subway dreams down the tubes: sales tax motion denied
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Today the LA County Board of Supervisors voted to deny placing the 1/2-cent sales tax measure on the November ballot in a 3-2 vote with Supervisors Don Knabe, Michael Antonovich and Gloria Molina voting against the measure.
The sales tax would have funded $30 billion in mass transit and highway projects over 30 years, including the Subway to the Sea (Purple Line extension), the Gold Line to Claremont, the Downtown Regional Connector, Phase II of the Expo Line, improved bus service and a 710 Freeway extension north to the 210 Freeway, among other high-profile projects.
If Metro wishes to proceed with the initiative, it must pay $10 million for a special ballot in November. A Metro spokesperson has indicated the agency will sue to attempt to get the measure placed.
Metro’s ability to place the tax on the ballot is still facing a vote in the state legislature, making the future of the tax uncertain.
Though the two anti-tax Republicans on the board were expected to vote against the measure, it was Democratic Supervisor Gloria Molina’s argument that the spending plan was unfair to her district — and subsequent vote against it — that ultimately killed the measure.
In her own district, the under-construction Gold Line extension would have proved a valuable cross-town connection with the Subway to the Sea for Eastside commuters, who must now slog down congested Wilshire Boulevard in overcrowded buses to reach the job-rich Westside.
The supervisors’ stalling and provincial attitudes are a senseless waste of time and money. Even worse is the taxpayers of this county must now fork over $10 million in order to have the chance to vote on it.
With all this bickering, we at angelenic are wondering what the three opposing supervisors’ plans are to improve mobility throughout this congested region. We’re all ears, Supervisors.
molina@bos.lacounty.gov
http://www.knabe.com/askdon/askdon.html
http://antonovich.co.la.ca.us/contactus/contact.html
What do you think of the supervisors’ vote? Let us know in the comments.
-metro sales tax measure approved; ball in legislature’s court (angelenic)
-L.A. County Supervisors Vote Against Putting Transit Sales Tax on Ballot (Bottleneck Blog)
-Subway to the Sea: A Timeline of Events to Date (Curbed LA)
Check out these related posts:
66 comments
Molina deserves to get an earful for this. Her district already has a transit project in place. What a selfish, selfish move. Unfortunately, pretty typical for her.
This is ridiculous - whether right or wrong to raise taxes for a major public works project, let the masses have their say, not a small handful! I’ve already fired off my complaints and have included contact info for the Supervisors in Question below. Hope you join me in giving them an earful.
S
molina@bos.lacounty.gov
http://www.knabe.com/askdon/askdon.html http://antonovich.co.la.ca.us/contactus/contact.html
Molina is still bitter that her district never got their promised Red Line to Whittier. It’s because of Zev, that the subway was killed in all of LA county, so the Eastside got the light-rail, mostly at-grade Gold Line in substitute. Gloria believes her district got shafted, and still holds a grudge to this day.
Along with downtown LA - we need to revitalize our supervisors. I suggest we start by impeaching the 3 that voted againt this - a truely bonehead move!
I’m utterly speechless at the short sightedness and selfishness of these supervisors, especially Gloria Molina. The gold line is already under construction, and yet she would rather shoot down any prospect of improved transit in this county because she somehow feels that her district has been shafted? Way to go Gloria, Mike and Don! You really showed em!
I plan to give all three of them an earful via email just as Steve has done. I hope everyone who suppports improved transit in this city will do the same. The fact that we as citizens of this county were denied the right to even vote on this measure is especially infuriating!
Wow, this is disappointing. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, I don’t understand politics out here in LA. Is this a city matter, and if so what is the mayor’s take on this issue?
Brian: It’s a county issue. The mayor is out of town, I think, but he’s probably going to issue a statement about it.
I’ve emailed Gloria Molina and expressed my outrage on her vote. I urge you to do the same.
