The Midyear Budget Review and a Ten Year General Fund Analysis were presented at Tuesday's Fillmore City Council Meeting despite the fact that most sitting at the dais had had very little sleep the night before due to the Goodenough Fire that threatened the town.

A Financial Analyst, Frank Catania, was hired late January and presented the Council a Ten Year General Fund Analysis on where the City has been and where it may be headed, depending on different factors. Acting Finance Director Glenda D. Jay also presented a Midyear Budget Review which also was heavily dependent on varying factors.

The varying factors both Catania and Jay spoke of are the $2.9 million overpayment by the Board of Equalization (BOE) in FY 2008-09 and the 2003 Tax Sharing Agreements that have been in negotiations with BOE for the past three years. The overpayment was an error on the part of the BOE. The Tax Sharing Agreement concerned businesses that had an office located in Fillmore where their sales tax was credited, but the actual warehouses from where their products were shipped were located in various other cities. Those cities sued Fillmore stating the sales tax revenue should be credited to them. According to Catania this disagreement has resulted in millions of dollars being withheld by the BOE, adding that at the end of last year "...the BOE has withheld in excess of $25.6 million of local sales tax revenue due to the City....normally the City would retain $2.9 million of these withheld funds." Adding to this is the fact that the BOE is requiring Fillmore to pay back the overpayment by withholding its percentage of Sales Tax due the City. The FY 2011-12 Financial Statements show a $1.0 million unpaid balance owed to the BOE from the overpayment, along with an estimated $1.3 million future liability resulting from the sales tax sharing agreements; but that number could change when negotiations are finalized. Councilman Douglas Tucker asked how much money the BOE has held back in the last five years but was told by the City Attorney Tiffany Israel that that could only be discussed in closed session. Tucker then remarked that there was some confusion over the amount and said the previous City Attorney Ted Schneider disagreed with those numbers and he would like both Schneider and Israel to get together on the numbers to "know we're all on the same page" adding that having some historical knowledge might be helpful. There was then some discussion on how the BOE does not give out much information on such items basically leaving Fillmore to accept what amounts the BOE send them.

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The fire has consumed 170 acres and is now 80% contained.

The wind has dropped to nearly zero in Fillmore.

Approximately 85 units and nearly 300 firefighters continue to fight the fire, putting out hot spots with hand crews and helicopter.

1 house was burned but officials have not identified the property owner. The home is not the William Morris property that some earlier reports had indicated.

More updates, photos and video coming soon.

The hills just east of where the fire started.
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One of dozens of trees damaged by the high winds.
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68 Units currently responding to a fire that was reported approximately 4:45 p.m. in the 1400 block of Goodenough Road in north Fillmore.

The fire was sparked by a downed power line.

High winds caused trees to fall and fire to spread.

1 home on Goodenough road has burned along with the roof of a mobile home, one vehicle and several outbuildings.

An estimated 200 people in dozens of homes are under mandatory evacuation orders

A shelter has been setup at the Veterans Memorial Building at 511 Second Street in Fillmore. Donations of blankets, food and water may be dropped off at the Memorial Building for any victims and firefighters.

Additional photos, video, and information coming soon.