By: Libi Uremovic | Original Article at Patch.com
The City’s Press Release is a Sad Statement of Mayor Knight’s Ignorance.
A new press release has been posted on the City of Beaumont’s website. To view, please visit www.BeaumontCares.com or click on the following links.
Beaumont Press Release Homepage
Beaumont Appeals WRCOG Lawsuit
Beaumont, CA – On Monday, September 29, 2014, the City of Beaumont filed its appeal of the Western Riverside Council of Governments (WRCOG) lawsuit against the City. The appeal will stay the judgment, thereby barring its enforcement, until the Court of Appeal rules on the validity of the trial court’s decision. Attorneys for the City filed the appeal at the direction of the City Council.
According to Mayor Brenda Knight, “The City of Beaumont is appealing the judgment because the ruling is based on the mistaken idea that Beaumont and all cities in Western Riverside County are required to quit their own road building programs, do nothing but collect TUMF fees, and turn over all major road funding to WRCOG.”
Mayor Knight went on to state, “With that mistaken ruling the trial judge left undecided a long list of legal and factual issues that if decided would have required a ruling in the City’s favor. The City believes that the Court of Appeal will give these factual and legal issues, never addressed by the trial judge, a fair hearing and reverse the trial judge’s mistaken decision.”
The appeal process is expected to take approximately two to three years before a decision is made by the Court of Appeal based on judicial timelines. For residents interested in following the lawsuit, please access Case No. 30-2010-00357976 at the Orange County Superior Court’s website. For more information on Beaumont’s participation in the TUMF program, please visit www.ci.beaumont.ca.us/TUMF.
###
On May 22, 2014, an Orange County Superior Court judge in Western Riverside Council of Governments (WRCOG) issued an oral ruling expressing the court’s intent to award WRCOG a judgment against the City for $42 million plus interest. The rationale for the ruling was the failure of the City to contribute that amount of money towards WRCOG’s Transportation Uniform Mitigation Fee (TUMF) Program. The amended judgment by WRCOG was filed on Friday, September 26, 2014.