I think Gloria made the right choice. Her district is being screwed and she’s not putting up with it. Yes, the entire region needs mass transit, but downtown and the westside’s lag is not her problem. She is defending the best interests of those in her district and that’s what she was elected to do. I agree with her. It’s time for her own district to have mass transit and the gold line (a joke) if pennies on what the westside projects cost. These west side projects didn’t appear last night. They’ve been on the table and people blocked them for countless reasons. Downtown and the westside got what it wanted. It’s not fair for the tab to be pushed to the less established neighborhoods. Deal with your own delay.
RuFF: You mean the nearly $1 billion spent on the Gold Line in Molino’s district, and the Alameda Corridor East project ($2.5 billion) is pennies?
Are we supposed to play games with the mobility of the region? Even assuming that her constituents wouldn’t benefit one bit from the Subway to the Sea, she’s already getting two major projects in her district.
Do you think people in East LA and Boyle Heights only work in East LA and Boyle Heights?
And who the hell cares if the Gold Line is light rail and not a subway! Capacity can be increased by adding cars to the train if need be, and an extension study to Whittier is in Metro’s long-range plans.
Again, it’s this type of thinking that makes sure NOTHING gets done here.
Thank you for the email addresses. The only one I felt strongly about emailing was Gloria Molina. Again thanks for including the addresses. We need to blast these email addresses over all blogs
what the F _ _ _?
Is Gloria Molina’s brain clogged with fat too?
And don’t ever come shopping in our Montebello Vons, you are not welcome!
And how out of touch must these fools(the 3 voting against) must be, driving alone into work in their cars.
I will work tirelessly to CRUSH Gloria Molina’s political career. This shall not stand.
Knabe and Antonovich, I had written off a long time ago.
Ruff the interests of Molina’s district do not exist in a vacuum. Her constituents are residents of L.A county just like everyone else. Building more Mass transit in her district means absolutely nothing if it doesn’t connect to a viable transit network in the rest of the county including the Westside. People in her district may need have jobs in the Westside, Friends, family etc. There’s no denying that the Westside has shot iteself in the foot with regards to the delays in getting these projects going, however the subway along with the other projects noted by the MTA are critical to the mobility of the entire region. Shooting down this measure does nothing for her constituents - if anything it hurts them because it means NOBODY gets transit dollars - not ever her district.
And for the record, her district has not been screwed - the Gold Line extension is under contruction as we speak for god sakes. Meanwhile the Westside (The second largest employment center in the county) is still not served by rail. The first phase of the expo line will only begin to make its way there by 2010 and still does not address the region’s needs.
Also as far as the tab being pushed on others is concerned, last I checked we all pay for highway improvements throughout the region via our tax dollars. I don’t drive the 210 through Fontana, which was recently completed, but I paid taxes to help make it a reality and you know what I don’t care because it improves the mobility of the REGION. The same hold true for public transit in L.A county.
Unfortunately your parochial point of view on this matter is quite commonplace in this city and this region, which is unfortunate and sad…
Just reading the headline severely angered me. LA is supposed to be a future world-class city and I can’t believe these 3 A-Holes don’t realize that by now. Gas well over $4 a gallon. LA has the worse traffic/pollution problem in the nation. People don’t get enough exercise in this city as it is because of our car culture. And now this? We need progressive thinkers on the board who can think about the future of Los Angeles and not just cling to their one-sided mentality that is deeply rooted in the present. There is no harm done in paying a few extra tax dollars to fund essential projects that need support TODAY and not in 20 or 30 years.
I love LA so much but decisions like these make me want to leave it behind and never come back until all the idiots running the city either die or retire…which ever comes first. It’s either that or I become the mayor of Los Angeles…very possible in the near future.
I will benefit from the metro gold line east side extension. I live in Montebello about 2.8 miles from the Atlantic Blvd station.
I also emailed all 3 and I hope that this won’t be death (or another 10 years waiting) for decent public transportation in LA.
I have also emailed Sup. Gloria Molina. Putting her district’s interest first to the detriment of the rest of the LA county. For shame!
