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Transcripts

November 21, 2002

Host: Michael Grant
Topics:
A look at how your life will be impacted by the potential loss of revenues from the state to the cities;
Skinwalkers, the PBS Mystery! special filmed in Arizona
In-Studio Guests:
Elaine Scruggs, Glendale mayor and President of League of Arizona cities and towns;
Linda Peterson Warren, Arizona film commissioner

>> Michael: Tonight on "Horizon," could services like fire departments be impacted as lawmakers look for ways to trim the budget? We'll talk about the potential loss of revenues from the state to the cities. It's a first for the PBS series "Mystery," a segment filled here in the states, here in the state of Arizona in fact. We'll talk to the head of the film commission about that film and others. Good evening, I'm Michael Grant. Before we get to our main topics, this development in Indian gaming today. They lost at the ballot box, but the state's commission have not given up. They filed suit in an attempt to block Governor Hull from signing new compacts with the tribes following the passage of proposition 202, which continues gaming for native Americans. Niel Wake, lawyer for the tracks, fears the governor could sign the compacts as early as Monday. Wake says prop 202 is unconstitutional because it grants tribes a monopoly on gaming. When they meet for a special session next week, state lawmakers will be looking again to trim this year's budget. But the real difficulties will come next section. One idea is to cut revenues the state shares with cities. That has fire and police representatives worried about how the cuts might protect the services they provide. Mike Sauceda tells us more.

>> Mike Sauceda: Tempe firefighters battling a blaze at the old flour mill downtown. All that equipment didn't come free. Part of the money was used to pay for essential, services, such as fire and police comes from revenues the state collects and shares with the cities. This year it's over $1 billion dollars. But in order to balance the budget next week state lawmakers are proposing to cut $70 million from shared revenues $2.3 million coming from Tempe. That worries Rich Woerth, the fire captain.

>> Rich Woerth: our response time in Tempe is approximately from when we -- the dispatcher actually gets to call until we get on scene is 5 minutes 24 seconds or about 4 minutes 16 seconds when we get the call at the station. If we go into cuts, if it ever got to that, if we had to cut an engine company, that increases those response times and that's pretty much going to effect everybody.

>> Mike Sauceda: He says the possible cuts could be compounded.

>> Rich Woerth: our training has been to increased, our equipment has to be increased. This is a time when really we want our men and equipment we have increased.

>> Mike Sauceda: Tempe as eliminated 125 jobs citywide.

>> Rich Woerth: we have cut two positions here in Tempe in the fire department. If we go beyond that we're really going to be cutting into service delivery to the citizens.

>> Saturday, Sunday, Monday off probably won't be affected the all.

>> Mike Sauceda: At a morning briefing at the Tempe city police department Kerby Rapp explains to officers how they'll be impacted by the need to reduce police overtime but the upcoming Fiesta bowl block party. That say result of budget woes facing Tempe which will be further complicated by a caught in shared revenues.

>> Kerby Rapp: from what we've been told nothing is off the table yet and we're looking at every possible opportunity reduce costs. Our desire and really it's in the citizen's best interest is to have no cuts in public safety. Our response time has actually been getting better. We have gone from five minutes on what we call priority 0 and priority 1 ones to under five minutes, which is a major achievement. We have one the best response rates to emergency situations in the Vale. We wouldn't want to jeopardize that but of course any loss of personnel or decrease in the type of commitment we use light on a daily basis could impact our ability to respond to the calls for service in a timely manner. We don't want to see that happen and we're certain the citizens don't want that.

>> Mike Sauceda: Rapp says if the officers are loss even if they are replaced it takes time.

>> Kirby Rapp: when we lose a police office it takes us a year to replace the individual on the street even if we hire them the day someone leaves because of time for recruitment training, police academy and the field training portion of officers training.

>> Mike Sauceda: What is being done to stave after any budget cuts to police and fire?

>> some of us will deal with our city council but most is work the city council and talk together state and trying to protect the state shared revenues.

>>Kirby Rapp: long term we all realize the economy is going to turn around. We'll return the market will pick up. Economy will pick up. Sales tax will pick up. It's a short term problem impacting municipalities for three or four years we don't want to see balancing books on the backs of employees.

