CHUCK REED (D), CARL DeMARIO ® “Voter Em-

powerment Act of 2016”. Have you heard these

names before? If not, they are out to destroy the

public pensions as we know it today. This ballot

measure is a sweeping attack on the retirement se-

curity of teachers, firefighters, peace officers and

other public servants. When I first started teaching

fifty years ago, I wasn’t even aware of public pen-

sions. I just wanted to teach. Later I found out that

the state constitution provided defined benefit pen-

sions for all public employees. I was told also the

state could go broke but the teachers and highway

patrolmen would be the first to get paid. So what

does this Constitutional Amendment do if passed? It

eliminates vested constitutional rights by repealing

the “California Rule.” The California Rule provides

that retirement benefits promised to current em-

ployees cannot be impaired. It eliminates retirement

security for all new public employees and restricts

them to either 401k-style plans, or nothing at all

unless voters approve a benefits package. It closes

defined benefit retirement plans and prohibits pay-

ing debt or contributing funds to existing plans to

pay for promised benefits, which will jeopardize the

sustainability of CalPERS, CalSTRS, and other plans.

The retirement benefits of current teachers, fire-

fighters, police and other public employees would

be affected. Voters would be able to cut the future

retirement benefits of current employees for future

work performed.

Continued bottom of page 4, “President’s Message”

President’s Message

d i v20 . ca l r t a . oVol. LI October 2015 Number Two

Division President: Ron Stock jo94ro@comcast.net

Membership Harry Osell itoharryosell@gmail.com

M E E T I N G Thursday October 1st First Congregational Church

3409 Brookside Rd., Stockton

Division #20 Meeting: 11:30 a.m.

Luncheon Program

Program Notes

Also in this issue:

Scholarship Foundation

2 TOPS Program 5

Foundation Donations

& Report

2 Medicare Hosp. Obser-

vation VS Admittance

6

Luncheon Menu & Reservations

2 Medicare Advantage

Division officers

6

7

Gen. Meeting Minutes 3 Schedule of Events 7

Luncheon Photos

Nonagenarians

4

4

UOP Health Fair Flyer

Pension Initiative Update

5 More Photos 8

San Joaquin County Sheriff Steve Moore will be

our speaker for the October 1 meeting. Sheriff

Moore was first elected November 9, 2006. He is

currently serving his third term after re-election in

June, 2014.

Sheriff Moore began his law enforcement career at

the Oxnard Police Department. He worked for the

Fresno County Sheriff’s office from 1976- 1978 and

in 1982 he joined the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s

office as a Deputy.

Continued bottom of page 4, “Program Notes”

Scholarship Foundation Donations IN MEMORY OF: DONOR

Joyce Harris Tess Aberle

Joyce Harris Stanley Steele

Bonnie Duncan Stanley Steele

IN HONOR OF: DONOR

Helen Vignolo Tokie Takemura

November Foundation Report

both to:

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Thursday, October 3rd, 2015

Cut out and fill in the form at the bottom of this

column or a reasonable facsimile. Make your check

payable to CalRTA Division 20 and mail

Lily Bugarin

PO BOX 7820

Stockton,, CA 95267-

0375

If you would like to join with the others for lunch,

you must have a “Prepaid Reservation”! However, if

you wish only to attend the meeting and/or pro-

gram, reservation is not required. Note also that if

you are on a special diet and wish to bring your

own lunch, you are welcome to do so.

The Menu

Make check payable to CalRTA Division 20

Reservation for Luncheon

Enclosed is $___________, Please reserve ________

Lunches @ $11.00 per lunch.

Name(s)_______________________________________

Phone: ( )

Reservations are due by: Friday, Sept. 25, 2015

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- -

- -

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- -

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Division #20 Luncheon

Account Beginning

Balance

Receipts Dis-

burse-

Ending

Balance

Prime

Share

Savings

149.35 149.35

Checking

Account

5,422.49 22.25 6,000.00 1,647.49

Wells

Fargo CD

59,533.95 22.20 850.79 58,705.36

Total 60,399.45

Garden salad

Steamed rice

Pancit

(noodles with meat

& vegetables)

Chicken adobo

( chicken in garlic, vinegar and

soy sauce)

Pork barbecue

Lumpia

Fresh fruits

Biko (sweet rice dessert)

Cake

including educators.