The one (and only) good think about this proposition not being placed on this November’s ballot is if, mainly because of the current sagging economy, a larger than normal percentage of voters are likelier to give thumbs down to an increase in their sales tax.
Getting two thirds of the support of the electorate throughout LA County (and at least 66.6% of ballots with a “yes” mark are required for passage of any tax increase) is not an easy task during even the best of times, but it may be tougher now. So the silver lining to a vote not taking place this year will be if a similar proposition eventually is revived in, say, 2009, and has a better chance of being approved at that time.
This is a very sad situation and I dont know if anything can be done about it. Zev killed the subway to the sea years ago and no one was able to do anything about it then either. Looks like putting up $10 mil or dragging it in court are the only options at this point. 3 people deciding how 13 million people live is hard to take. Very sad!!
Gloria is pushing for the side that corresponds her. She is doing what is right for the people she represents and I stand behind her 100 percent. It’s easy to dismiss her when it’s against what you want, but when she is pushing for more on the East Side we stand behind her. A little push and shove never hurt.
Also, you guys talk as if LA is a centralized city, which is has never been… Ever. If the West Side loses out because of so many hard head residents, I’m sorry. LA just needs to continue being the decentralized city where jobs continue to look to the suburbs where these things can be made available. It’s not a mistake we don’t already have the Subway to the Sea. It is not there on purpose and enough, is enough. The ENTIRE region is paralyzed because of the West Side. The buck stops here. Ensure us what we are looking for (our fair share which we deserve time and time again) and we’ll give you the tax.
RuFF,
If you think that killing a transit line that goes through one of the densest corridors in the nation (in terms of jobs and people) is good planning, you need to check yourself. And continuing to encourage decentralization is laughable; how can you make that argument with $4.50 gas, filthy air, and gridlocked traffic?? You must live in a cave. You should probably pick up and move to Houston. Your thinking is more appreciated there.
You should probably pick up and move to Houston. Your thinking is more appreciated there.
As evidenced by the outcome of this vote, RuFF’s line of thinking is right in line with L.A. Sigh.
You’re not getting it. I didn’t kill the Subway through one of the densest corridors in the nation. I didn’t do it. I was and am all for it. I want the subway to the sea just as much as the next guy. I just don’t want the spectacle. I want my tax dollars to do something. We are STUCK. Do you really think Gloria pulled it out of her rear end that there are back room deals. Isn’t it obvious by now? Don’t we already know our transportation funds get raided by the state. Come back to reality and work with it. These are tough times and it’s not easy to ask for a tax increase, but if you ask for it, show it’ll be used for what is promised.
There is a lot of circular logic in the argument against raising funds because of the threat of those funds being raided for other purposes. In fact, I really do believe that it is a false argument used by the anti-tax people.
Los Angeles is not and has never been centralized? Really? Then why are there one million jobs in the swath of land between downtown and Santa Monica? It’s not laid out like an old school downtown core, but it acts like one, and draws millions of people from the surrounding regions and the world. Tying it together with rail is a no brainer.
The last time a transportation sales tax was raised for the same reason, from it we got the Blue Line, the Green Line, the Red Line and the Gold Line.
If this tax were to pass we would get the Purple Line, the Expo Line, the extension of the Gold Line, and likely a Crenshaw line and upgrades to buses, Rapids and Metrolink.
The MTA’s vote against it does not entirely doom it, however, although it becomes harder to pass, as it would have to be put on a separate ballot from the other measures.
I am generally opposed to all tax increases (especially in a city that spends money on crap that no one should be spending money on—thus our shameful budget) but re-building public transportation back to the level it was at nearly 100 years ago isn’t such a bad thing to spend money on.
I have MANY friends from other cities here and overseas who positively plotz when they see the horrendous state of public transportation in LA.
MTA is a joke and fouls everything up (just take a look at their blog: http://imagine-metro.blogspot.com/ ) for evidence of that.
