Council Member Janice Hahn, Controller Wendy Greuel, Greater Los Angeles Area Local Elected Officials, Transportation and Transit Advocates Kick Off Signature Gathering for Statewide Ballot Measure

Supporters Say November 2010 Ballot Measure is Needed to Protect Funding for Public Safety, Emergency Response, Parks, Transportation and Transit Projects and other Vital Local Services in Los Angeles

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 11, 2010   

Los Angeles,  CA – Dozens of Los Angeles-area local government, transportation, business, public safety, labor and public transit leaders rallied today outside Los Angeles City Hall to kick off a statewide signature-gathering campaign to qualify the Local Taxpayer, Public Safety and Transportation Protection Act of 2010 (AG Initiative #: 09-0063) for the November 2010 ballot.

The measure closes loopholes to prevent the State from taking, diverting or borrowing local government, transportation, and public transit funds.  

Californians to Protect Local Taxpayers and Vital Services, the coalition sponsoring the ballot measure, will collect more than 1.1 million signatures to ensure it meets the required 694,354 valid signatures needed to qualify a constitutional amendment for the statewide ballot.  

Today’s kick off event in Los Angeles is one of several similar rallies held statewide last week and this week. Hundreds of local government, public safety, business, and labor leaders have signed up to assist in a massive volunteer signature gathering effort.

“This initiative is critically important, because it will prevent Sacramento from once again stealing local government's transportation and redevelopment funds," said City Controller Wendy Greuel.  "During these difficult economic times, Sacramento is trying to balance it's budget on the backs of hard working Angelenos by stealing funds that could help reduce traffic and put thousands of people back to work."”

California voters have repeatedly and overwhelmingly passed measures to restrict state raids of local government funds, as well as to dedicate gasoline taxes to transportation and public transit improvements and services. Despite this, State elected officials have exploited loopholes in the law and used legally questionable tactics to borrow and raid more than $5 billion in local government, transit and redevelopment funds this year alone, and billions more in past years. Coupled with the downturn in the economy and falling local government revenues, state raids and borrowing of local funds are contributing to severe cutbacks in local police and fire services, parks, libraries, street and road repair, public transit and other local services.

“Passing this measure is absolutely vital to protect the locally delivered services that improve our quality of life, provide for local police and fire departments--including 911 operators, help the neediest among us, and promote our local economies” said Los Angeles City Council Member Janice Hahn. “These vital local services have taken a devastating hit in recent years, in part because of the sagging economy, but also due to state lawmakers raiding billions of dollars in local government funds year after year.”

If passed, the Local Taxpayer, Public Safety, and Transportation Act of 2010 would:
•    Prohibit the state from borrowing local government property tax funds which are vital for public safety and other local services.
•    Prohibit the state from borrowing or taking gasoline taxes which are dedicated to transportation and transit improvements and services, including the state sales tax on gasoline (Prop. 42 funds), and the Highway User Tax on gasoline (HUTA).
•    Prevent the taking of locally levied taxes, including parcel taxes, sales taxes, and other locally imposed taxes that are currently dedicated to cities, counties and special districts.
•    Prohibit the state from taking, borrowing or redirecting existing funding for public transit, including existing taxes on gas and “spillover” funds dedicated to the Public Transportation Account.
•    Add additional constitutional protections to prevent the state from raiding redevelopment funds or shifting redevelopment funds to other state purposes.

Cities, counties and special districts provide the vast majority of law enforcement, fire protection, emergency response and public safety services in California. In fact, on average, 65% of city discretionary budgets go to fund police and fire programs and services and more than half of county discretionary budgets go to fund law enforcement, emergency medical and public health programs and services.

Gas taxes paid at the pump are supposed to be dedicated to transportation and transit improvement projects like road safety repairs, congestion relief, and maintaining and expanding mass transit.  Despite this, in the past few years alone the State has raided billions of dollars in public transit funding, and has threatened to borrow or outright take billions of dollars including Prop. 42 and HUTA gas tax funds that are supposed to fund transportation and transit improvements.

“California voters have repeatedly and overwhelmingly supported statewide measures that dedicate the gas taxes we pay at the pump for transportation and transit projects,” said Doran Barnes. “Despite this, the legislative trend to divert dedicated funding away from transportation continues.  Transportation funding is a fundamental and crucial component of this state’s future growth and survival.  This measure will once and for all protect gas taxes from future borrowing and diversion and insure they are used to develop the most important infrastructure of our state - our roads, highways, buses, shuttles and commuter rail systems – just as the voters intended.”

Council woman Hahn concluded:  “We’re confident that Californians will approve this measure to protect local taxpayer funds and transportation services from continued state raids. We encourage all voters to seek out the petition and sign it to place this important measure on the ballot.”