>> Mike Sauceda: Both say their departments will continue to do the best job possible.

>> Michael: Here now to tell us more is Glendale mayor Elaine Scruggs who is also president of league of Arizona cities and towns. It's nice to see you again.

>>Elaine Scruggs: thank you very much, Michael.

>> Michael: There's a couple of revenue impact phenomena related but separate. The first thing is cities are getting less money because of economy down turn, right?

>> Elaine Scruggs: very definitely. Whatever happens to the state if their revenues are down, ours are down, 78% of the people in Arizona live in incorporated cities and towns, the revenue start where's revenue is down. Income tax is really the big problem. That's what we're seeing right now. Without the legislature doing anything different and without even considering the two tenths of a percent reduction that they imposed the income tax distribution to the cities and towns will be down $70 million that's a 36% decrease in collections in income tax for two years ago.

>> Michael: And that's just a product of a smaller pie. That's not rearranging the percentage splits between the state and city.

>> Elaine Scruggs: exactly.

>> Michael: Let's move to rearranging the percentage splits. First, legislature scheduled to meet early next week on yet another special session to bring part of the budget back in whack is doing something on shared revenues likely to be on that table or not?

>> Elaine Scruggs: we have heard no at this point. The plans that have been made public up to this point do not include something additional with regard to state shared revenues.

>> Michael: Okay. So this is really probably an issue that will come up in the January, February, march, april time frame when he talk about next year's budget?

>>Elaine Scruggs: exactly. We're happy that governor-elect Janet Napolitano was on your show saying she didn't intend to balance the state budget problems bay taking state shared revenues. We're optimistic.

>> Michael: If I recall correctly, I want to say that each one of the candidates indicated a basic -- but definitely Janet Napolitano said.

>>Elaine Scruggs: That there's a 60 year history to this thing and I don't want you to walk through six decades but explain the basic concept between revenue sharing between the states and the cities.

>>Elain Scruggs: thank you very much. It's something not very well understood. Decisions were made by the electorate by the state of Arizona that would preempt some of the cities taxing authorities and in return they chose to have the state be the collection agency so percentages established these initiatives saying certain percent of income tax and sails tax would be shared with the cities and towns. So the important thing to remember is the revenues are never part of the legislatures appropriation process. The state is merely a pass through agency so when they set their budget each year they do it without our revenues taken into K. so then to say they need to cut a certain percentage and treat us as a state agency is totally inappropriate.

>> Michael: in exchange the people said to the cities, all right, but there's a quid for that quo you won't for example have a city income tax. We'll do it at a state level.

>> Elaine Scruggs: that's true.

>> Michael: Now, how much do -- and I realize this will vary but as I general rule how much do cities rely on these shared revenues in relation to the total needs.

>> Elaine Scruggs: because it was voter approve it was the one source of sure income for cities and towns. Whatever they can do beyond that is what is going on in the community. The reliance is heavy. For my city which has a wide range of things going on in it our percentage of the operating budget has been 44%. We see it going to 39% next year. That's a significant drop but that is the largest share for most cities.

>> Michael: Obviously the taped piece that mike did that we focused on Tempe, what would Glendale be looking at if there were a cut in the shared revenues, what do you go to?

>> Elaine Scruggs: already our city manager has set out a series of directives to prepare for what we are experiencing and what we know is coming in 03 and 04. Immediately every department has been asked to trim 15% of non-personnel related items. Capital projects that are ongoing expenses are frozen. Hiring is frozen and so forth. Next year they are looking at 10% of non-personnel overtime pay and prioritizing projects so if they have an ongoing cost they won't be done. Those are construction jobs that won't be happening and those are jobs for people to fill those positions.

>> Michael: Layoffs?

>> Elaine Scruggs: we haven't gotten do that point yet. We have not gotten to a point where he is predicting layoffs so they are still working on what they are going to do for 03, 04. But it is important to note and I know some of the legislatures get upset because they say you always bring up police and fire and you do that for a dramatic effect when in reality that's our major expense. For my city, Glendale of our operating budget 49% goes to public safety.

>> Michael: To the police and fire?