Insurance: Bruce Schweigerdt reminded members that Medicare open enrollment period is coming between October and December. Watch for changes in prescription coverage as it changes constantly. A Health Fair provided by UOP School Of Pharmacy will be held at the 1st Congregational Church November 13. All are welcome to come with questions. October Program: Liz Blanchard announced the program for October will be provided by Sheriff Steve Moore. It will center on Crime and Prisons and how current legislation and the new initiative, that passed, will impact us. Mini Grants: Ginger Jacobs explained that our divi-sion gives 4 $250 mini-grants to teachers each year. This year the committee decided to offer these monies to primary teachers (K-3) in Stockton Uni-fied School District. These will be presented in December. Applications will be sent to schools.

Announcements: First Vice-President Cecilia Moran has agreed to take the position of first vice-president. Although she is not here, we must approve this action. Liz Blanchard moved and Harry Osell seconded the motion that Cecilia Moran be First Vice-President. The motion passed. The Christmas luncheon will be held December 15, at the UOP Alumni House. Mark your calendar! AREA III FALL WORKSHOP: October 3, 2015, is the date of the Area III Fall Workshop in Sacramento. This is for anyone interested in the work of CalRTA. Officers are especially encouraged to attend.

Poem: Catherine Borelli shared an original poem, dedicated to Donald Trump, entitled “My Hometown.” Lunch: Lunch was catered by Casa Flores with Lily Bulgarian and Phyllis Hansel in charge.

Program: Dr. Daftary presented the program about the future of health care in regard to seniors. Dr. Daftary invites you to contact him regarding Senior health issues and Medicare. His email is shareforseniors@gmail.com His website is “ www.over64.com

Meeting adjourned at 1:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Glenda Schubert, Division secretary

September 4, 2014

Welcome: President Ron Stock welcomed mem-bers and guests. Nick Berlin led the Pledge of Alle-giance

Minutes: The minutes of the May 7 meeting were accepted as presented. No questions.

Financial Report: Larry Schubert reported there were no unusual expenditures the past months. A report was placed at each seat in the room. The total balance for the division is $39,621.30. Vi Lennon presented the budget for the year 2015-2016. Nick Berlin moved to accept the budget as written. Grace : seconded the motion. Motion passed.

Membership: Harry Osell and Nick Berlin have been tracking membership. 32 new members have joined our division. Directories will be sent to these members. Harry sent letters inviting new re-tirees to join. School districts generously gave the names and addresses of these new retirees to Harry. We now have 620 members in Division 20.

Newsletter: Nick and Dan Flores will have the newsletter ready to assemble by September 10. Volunteers meet at the Congregational Church at 9:30 a.m. Please let Nick know if you have any interesting articles or suggestions for the newsletter. The website is now up and secure. Check it out!

Dan welcomed everyone as the past president. CalRTA is interested in saving pensions. Dan will keep us informed. The Pension Reform Ballot Initiative is an amendment to the state constitution that is being suggested as a ballot item on the November, 2016 ballot. This reform eliminates constitutional protections for retiree pensions and health care benefits for current public employees,

Meeting Minutes: CalRTA Div. 20

Division 20 Treasurer's Report October 1, 2015

Share Draft Account Beginning Balance: $12,951.58

Ending Balance: $13,582.42

Prime Share Account Balance: $761.12

Total Balance: $14,343.54

He has over 30 years law enforcement experience

and has commanded every major division within

the Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Moore holds a BS degree in Criminology Law

Enforcement from Fresno State University and a sin-

gle subject teaching credential. He is a graduate of

the FBI National Academy and the FBI LEEDS Session

#64.

Sheriff Moore was appointed to California State

Sheriff’s Association Board of Directors in April

2009. He has held the offices of Chairman of the

Audit, Budget and Finance Committee, Sargeant at

Arms, Treasurer, and Secretary.

This will be an excellent time to find out about the

impact of recent legislation and initiatives on our

county law enforcement and safety.

Program Notes (from page 1)

Photo on left: Dr. Daftary our speaker.

Photo on right: Our new CalRTA Div. 20 President, Ron Stock and Vi Lennon, Budget Committee Chair.

Photo on the right: Members enjoying Dr. Daftary’s presentation

September 3rd Luncheon Photos

In recognition of Retired Teachers Week, which is

celebrated in November, we honor those of our

members who are 90 years of age and older. Since

we have no meeting in November our nonagenari-

ans are invited to be our guests at the October

luncheon. If you are one of these senior members,

please indicate this on your luncheon reservation

and mail it to Lily Bugarin. If you would need a

ride, please indicate this as well. We will try to ar-

range for someone to pick you up and bring you

to the meeting. We look forward to honoring you.