The sad part is there is a sense that downtown is already well served by rail which is a joke of jokes. There should be at least 1 more blue line stop and 1 or 2 more red line stops. It’s pathetic. In Chicago’s loop, there are 10 stops in the Loop proper and 25+ stops in the area generally thought of as ‘downtown’ and it’s served by 5 rail lines (2 subways) and 2 heavy rail stations that go to points west of downtown and during peak hours you basically never wait more than 5 minutes for a train and people there have been complaining for YEARS that there should be even more coverage. Can you imagine having that kind of coverage in Downtown LA?!?! People would spontaneously combust.
Downtown LA alone needs at least 2 more rail lines. It’s going to be a LONG time before LA catches up with the rest of civilization in terms of public transportation. It really is sad. Until that happens, LA can never be considered a truly great city.
Worst case scenario, if the tax measure does not go for vote. Expo Line to Santa Monica is completed by 2015, Orange Line to Chatsworth by 2015 as well, Crenshaw Line between Green Line to Expo Line by 2025. Wow, we’re moving at a turtle’s pace. That’s what Prop A & C can provide until 2025.
Rich mentioned above this is a county issue and not a city of Los Angeles one. I’m afraid I have to ask another question because it seems like everyone commenting here is pretty up to date on things —- Rich mentioned the mayor will make a comment but what has been his stance on the issue?
If this is something he thought was good for the greater LA area did he go out of his way to get his connections and people on board?
I’m thinking like a Chicago resident here and how Daley gets things done, and I’m wondering aloud if things just don’t work that way here.
The MTS is a county agency, not a city agency. The Mayor of Los Angeles is, however, a member of the MTA board, and has influence on the actions of the MTA.
The way I see it, the relationship between the county and city is dysfunctional. Unlike San Francisco, which is both a city and a county, and New York, which has 5 boroughs (counties) within one city, Los Angeles has to fight it out with the rest of the county, which sees the city as a parasite. Not a good way to get things done.
Unlike some others here, I don’t oppose tax increases, and I also do not believe the city or the county is wasting the money it collects. Remember, people, the County of Los Angeles is larger in geographic size and population than New York City, and is in fact the single largest local government entity in the United States. By far. Los Angeles county (at almost 11 million) has almost one third of the population of the entire state of California (almost 36 million).
You can’t run that kind of machine on a shoestring. We really do get what we pay for.
People in New York and Chicago are used to paying higher taxes for higher levels of service. That has to happen here or we will need to resign ourselves to a series of missed opportunities.
Sorry, the first line should have read MTA, not MTS.
SICK. With the high fuel costs and the movement to mass transit, these idiots do this? Idiots.
A sincere “amen” to comment # 29.
Well said, Bert.
There are 3rd world countries with better transit service then us. Buenos Aires is working on their first bullet train, and we can’t even get the purple line. Pathetic how politics run here. There is way to many arguments and waste of time.
The begining of all these issues is we don’t have a center core big enough to accomodate every person, we are so spread out that we create our own center cores like Century city, and therefore we need transit service going to those areas. That’s why I think we should focus on the most populated areas where most traffic is and relieve the stress. Something that this Gloria doesn’t understand.
@Bert Green { 08.06.08 at 12:34 am }
I agree with much of what you said, however, I pay far higher taxes now than I paid in Chicago (and I’m not really making a considerably higher amount of money adjusted for inflation). Far far higher.
LA is the most mismanaged big city in this country. I mean, they are nearing bankruptcy if the news reports are right because they can’t get a proper budget put together. A large part of the onus belongs on Villaraigosa’s shoulders as he is simply one of the most inept politicians I’ve ever laid my eyes on.
Thanks for the background on the relationship between the county and city Bert.
I have to agree with Manny on this one as well - the mayor just seems out of touch. The same sort of setup exists in Chicago where Daley is the Mayor and Stroger is head of Cook County. But Daley pretty much runs the show and wields his influence whenever he has to for the good of the city/county.
