as setting up a ing inspector's log that would be open to the press much like the police log Councilman Geoffrey Seel said the com- Fox proposed would seem to have an open-ended charge and no one could lell where the group's work would lead it Councilman Gene Rhodes said he has trouble reconciling the Fox of last night's meeting with the Fox of last week who took the councilmen to task My real he said is which ments represent your real Fox who calls his allies and supporters pathetic or the one concerned about bringing constructive change to the I agreed in part with your comments but I think and the publicity they received did as much damage to the city as the Don Teler incident which provoked those Rhodes said Rhodes suggested the committee Fox posed could easily turn into a self-righteous witch hunt if staffed by persons with opinions Mayor Don Dillon asked what such a zens committee could do that the Federation of Fremont Residents itself could not look into and report to t he council on Fox replied that he did not look on the com- as a grand jury investigating But he said a committee appointed by councilmen might carry more weight than simply a federation member appearing before the council in oral communications He said he's looking for a broader base of opinion than just the federation and that at this particular time it is important to get a large number of citizens ved in government Rhodes noted he agreed with one of points namely that the councilmen all loo of- ten rubber-stamp staff proposals without com- ing up with their own creative ideas He said the time for council action is not right now an investigation of the Teter incident is still going on But he said as one councilman IK will be looking into possible changes in government once I hat i n ves igat ion is over John Walasek chairman of the Citizens rum reported on that group's meeting last week to push for a directly elected mayor here He said the group has refined its al for a ballot initiative on an elected mayor down to the following Should the city have a directly elected mayor for a four-year term instead of one pointed by city councilmen for one e Should the elected mayor be or Should councilmen or the public set the Should the elected mayor make all lo city commissions and com- Walasek said the group dropped proposals giving the elected mayor a veto power over council decisions and limiting councilmen lo page of sect ion col 2 BART directors eye fund trims Bay Area Rapid Transit directors split sharply yesterday on the question of whether they or the district staff could be trusted to slash specific budget items Some directors said the board itself should go over the staff's proposed million ating budget and find specific employes lo lei goand programs Other directors said the board doesn't have expertise to make specific cuts They ar- gued that the board should simply slash the budgel total by 5 per cent and leave it up to the s taff to make cuts producing I sa v i ng Underlying the debate was a desire to show the Stale the district has dune possible to Irim its operating deficit at million lo million Di- rectors assume the district's bankruptcy will only be assured if legislators belie e mies haven't been made and continue their refusal lo subsidize BAhT BART General Manager B R Stokes rated that the district will go bankrupt without a subsidy but said intensive study of possible federal grants indicate shutdown of he tem could be delayed on or two months longer than he predicted last month Stokes now says the district might be able to until November or December or January at the outside Board President Nello Bianco of Richmond called a special meeting of the full board for tonight al 7 Directors who think they can make specific budget cuts will gel their chance lo do so Bianco called a special meeting because the tentative budget must be approved by a week from tomorrow A public hearing and of the final budget skill follow Director William Chester of San Francisco culled specific cuts an ex- must have confidence in the staff lo come up with cuts that won't affect operation of lire Chester said We can't run Director George of Newark dis- agreed completely saying We have to do it Bade page of lection col 3 may fire 44 of its teachers NEWARK a decline in elementary school enrollment and a projected budget cit school trustees last night approved dis- missal of 44 teachers while citing hopes they may be reinstated if voters approve a tax in- crease election in June officially notifying the teachers they will not be must be sent by today un- der state law Newark Unified School District Board dent Al Berkowitz said he felt the legal re- of notifying teachers prior to the completion of budget review are antiquated He expressed regret that the board had to take the action I consider it a cruel and unjust way to deal with this kind of problem he said We're faced with going through this every year as long as the education code reads as it does Trustee Elwood Ballard citing hopes the tion may prove unnecessary at a later date noted thai 30 teachers received such notices in 1972 but 23 were subsequently re- hired He said the other seven would have been rehired but other jobs Linda Agler president of the Newark ers Association said she sympathized with the district's need for more money but added that cutting back and laying off to the tune of 44 teachers is not the best way todo it Officials said that if the tax increase tion passes here will be no need for any of the cuts Trustees faced with a projected deficit in preliminary budget of million also received a staff report on where they cul more than The report lists almost in potential elimination or reduction of current district programs and about in elimination or reduction of proposed new programs in the budget If all of the cuts were to be made in current programs n potential 30 jobs be lost The largest single proposed cuts in existing programs are in reductions in new and replacement equipment and 5118.000 in transport ation services Of proposed new programs which be Back page of section col 4 good morning Wednesday the weather Mostly fair through tomorrow ex- cept for night and morning low Highs in the 70s with lows in the low 50s Small craft for winds 15 to 30 miles per hour decreasing tonight Yesterday's Fremont high was 78 witha low of 54 in the area The Youth Service Center which has been in the planning and tion stages for more than a year will be a timely addition to the city's social services program Page 16 No No Nannette that ed nostalgic musical put on by the city's recreation department in March has run its course But the show goes on in a way with members of the cast taking tap dance lessons from their in the show Ardith Page 24 the state Legislation dubbed the 1974 non- smokers of rights advances to the Assembly floor when it clears the key Criminal