San Tan Valley Town Charter - Your Protection Against Maricopa STDs, Lobbyist & Developers

Pinal County News Uncategorised

San Tan Valley — Time to Suit Up and Protect Yourself

Because this is your first time, and they’re not going to be gentle… so neither should you.

San Tan Valley, did you know you can put on some serious protection before we start messing around with our future?
And trust me — the people coming for your wallet, your water, and your neighborhood aren’t planning on being romantic about it.

This is our first time writing a Town Charter — our constitution, our rules, our boundaries. And if we let the wrong people set the terms, we’re going to wake up with a lifetime of regret and bills we can’t pay.

So man up (or woman up, or just “citizen up”) — and learn what policies we need from day one.

Why This Matters

The minute we find out who the seven (or more) people are who want to be your first mayor and town council, you need to show up with questions sharper than a lobbyist’s manicure:

  • Which lobbyists are you connected to?

  • Will you protect our aquifers from “crap water” injection?

  • Do you support endless HOA sprawl, or do you think neighborhoods can survive without a gate, a turf lawn rule, and a $400 fine for painting your fence the wrong shade of beige?

Your Charter = Your Protection

If our charter is strong, it works like a giant protection shield — blocking 99% of lobbyist attacks, shady developer deals, and backroom giveaways. If it’s weak, it’s basically an open bar for every corporate parasite from here to Scottsdale.

And believe me, once they’ve got control, they’re not buying you a drink first.


San Tan Valley Citizen Charter Protection Checklist

The 40 Rules That Protect You from Lobbyists, Crap Water, and HOA Sprawl

I. Elected Officials & Staff Compensation — No Free Rides

  1. Term Limits – Max 2 consecutive terms for mayor/council. No lifers.

  2. No Pensions – Only 401(a)/457(b)-style retirement. Build your own nest egg.

  3. Salary Caps – Peg mayor/council pay to median town income.

  4. No Automatic Raises – Pay changes only by voter approval.

  5. Ban Golden Parachutes – No fat severance checks or special retirement tricks.

  6. Expense Transparency – Post travel, meals, and reimbursements online monthly.

  7. No Vehicle Allowances – Mileage reimbursement only, with receipts.

  8. No Double-Dipping Jobs – Can’t work for the town and its vendors at the same time.

II. Lobbyist & Special Interest Controls — Sunlight Kills Parasites

  1. Lobbyist Registration – Must register and list all clients.

  2. Meeting Logs – Post all lobbyist/developer meetings online within 48 hours.

  3. Gift Ban – No free lunches, trips, swag, or “favors.”

  4. 5-Year Cooling-Off Period – No lobbying the town after leaving office.

  5. Mandatory Disclosure of Developer Contacts – Even “casual” coffee meetings get logged.

  6. Developer Meeting Notes – Names, topics, and outcomes posted online.

  7. Ban Bundled Donations – No PAC money tied to contractors or developers.

III. Transparency & Public Records — No Secrets, No Surprises

  1. Free FOIA Requests – No fees for residents to access public records.

  2. Public Phones & Emails – All town-issued devices are FOIA-accessible.

  3. 72-Hour Meeting Minutes – Drafts posted within 3 days.

  4. Document Everything – No “off the books” policy discussions.

  5. Contracts Online – Searchable database of all active contracts.

  6. Voting Records Posted – Track how each member votes.

  7. Budget Transparency Portal – Every payment and vendor check viewable online.

  8. Minimum Public Comment – Guarantee public input time for all ordinances.

IV. Fiscal Controls — Protect the Piggy Bank

  1. Debt Cap – Limit total town debt to a % of revenue.

  2. Voter Approval for Bonds – No borrowing without a public vote.

  3. Balanced Budget Only – No deficit spending.

  4. No Developer Subsidies Without Vote – No free infrastructure giveaways.

  5. Competitive Bidding Rule – All contracts above set dollar amount require bids.

  6. Emergency Contract Restrictions – True emergencies only, with proof.

  7. Independent Annual Audit – Done by a firm with no ties to donors or vendors.

V. Land Use & Development — Build Smart, Not Stupid

  1. Strict 100-Year Water Proof – No loopholes, no effluent recharge games.

  2. Full Impact Fees – Developers pay for their own roads, schools, and parks.

  3. Infrastructure-First Rule – Utilities and roads in place before building starts.

  4. Mandatory Impact Studies – Traffic, environment, and water impacts reviewed publicly.

  5. Public Land Sales Require Vote – No quiet sell-offs to friends of council.

  6. No General Plan Changes Without Vote – Citizens decide the growth map.

  7. HOA Accountability – HOAs follow open records and budget transparency rules.

VI. Ethics & Governance — Keep it Clean

  1. Independent Ethics Board – Citizen-run, with teeth to investigate.

  2. Conflict-of-Interest Ban – Can’t vote on matters involving donors/employers.

  3. Resign to Run Rule – Step down before running for another office.

How to Use This List

  • Print it – Bring it to every candidate event.

  • Ask direct – “Will you support these in our charter? Yes or no?”

  • Mark the liars – If they dodge or won’t commit, they’ve shown you who they really work for.

  • Share it – Post it online, give it to neighbors, mail it to your HOA newsletter if you have to.





Why We Need This Now

Lobbyists like Rose Law Group will be in the room before the ink is dry on the election results. They’ll whisper “flexibility” and “partnerships” while they write the town’s rules to suit themselves.

If we’re not in the room too — with our Protection List in hand — the first charter will be a Trojan Horse rolled right into our front yard. Inside?