>> Elaine Scruggs: yes that's pretty true all the way across all the cities and towns. And then the next largest consumer of the operating funds is more people services, libraries, parks, swimming programs all those types of things that direct to constituents.

>> Michael: Are usually things like sanitation and water are they supported really by their own revenue, the fee structure, so they are not in this mix.

>>Elaine Scruggs: that's correct.

>> Michael: But you are correct --

>>Elaine Scruggs: in my city not all cities.

>> Michael: But you are correct it's not only a suspicious by legislatures and it's a suspicious by the large segment of the public every time we have to cut the budget they immediately say police and fire and it's just a scare tactic?

>> Elaine Scruggs: it's not true. If we approach it from the reverse let's look at things we don't do much about. We have to have a finance department. There are certain rules and regulations and forms we have to follow, we have to have information technology, and a tax and license department. We have to have a city court. You won't be touching those types of things. We have to pay the electricity and on all the traffic signals, its electricity on the buildings, maintenance, gas in the cars, the garbage trucks, and there are so many things you can't address. Then if you have 49 or 50% of all of your money going to police and fire and then the next largest chunk of other services that constituents rely on that's why immediate my we say we'll have go there because a lot of the other things we can't address. We can't cut them.

>> Michael: Okay. Elaine Scruggs mayor of Glendale thanks for joining us.

>> Elaine Scruggs:thank you very much.

>> Michael: thank you.

>> Michael: For 22 years the British drama "Mystery" has entertained feers. It will be coming stateside for the first time with a movie called "Skinwalkers" directed by Robert Redford. You can see it here on Channel 8 at 9:00 on Sunday. Immediately following the show will be a Channel 8 production the making of "Skinwalkers." We'll talk to the film commissioner about the special and other productions but here are excerpts from "Skinwalkers" and the making of show showing "Skinwalkers."

>> "Skinwalkers" Promo: from executive producer Robert Redford, detective trusts hard facts officer chi ancient tradition. Three vicious murders test their believes as they try to catch a killer before it kills again. "Skinwalkers."

>> Robert Redford: so the first thing I got was thief of time and when I read that, I knew this was something I wanted to do and then I read awful his books. And when I was -- what I was taken with was the fact that he was a real story teller.

>>James Redford: my father, Robert Redford, optioned the series from Tony Hillerman in the late '80s he asked me looking over the span of Bochs up until that time where I thought a good starting point was. It seemed obvious to me that "Skinwalkers" was the place to start.

>> Tony Hilerman: we spent quite a bit of time talking about it and I was trying to impress on him April I think he already knew it long before I tried to teach him. I was a teacher and I couldn't resist teaching anybody that would listen to me for five minutes that you had to make a movie out of a novel you had to kind of kill the novel so to speak and take pieces out of it. Jamie already knew that.

>> Michael: Here now to tell us more about "Skinwalkers" and the state of film production generally in Arizona is Arizona film commissioner Linda Peterson Warren. It's go to see you again.

>> Linda Peterson Warren: my pleasure, Michael.

>> Michael: A pretty significant film in the old cap, isn't it?

>>Linda Peterson Warren: I think so. I think will make Arizona proud and it is a very big deal for the mystery series because it's the first one they shot outside great Britain in the history.

>> Michael: It's been a while since I have read one of Tony Hillerman's books. It's quite logical obviously the basic setting for sit this state the Navaho reservation. Tell us about how it came to be that the shooting locale was determined here.

>> Linda Peterson Warren: well, actually, we got the call from the producer Craig McNeil about a year ago. They came to scout and they were looking to duplicate the Navaho nation during a time period where the weather up there would not be suitable at all. They were looking for that kind of geography to duplicate. We were able to do. That it's not exactly the same but it looks like the audience would expect it to.

>> Michael: Primary shooting location the superior area?

>> Linda Peterson Warren: yeah, superior. There were a lot of things done in downtown superior and a lot was down outside in the rural areas. Florence an unused hospital was used there this we happened to find for them. The community center for the young Navahos of found. Apache junction, police station and some interiors in Mesa.