Page II Howard Hughes kepi him hopping on such varied jobs as signing such varied jobs as signing up Miss America contestants the Spruce and getting statistics on June bugs Robert Maheu testifies in his bel suit against the eccentric naire Page 22 in the nation A federal judge is told thai ment evidence against Lt Gov Ed necke of California is tainted and should not be used against him in his coming trial on perjury charges Page 11 A White House spokesman describes as blown completely out of proportion and sensationalized a published report that Pat Nixon was presented valuable jewels by the Saudi Arabian royal ily which were not recorded as gifts until nearly two years later Page 21 A House committee completing a year long study of public spending on President Nixon's private residences proposes that Congress limit ment spending on presidential homes Page 21 the inside Topes Astrology Dr Unarm 31 33 40 40 33 30 10 Helen Help Jock Anderion Lifestyle Movie Guide Feed Sport Want Adi 7 31 21 2 31 31 39 THE ARGUS A consolidation continuation of the Vol 16 The jewels in question First Lady Pat Nixon never had any intention of keeping jewelry presented to her arid her daughters over the past five years by Saudi Arabian royalty White House aides said yesterday They made the commeni in response to questions about a report by Maxine Chesire of the Washington Post who said that on the advice of White House counsel Mrs on removed several velvet jewel boxes from the wall of her bedroom last March 28 and sent them by messenger to the White House gift unit in the tive Office Building Mrs Chesire said that at least a portion og the jewelry had gone unreported for ly two years until she began making inquiries several months ago Shown here is the complete matched set of emeralds and diamonds See story Energy compromise squeaks through SACRAMENTO The Senate Tuesday with no votes to spare passed landmark energy legislation supported by Gov Ronald Reagan lo speed up construction of nuclear power plants and ban bling home appliances During a long floor fight supporters said the compromise would curb the wanton wasteful use of energy Opponents called the measure dangerous and said it takes the heart out of local government The legislation by Assemblyman Charles Warren Angeles won Senate approval on a bipartisan vote the exact margin required It now goes to the Assembly for concurrence in Senate amendments Warren predicted the would pass the Assembly and move to Reagan's desk The governor vetoed a similar measure last year but approved the latest proposal following long negotiations Three attempts to weaken measure were rejected by the Senate during a two-hour floor struggle was designed to reduce the 40 to 50 per cent of energy Warren said is consumed wastefully The measure would shorten the steps for siting of nuclear power plants and would establish a vastly powerful commission appointed by Reagan to approve siting and deal with energy shortage problems The meas ure also would impose an estimated lax on electricity users to finance energy research That would cost the average California household about 50 cents annually Warren estimated The commission would be required to prescribe lighting insulation and climate control building standards which increase the efficient use of energy The panel would be required to issue similar efficiency standards for appliances such as refrigerators and home heaters Those failing to comply with the standards would be prohibited from sale in California effective July 1 1977 Illegitimate kids cost million SACRAMENTO California payers had to pick up a million for the care of an estimated illegitimate children born in the state in 1973 the stale Health and Welfare Agency said Tuesday It is clear that the social and fiscal magnitude of the illegitimacy problem in this state has reached enormous the agency's Social Welfare Board said in a report The report tilled Unplanned was started two years ago to seek solutions to California's illegitimacy problems In preparing the report the board said it perceived its commitment to those who are in need of public but added it also had an equal commitment to the public who most pay for this help H continued The fact of the matter is that public assistance and illegitimacy are linked The Incidence of illegitimate children in welfare caseloads is twice that in the general population There are also direct costs related to the care and support of these youngsters which are being borne by the it added The report said the million annual in California included state and county welfare and federal assistance It said one- fourth of al children in California are illegitimate Robert E Mitchell a Los Angeles attorney and chairman of the board pointed out that three out of four illegitimate children are bom to mothers 24 and under and two out of five are born to mothers 18 and under It is obvious that considering the age of these mothers they are the least likely to be able to provide the full support and maintenance needed by their the report said youth dies SAN FRANCISCO UPI a teenager with a rare kidney disease died Tuesday night his last conscious wish a visit with his convict father was fulfilled as resu It of publi c pressure Leonard 16 slipped into a coma Saturday Ht was kept alive by an iron lung and and kidney machine Hit with I want to see my dad His father given a temporary leave from prison stood by Leonard's hospital bed and Tuesday The youth did not regain consciousness Earlier story on Arabs take many Israeli kids hostage TEL AVIV UPI Arab guerrillas attacked a village near the Lebanese border today and took 85 lo 100 Israeli children hostage the military command said An army spokesman said first reports indicated three persons were killed and seven wounded in the attack The national radio said the guerrillas submitted a list of 20 captive commandos to Israel and set a deadline for their release The attack took place at the town of four miles south of the Lebanese border in western Galilee the Tel Aviv command said The attack came on the anniversary Israel's creation Police had issued a nationwide warning against possible Arab attempts to sabotage the event The national radio said the guerrillas launched the attack during the pre-dawn hours opening fire on a bus carrying Arab women laborers near One woman was killed and seven wounded in the Incident The radio said the guerrillas then went to the religious Meir elementary school in where up lo 100 high school children from the town of were spending the night during a field trip The Israeli broadcast said several of the children managed to escape from the school and alerted security forces Earlier oil officials said a fire broke out at a refinery north of the port of Haifa in another apparent to sabotage the anniversary holiday The fire was reported extinguished without major damage