Here in LA I have yet to hear anything about the Mayor being behind something or really lending his voice to a cause. After four months I know he travels a lot and spends quite a bit of time away from LA.
I can’t help it, but I am guessing he doesn’t take the train to get anywhere either.
I just sent a letter to Ms. Molina, that I don’t approve what she did. I hope everybody else does the same.
Mike Antonovich - who I still believe to be public enemy # 1, is the biggest douchebag on the whole Board. He believes the sales tax should be divided by population. That being said, downtown would receive barely nothing and places like Santa Clarita, Rosemead, etc.. would receive more than downtown and the westside. I like how Zev mentioned, “well, the sales tax measure should be in proportion to how much is raised in each district”, then Antonovich walked out of the MTA meeting for a bit last week.
I plan on writing to all 3 supervisors this weekend. I want to make sure they know they’re hurting their constituents as well as the county of LA by not supporting this measure. It’s also disheartening to that Molina thinks her constituents only stay in th Eastside and never need public transportation to the Westside. I especially know a lot of people in the Santa Clarita area who work in the westside, who would love to take the subway from Union Station to the Westside. I hope Antonovich’s residents know the mess their politician is making.
The expression “Los Angeles is Seventy-two Suburbs in Search of a City” is outdated. Maybe it rang true in the 1950s or 1960s, but no longer. The city has grown up, filled in and would better be described as “Seventy-two Suburbs in Search of a Mass Transit System.”
As pointed out above, we have densely populated corridors (Wilshire Blvd., for example) rivaling any East Coast city. We have huge geographic separations of jobs (Westside) and affordable housing (Eastside).
We have all these big-city challenges yet we also have a “Weak Mayor” system of local government. Likely, it’s a legacy from our “72 suburbs in search of a city” days.
We don’t ALREADY have a Subway to the Sea today because of this Weak Mayor constraint and because of past actions by self-serving, short-sighted politicians (Yaroslavsky, Waxman). And so it continues today with Molina’s child-like, “cut off my nose to spite my face” vote.
It’s not about taxpayer revolts, Sacramento misspending, budget overuns, or “bang-for-the-buck” concerns. Heck, that kind of stuff goes on everywhere in every big city and yet they mostly manage to proceed forward with major mass transit projects.
For Los Angeles, it’s the system and those who run it (or work it).
Bruce, you hit the nail on the head. Brian, to answer your question, the “Weak Mayor” system is the primary difference between Chicago and Los Angeles. The power rests with the City Council and the County, not with the Mayor. The Mayor has power, but must have the full cooperation of the Council and County Board to get anything done.
Manny-
I am surprised that you pay higher taxes in Los Angeles, considering that Los Angeles does not tax income. The state does, and there is a sales tax, but unless you have a business license in Los Angeles, you do not directly pay city taxes. Even your property taxes (if any) are diverted to the State as per Prop 13.
The City’s revenue comes mainly from the Port and the Airport. There are other sources of revenue as well, but they are relatively minor.
I wrote to Molina myself warning her to avoid starving the masses. Maybe the pressure of angry citizens in the county will overcome her living in damn cave. We need transit, and we need it now. You can’t whine away an issue of this magnitude because it will kill her career.
I think they are going to reconsider next week. everyone get your letters in ASAP!! these idiots need to hear from their constituents.
@Bert: Chicago doesn’t tax income either. Perhaps laying the blame solely on LA is a bit remiss, but the fact remains I pay far more in taxes here both in their direct and indirect forms than I ever did in Chicago. My friends and I jokingly call it the ‘sunshine use tax’
Needless to say, I get far less return on the tax dollar here. If it wasn’t for the weather and my work requiring me to be here I honestly probably would have moved elsewhere because of that.
Also, their is a city council in Chicago as well but Daley bosses them around like no ones business. I don’t expect LA to ever be run like that because it’s no secret that the mob runs Chicago (Daley being a big part of it) and their presence simply isn’t as strong in LA but Villaraigosa is a terrible mayor. I mean, bottom of the barrel.