Ginger Jacobs Co-Chair Communications

Committee

President’s Message (from page 1) Voters would have to approve 401k-styled plans or

no plan at all. My two sons and their wives would

be affected.. Its hits close to home. There is no

guarantee that this amendment will get on the bal-

lot because they have to collect signatures. It is be-

ing funded by the Koch Brother’s Reason Founda-

tion and so called “tax payer” groups. Please famil-

iarize yourself to the drawbacks of this amendment

if passed

THIS AMENDMENT MUST BE STOPPED!

Attention Nonagenarians

Teaching Opportunities for Partners of Science (TOPS) Program

Pension Initiative Update The following update is to provide information on

what happens next with the Retirement Insecurity

initiative now that the proposed initiative has re-

ceived Title and Summary from the Attorney Gen-

eral.

The initiative proponents have 180 days (until Feb-

ruary 8, 2016) to circulate petitions to gather the

number of needed signatures. The initiative is a

Constitutional Amendment; consequently, it will

need 585,407 valid signatures in order to qualify for

the November 2016 state ballot. The petition circu-

lators must submit signatures to the county regis-

trar in each county where the signatures were gath-

ered. Then, the county registrar has eight working

days, or about two calendar weeks, to count the

number of signatures submitted and draw a sample

of the signatures for validation. Each registrar also

sends to the Secretary of State the number of raw,

invalidated signatures. The Secretary of State then

sums up the number of raw, invalidated signatures.

If the number of signatures submitted is equal to or

greater than the minimum required for validation,

the counties will start the validation process. If the

number of raw, unvalidated signatures is less than

the minimum, then the initiative automatically fails

and will not be on the ballot.

Each registrar will have 30 working days, or six cal-

endar weeks, in order to validate signatures in the

sample. If, based on the sample, the number of

statewide signatures is estimated to be equal to or

greater than 90% of the total required validated sig-

natures (.90 x 585,407 = 526,866) the county regis-

trars will start validating all signatures that were

turned in. The county registrar has an additional

30 working days, or an additional six calendar

weeks, to complete full signature validation. If,

however, the sample validation shows that there

will be more than 110% of the needed signatures

for validation (1.1 x 585,407 = 643,948), then Secre-

tary of State automatically finds the initiative quali-

fied for the election.

Get your friends to join Division 20.

We protect their retirement

and their health!

Teaching Opportunities for Partners of Science

(TOPS)

TOPS is looking for retired scientists or science

teachers, who want to give-back to the next genera-

tion by exposing them to hands-on science!

What is TOPS and why should you get involved?

Right now in education, the United States ranks far

behind the rest of the world in science and mathe-

matics. It’s no wonder we are trailing so far behind

other countries, as many schools can only dedicate

an average of 20 minutes or less a week to science.

That’s where you come in! We are

encouraging you to bring your area of expertise to

the classroom! The time commitment consists of

about eight hours a month, which are flexible hours,

as well as additional training on how to work with

elementary school students.

To learn more about the Office of Science and

STEM Integration/Innovation S²I ², visit

www.sjcoescience.org.

Contact: Nancy Flocchini Stenzler

(209) 468.4880 • nstenzler@sjcoe.net

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU OR A LOVED ONE BE PREPARED FOR ENTRY INTO THE HOSPITAL SYSTEM: The U.S. Senate unanimously approved legislation Monday night Sept. 24, 2015 requiring hospitals across the nation to tell Medi-care patients when they receive observation care but have not been admitted to the hospital. It’s a distinction that’s easy to miss until patients are hit with big medical bills after a short stay. The vote follows overwhelming approval in the U. S. House of Representatives in March. The legislation is expected to be signed into law by President Barack Obama, said its House sponsor, Texas Democratic Rep. Lloyd Doggett. Observation care 570It’s called the NOTICE Act, short for “Notice of Observation Treatment and Implication for Care Eligibility.” The law would require hospitals to provide written notification to patients 24 hours after receiving observation care, explaining that they have not been admitted to the hospital, the reasons why, and the potential financial implications. Those implications can be dire. Observation care hurts seniors in two ways: It keeps Medicare’s more comprehensive hospitalization coverage from kick-ing in, and it means they may not get Medicare’s limited nursing home benefit if they need care in a facility after being in a hospital.

