There’s a lot more to Sacramento City Treasurer Russ Fehr than you might think. Yes, he knows all about municipal finances and wears a suit at City Council meetings. But he also plays guitar in a rock band with fellow city employees. Fehr, age 58, is one of six members of The Newz Makers, a city-employee band that started rocking in 2006.  For band gigs, Fehr exchanges his suit for casual garb and goes by the stage name “Luke.” He loves Tom Petty and the Rolling Stones, and was a member of a Sacramento group that was the precursor to the Rutabaga Boogie Band. Fehr’s band mates are Joe Valenzuela, a police captain; Jim Berg, an information technology supervisor; Tom Moore from Human Reso

Starting on Thursday morning, the Sacramento city treasurer’s office will accept IOUs that were sent to local residents and business by the state government, according to City Treasurer Russell Fehr. The Sacramento City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved the city treasurer’s plan to buy $10 million in IOUs. The city council’s vote means that the city treasurer’s office will pay back the face value of the IOUs to residents and businesses. The city will charge a transaction fee of $2 for each IOU. The IOUs have a 3.75 percent annual interest rate, which would benefit the city, according to Fehr. “Investment of state warrants provides direct financial benefit to the city through highe

The city treasurer’s office wants to take action on California’s budget crisis by buying $10 million in IOUs that were distributed to local residents and businesses by the state government. The phone calls are already pouring in: City Treasurer Russell Fehr on Monday said he received requests from local businesses and non-profits for the city to buy $2.5 million in IOUs. Fehr, who is presenting his proposal to the City Council Tuesday, told The Sacramento Press that the plan aims to help residents and businesses that may be facing financial problems because the state paid them with IOUs that cannot be redeemed for months. And, the city might be able to make a little money from the propose