I mean, if you are going to excuse his incompetence by saying that he has a council of elected officials to work around then you have to excuse all of W’s shortcomings since he has a Congress to deal with.
A leader leads and gets things done. Villaraigosa is more interested in banging Telemundo news anchors than he is fixing the myriad problems this city faces.
Manny, do the research on your new city. The structure of a city’s government isn’t carved on tablets anywhere…it varies from place to place and usually is reflective of each city’s unique history. Ours happens to be a city with a “Weak Mayor”; Chicago’s isn’t. Neither is New York’s.
Whether you’re Villaraigosa, Bradley or Moses himself, you’re not going to be able to lead in this city in quite the same way as you can in many, if not most, other U.S. cities. Nobody’s saying it’s hopeless, but in my view, it’s the biggest factor on regional transportation issues.
Los Angeles is a big city - hence the strong Council districts, I suppose. It’s also a fragmented and piece-meal city. Pull out a map and look at all the cities within this city. Now pull out a map of the city of Chicago and take a look. Big, big difference.
Case in point: Hop on a downtown bus and travel west to the beach and you’ll pass from Los Angeles and into West Hollywood. Then you’ll cross through Beverly Hills and then back into Los Angeles before arriving into Santa Monica. A strong LA City Council/weak mayorship aside, that’s four cities to deal with…and that’s just a 12-15-mile ride.
I sent a letter to Molina too. Let’s keep up the pressure, everyone! Either they’ll revote on the issue, or this’ll go to court and then we’ll just have to vote Molina out when she’s up for re-election.
Brian: The mayor responded the same day as the vote, as mentioned on LAist: http://laist.com/2008/08/06/villaraigosa_responds_to_supervisor.php
I think this is a great discussion everyone -
Manny: Obviously we feel the same way about Chicago and the way the city was run.
Bert et al: Chicago is a big city too, but I will admit LA is more spread out and encompasses a great area in terms of square mileage. And you are right, therein lies the problem but only to an extent. It appears as though the mayor is nothing more than a figure head here in LA and does nothing to wield any sort of influence or power. So if the Mayor has no say in things, is it the fault of the large county council for not getting together to do things for the good of the city? Is the city too big for the way the council is set up?
Rich: Thanks for the link; it would have meant more for the Mayor to say something in person rather than issue a faceless press release.
Brian, the mayor is on vacation with his family.
This has nothing to do with the city council. Its the county board thats screwing things up.
LA’s weak mayor was a deliberate choice by the “Progressives” of the early 20th century who were wary of the types of city government they saw in New York and other big cities where power was too concentrated in too few hands. They inadvertently created the opposite, a decentralized system that gives a voice to local groups over the centralized powers, but one that over time has become especially prone to political gridlock.
Add to that mix the County, and we have inherited a mess.
But to me the real problem is the separation of responsibilities. According to state law, counties have specific and limited functions (see a list here).
Cities as large as Los Angeles should be able to have some of those same functions but cannot under state law. So the MTA’s board can vote against the interests of the largest city and there is not much that can be done about it.
What I’d like to see is a breakup of Los Angeles County. The western half would contain LA City (west to the beaches) and the eastern half would be the rest. But that would not likely ever happen.
It’s a great idea Bert - breaking up the county - and I think it’s one of the few ways we would see some change here in LA.
Let’s all be real here.
LA is poorly governed, and our leaders consistently lack the vision to lead in a city as large as LA.
LA has such a wonderful collection of culture, art, food, and people, but all of this greatness is held back by LA’s deplorable civic design. Anytime LA is close to fixing its terrible problems, its people or politicians decide to stop its progress. It is the fundamental law of LA.
Jeremy R…
It’s not a “fundamental law” at work, it’s a “fundamental flaw” at work.