To qualify for Medicare’s nursing home coverage, beneficiaries must first spend three consecutive midnights as an admitted patient in a hospital, and observation days don’t count. Without that coverage, seniors could pay thousands of dollars for the nursing home care their doctor ordered, or else try to recover on their own. Obser-vation care is a classification used when patients are not well enough to go home but not sick enough to be admitted. And because observation care is provided on an outpatient basis, observation patients usually also have co-payments for doctors’ fees and each hospital service, and they have to pay whatever the hospital charges for any routine drugs the hospital provides that they take at home for chronic conditions such as diabetes or high cholesterol. Meanwhile, the number of claims hospitals submit-ted for observation care continues to skyrocket. According to the most recently available data from CMS, total claims increased 91 percent since 2006, to 1.9 million in 2013. Long observation stays, lasting 48 hours or more, rose by 450 percent to 170,219 during the same period, according to a Kaiser Health News analysis. This article was produced by Kaiser Health News with support from The SCAN Foundation.

Medicare Hospital Observation VS Admittance Update

Medicare Advantage & Part D Plan If you have a Medicare Advantage plan or a stand

-alone Part D plan, you should receive an Annual

Notice of Change (ANOC) and/or Evidence of

Coverage (EOC) from your plan. You should

receive these notices by the end of September and

they will explain any changes that your plan will

be making in 2016. This includes information

about changes to your plan’s list of covered drugs

(formulary), health benefits, and/or premium costs.

Plans are allowed to change their cost and

coverage rules from year to year, so it’s important

for you to read mail from your plan to see if

there are any changes that affect you. If you did

not receive this information, call your plan to

request a copy. If you are dissatisfied with any

changes, you can make changes to your coverage

during Fall Open Enrollment, which is from

October 15 – December 7.

Part D Prescription Check Up One Simple Way for Retirees to Save on Prescrip-

tion Drugs. Just over one in 10 seniors decide to

switch Medicare drug plans during fall open

enrollment. But nearly half of those who do save

money.

CalRTA Area III Leadership Training

Citrus Heights Community Center

October 3rd, 2015

General Membership Meetings

General Membership Meetings are at First

Congregational Church and begin at 11:30 a.m.

October 1 2015 February 4, 2016

December 2015 March 3, 2016

May 5, 2016

Board Meetings

Board Meetings are at First Congregational

Church or as announced, and begin at

9:30 a.m.

November 5, 2015 January 7 2016

April 14 2016

June 2, 2016

Scholarship Foundation Board Meetings

First Congregational Church

. . February 5, 2016

State Delegate Assembly

May, 2016

Newsletter Articles Due

Newsletter Articles are due at the meetings of

the Board or General Membership on:

November 6, 2015 January 8, 2016

February 5, 2016

April 2 2016

Newsletter Assembly

The Newsletter is assembled beginning at 9:30

a.m. at First Congregational Church on:

September 10, 2015 January 14, 2016

November 12, 2015 February 11, 2016

April 14, 2016

San Joaquin Division #20 2015-2016 Schedule

Area III Co-Directors. ….... .Marcie Launey,

Chuck Dennon

San Joaquin Division 20’s

2015—2016 Officers

Executive Committee

President………. …. .…. . Ron Stock

jo94ro@comcast.net

First Vice-president …,…. . Cecillia Moran

Second Vice-president. . .,.. .Elizabeth Blanchard

Secretary (Division) …..,,….Glenda Schubert

Secretary (Board) ……,,.. . . .…Judy Rafert

Treasurer ………., ,…. . Larry Schubert

Financial Secretary . .…...…. . Gloria Young

Immediate Past President …… . . . Dan Flores

danlflores@yahoo.com

Standing Committee Chairs

Budget ………,,,,,,…. . . . .…Vi Lennon

Bylaws …………...,….. Earl Pimentel

Communications …,,,,…. . . . Ginger Jacobs, Pa-

tricia Voss

Directory ………………. . Vacant

Historian ………….…,,,,…. . Vacant

Hospitality ….. .………. . .. Lily Bugarin,

Phyllis Hensel

Insurance .………. . Bruce Schweigerdt

Legislation .…. . . . .…………Vacant

Membership …...….. . . . . . . . . Harry Osell

Memorials, Tributes ….. . . ...….. Grace Sato

Music ……….…. . . ... . Marie Medford

Nominating …. . . . . ………. . Vacant

Resource Services … . .…. . ….Dan Flores

Scholarship. ...…….……. Helen Vignola

Webmasters………. . . …. ..Nick Berlin

September 3rd, 2015 Luncheon Photos

See YOU on October 1st!

For Breaking News

regarding Legislation, Medicare,

Health Issues and more go to

www.div20.calrta.org