  • Crap water pipelines

  • HOA kingdoms

  • Developer subsidies

  • And decades of political debt

The Game Plan

  1. Print This List – Put it in your glovebox, purse, or phone.

  2. Show Up to Candidate Events – These aren’t meet-and-greets, they’re job interviews.

  3. Ask the Hard Questions – Make them go on record in front of witnesses.

  4. Spread the Word – Share the list online, in Facebook groups, over the fence with your neighbor.

Bottom Line

This is our first time — and if we don’t protect ourselves, it’s going to hurt for a long time.
Suit up, San Tan Valley. Demand policies that protect citizens’ futures, not lobbyists’ profit margins.

Because if we don’t write the rules…
They will.

No Pensions, No Golden Parachutes — Why San Tan Valley’s Charter Must Protect Taxpayers Now

Pinal County News Uncategorised

San Tan Valley is writing its first-ever town charter — our constitution for how we govern ourselves. And if we’re serious about protecting our future, there’s one rule that must be carved in stone from day one:

No Pensions for Politicians or Town Staff.

Why? Because Pensions Are a Developer’s Best Friend

Lobbyists and big developers love pensions — not because they care about public employees, but because pensions are bargaining chips.
Here’s how the game works in other Arizona towns:

  1. Promise a city manager or department head a fat pension after a short time in office.

  2. Get them to play ball with big development deals, fast-track zoning changes, or look the other way on shady contracts.

  3. Taxpayers get stuck paying for that “thank you” for 20–30 years after the person is gone.

It’s a slow-motion transfer of your hard-earned money into the pockets of insiders — long after they’ve left office.

Why Defined Contribution Plans (Like a 401a or 457b) Are Better

Instead of a lifetime taxpayer-funded pension, a defined contribution plan works like a private-sector 401k:

  • The employee owns it — it’s their account, not the town’s debt.

  • The town can match contributions up to a reasonable limit (say 5–10%).

  • No unfunded liabilities — once the contribution is made, the town’s obligation is done.

  • If an official leaves, they take their account with them. No “forever bill” for the taxpayers.

This Protects Our Financial Future

San Tan Valley has big challenges ahead — infrastructure, water security, public safety. The last thing we need is decades of pension debt dragging us down. Cities that got hooked on pensions are now cutting services and raising taxes just to cover retirement checks.

Our charter can lock in a “no pensions” rule, so future councils can’t quietly bring them back without a public vote.

This Tests Our Leaders’ Brains

We’re supposed to be electing the best and brightest to run our town — people with real-world skills, financial smarts, and the ability to manage a budget.
If they can’t handle their own retirement account without the taxpayers guaranteeing it for life, maybe they’re not the right person for the job.

The Charter Clause We Need

Section X: Retirement Benefits
The Town of San Tan Valley shall not establish, participate in, or contribute to any defined-benefit pension plan for elected officials, appointed officials, or employees. The Town may offer a defined-contribution retirement plan, such as a 401(a), 401(k), or 457(b), with employer contributions not to exceed a percentage established by ordinance. This provision may be amended only by a majority vote of qualified electors of the Town.

Bottom Line

No pensions = no golden parachutes.
It protects taxpayers, removes a tool for political favoritism, and keeps San Tan Valley financially stable for decades. If our future leaders are as smart and capable as they claim, they’ll have no problem building their own retirement the way the rest of us do — by earning it and managing it themselves.

Real World Examples:

Here are some real-world examples from across the U.S. where pension systems and public officials were caught in abuses—ranging from spiking benefits to fraudulent enrichment—to highlight why strict “no pension” language in San Tan Valley’s charter matters:

Connecticut: Overtime Pension-Spiking Abuse

A study revealed systematic abuse of overtime payments to inflate retirement benefits—most egregiously, a corrections officer who increased overtime to 176% of his salary in his final months, resulting in a significantly larger pension. Legislative proposals now aim to remove overtime from pension calculations. Carolina Journal+7Reason Foundation+7CalMatters+7CT Insider+1

Broadmoor, CA: Unlawful Pension Spiking by Police Chiefs

An audit from CalPERS found that three police chiefs and a retired commander in this small town manipulated their employment status to receive inappropriate pension payouts—spiking benefits via loopholes in the system. Reason Foundation

North Carolina: $8 Million in College Pension Spiking

Public colleges in North Carolina racked up nearly $8 million in added pension liability due to spiking practices—primarily through end-of-career compensation increases without actual state reform to stop them. Empire Center for Public Policy+8Martin Center+8Wikipedia+8

City of Bell, CA: Salary & Pension Corruption

City officials in Bell climbed to astronomical salaries—one city manager’s pension was estimated at $880,000/year—through charter exemptions and abused compensation structures, sparking criminal investigations and pension system crises. Wikipedia

Massachusetts: Pension Forfeiture for Corrupt Speaker

Former MA House Speaker Sal DiMasi was convicted of corruption and had his $60,000/year pension revoked by the state retirement board, setting a rare precedent that criminal public misconduct should strip benefits. Wikipedia

Why It Matters

These cases demonstrate a pattern: without strict limitations, pensions become tools for insider enrichment, not public service. Taxpayers get stuck paying exorbitant lifelong payouts due to loopholes, OD, or loyalty-driven compensation quirks.

Implications for San Tan Valley's Charter

By banning defined-benefit pensions in your charter and locking in defined-contribution plans only, you eliminate the chance of abuse from day one. That means:

  • No sudden jumps in pensions via overtime or bonuses

  • No double-dipping public salaries or disability schemes

  • No long-term taxpayer debt from short-term political favors

Let’s write the charter so residents are never left paying for someone’s padded retirement.

 
San Tan Valley Town Charter