As Bert has so thoroughly explained, the system - however well-meaning in its inception - is almost set up for delay, inconsistencies, replication, bureaucracy, and in many cases - failure. Mix in political egos, foot-dragging and budget constraints and this is what you get. ..a city with corridors and pockets of incredible population densities lacking efficient mass transportation.
(Anyway… here’s hoping Gloria is re-thinking her vote.)
Why did my post get taken down??
I speak the truth and am not entitled to my opinion of LA???
Way to support freedom of speech, guys!
I took it down because it was racist, and you’re entitled to freedom of speech on your own blog. By the way, I’m Mexican.
…then you would be part of the problem.
Now go make me a taco!
Oh Lordy…
Rich, thanks for taking the high road on this. You’ve got class…and amazing patience.
BREAKING NEWS!! - Transit sales tax measure will be on the general ballot (pending, of course, the passage of AB measure in the state of CA, and Schwarzenegger signing the darn thing by August 31st!) http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/bottleneck/2008/08/more-breaking-n.html
^On it.
I was shocked when i read this - it seemed as if this had momentum, and was sailing along so smoothly and then to read this - I was utterly dissapointed. I now understand those in the community who have “given up” on advocacy for public transit because its hard to take blows like this again and again when it seems so obvious that we need rail and subway solutions yesterday. Ill keep fighting for it however. But it is certainly not an easy fight, Bert and others are right that the political structure here favors the politics of separation and division, not unity. And we are blessed with the presence of the notorious BRU which is very very good at slaughtering any attempts to build rail in the region. The BRU is very well organized, and very effective at what they do. They have been flexing their influence lately, and Im sure had a part in this outcome.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oew-mann31-2008jul31,0,4715127.story
They are again claiming that this will “aggravate the very conditions of racial discrimination” and that it is for rich people. The BRU is very good at creating narratives around “fairness”. They have succeeded at stymieing
rail in LA for years and years.
I have written to Gloria Molina, Knabe and Antonovich, and I will write to Eric Mann and Manuel Criollo too. Im glad that many here have written as well, and i urge those who havent yet to do so. The voice of the community is important in getting this back on the right track.
^”Knabe to change vote on sales tax”
“I cannot in good conscience burden County residents with over $10 million in higher election costs. The taxpayers will have to pay for these costs, and that is something I will not allow to happen. Additionally, the separate ballots, voter guides, and other resources needed to conduct a separate election on the same day as the Presidential Election could cause unnecessary confusion and challenges for voters. This upcoming election is the most important in many years, and voters deserve better than a potential disaster at their polling place.”
Absolutely brilliant! - such a drama this is. People can change their minds!
^ The bigger issue is now estimating what percentage of the electorate in November is likely to approve a ballot measure that increases the country sales tax to 8.50%, and whether that will be enough to reach the 2/3rds requirement.
On Bert Green’s comment (#50) about the idea of breaking up LA County.
I totally hate that idea. LOL. But seriously - I think you described the problem.
“What I’d like to see is a breakup of Los Angeles County. The western half would contain LA City (west to the beaches) and the eastern half would be the rest. But that would not likely ever happen.”
People from “the rest” know this mentality and how it’s shared among people of Los Angeles & the Westside. You want the number 1 reason this won’t pass in November? That’s it. You hit the nail on the head.
#64, I disagree. The sales tax is likely to pass. People all over the County want better mobility, and this is the one way within reach to get it. The desire to split the county is not some elitist vision, it is a purely practical matter to put more power into the hands of the people, and restrict the 5 supervisors from making decisions for so many people. Each of them has 2.5 million constituents. That’s not very democratic, and is a worse type of elitism.
A county of Los Angeles and a county of San Gabriel would be more responsive, and a better use of our money.
I got a reply from Gloria Molina this morning regarding the email i sent her last week.About my anger and disgust with her vote.
I have posted it on my blog. http://www.loveandhatela.blogspot.com
Her reply and the “op-ed” piece she said she wrote and submitted to the LA Times and that they have not yet chosen to publish it.
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