>> Michael: That is, I would think, one of the hardest parts of assignments. You could run around. You obviously -- if you need a canyon we got one of those in the northwest part of the state. And if you want a forest or hills, you go here. But I would think the interior locations cataloging those and having them identified and that sort of thing so when someone says I need this kind of interior, I would think that would be a difficult job just narrowing the universe.

>>Linda Peterson Warren: it's always a challenge but of course the geography in this particular situation drove the decision. Chris the director came in along with Rebecca Eaton and some of the other producers to really check out the geography. That's what sold them on the idea to shoot here. We were in very stiff competition with New Mexico who was throwing money at the company to convince them to shoot there. But it was our patience and persistence and production savvy that convinced them this was the place to do this project and they were very, very happy with it.

>> Michael: Does New Mexico have a well defined -- were we more experienced than New Mexico in this kind of area or not?

>> Linda Peterson Warren: I certainly think so and the facts would substantiate that. We have a much deeper crew base. They wanted to hire the local crew and 87% of the crew was locally hired which was great for the economy and great for the film technicians who live and work here but they have a strong film commission, too but they weren't able to deliver the project to New Mexico. They do have the incentives which are attractive and we couldn't come close to that.

>> Michael: We've talked about this before, but refresh our recollection, who is our primary competition for not only things like "Skinwalkers" but other movies and television commercials, which states?

>> Linda Peterson Warren: all of the surrounding states, if they are looking for that kind of terrain but if it's television they are going to go to Canada because it's 40% less. If it's set in the southwest and they can't shoot here, they'll rewrite it. If it says Arizona, they'll rewrite it. This piece is a very high quality piece and they wanted it to be authentic and interpret Hillerman's novel to the best of its ability, which it does I might add. I encourage everyone to watch it.

>> Michael: Certainly some of the visuals that we saw in the set up piece there, they look rich in texture and scope and those kinds of things. Fill in some of those gaps on what this meant in terms of jobs and boost to the state economy, local economy, those kinds of things.

>> Linda Peterson Warren: film is an economic engine for the state of Arizona and the many local communities. Usually in rural Arizona where films, television commercials, whatever, shoot. That really drives tax revenues. But the mom and pop local businesses they know what it means to have a film in their community because the cash registers ring. It's everything from hotels to retailers to cleaners gross errs right down the line. To a wide array of businesses that benefit and of course that's good for everyone.

>> Michael: Do you ever get locals, however, there are some downsides associated with this? Occasionally they have to close off streets.

>> Linda Peterson Warren: that can be true.

>> Michael: Ever get folks that say --

>> Linda Peterson Warren: not very often. In fact when "evolution" shot in page, not all that longing athey were so thrilled to have the project there. They put off putting up holiday declarations so evolution could utilize the downtown of course the holidays were not scripted. They did it with great glee and they were happy to do it and it all looked great on the screen and paying benefitted from the economy and the rest history. No to mention the impact from tourism with all the unpaid promotional advertising.

>> Michael: That's for sure. What are some of the other recent shot in the state?

>>Linda Peterson Warren: planet of the apes the original was shot on lake Powell and Tim Burton didn't want anything to do with Arizona. That was an interesting exercise because we kept feeding him pictures of lake Powell along with everything else. Once we got him on the lake he can't resist and the rest is history. It did shoot there and of course ladies and gentlemen Powell is so very CINEMATIC. Three kings of a huge, huge problem. Not only did they shoot here in the exteriors but they shot all the interiors at the mine outside of casa Grande and hundreds of commercials all the time. Every car commercial ever.

>> Michael: A lot of base stuff. Linda Peterson Warren thank you very much for joining us. We'll watch.

>> Linda Peterson Warren: please do, thank you.

>> Michael: If you would like tow a transcript of tonight's show visit our web site at www.kaet.asu.edu. Click on the world hires and then you can follow the links. Tomorrow, join us for the journalists' roundtable. Reporters will take about the upcoming special session and the investigation by the clean elections commission and the gaming lawsuit by the tracks seeking to stop the governor from signing the Indian gaming compacts which were approved by voters in proposition 202. That and more, probably, tomorrow on "Horizon." Thanks for being here on a Thursday evening. I'm Michael Grant. Have a great one. Good night.