Critically Speaking: It’s measuring up to be a big election
Taxes, charter amendments and an expanded board of supervisors.
I’ll start by acknowledging that, yes, this is a presidential election year and that means millions of people in the state will turn out to vote in November.
A Republican hasn’t won the state of California since 1988 (I was two) so it kind of feels like the winner of California’s electoral votes is a foregone conclusion.
But don’t worry, there are plenty of local races you’ll have a bigger hand in deciding and their results are more likely to affect you on a day-to-day basis.
Because all politics are local, we’ll start in Long Beach where there is just one City Council race to decide but a handful of ballot measures could shake things up in the city and county.
In Long Beach, voters will likely be asked to approve a charter amendment that could change the city’s hiring process, which has chugged along for decades with the help of a Civil Service Department.
City officials and the mayor have advocated for changes to the hiring process, saying that the current system is antiquated and has helped contribute to an over 20% vacancy rate across all city departments.
Letting the city’s Human Resources department take over the hiring functions for all positions is something that can speed up hiring in the city, officials say.
It currently takes about seven months to hire new employees, according to city data.
Opponents have alleged the changes could lead to favoritism finding its way into city hiring but voters will have to weigh the pros and the cons.
The council could also vote Tuesday to approve a ballot measure that would remove an exemption for two power plants that have operated in the city for decades without having to pay the utility users tax that everyone else does.
Removing the exemption could generate about $15 million per year for the city, something it needs to help mitigate the loss of oil revenue, but power plant operators and Southern California Edison have warned the city that the removal of the exemption would lead to increased fees for Long Beach accounts.
The power plants generate electricity for accounts outside of Long Beach and the city has said that it would fight any attempt by Edison to pursue what appear to be retaliatory fees against Long Beach ratepayers.
What would absolutely affect Long Beach households is the $990 million bond measure that Long Beach City College leaders could place on the November ballot. It would raise property taxes by $25 for every $100,000 of assessed values for property owners in the city.
LBCC’s board of trustees say the money is needed to fund construction projects at the college’s two campuses, including multiple student housing projects as well as other renovations and upgrades.
In total, the college is potentially looking at constructing enough units to house 700 people but it will need the bond measure to be approved.
Recent data from a survey paid for by LBCC shows that likely voters are skeptical of the need to issue the bonds and support for the measure was hovering around the 55% mark needed to pass.
Then there are two countywide measures that could change how much sales tax Long Beach residents and visitors pay when they check out at businesses in the city and could shake up the composition of the LA County Board of Supervisors.
Expanding the board is something that supervisors have looked at multiple times in the past and each time voters have shot down the idea. There’s a saying that voters will never vote for more government but supervisors seem intent on testing that notion again in November.
If it passes, Long Beach likely wouldn’t see a change in representation until after the next Census when a new redistricting process would unfold and the four new seats would come online.
But a countywide measure with more immediate impacts on Long Beach is also expected to be on the ballot.
A soon-to-expire homeless tax (Measure H) could be replaced with a new countywide sales tax increase that would continue to fund homeless services but would also pour money into a new countywide initiative aimed at building affordable housing.
The unique affect on Long Beach would be two-fold. The city’s Measure A money that is being diverted to the county until 2028 to pay the city’s share of Measure H would come back to the city resulting in roughly 12 million additional dollars in 2025 and $24 million annually for the city over the next few years.
But the new tax would also push Long Beach’s sales tax rate to 10.75%, which would be the highest in the state.
Your vote matters in November. And it’s always amplified when it comes to local issues.
What happened this week
The city released its proposed budget Thursday and it’s a little less spectacular than previous years. There were no calls to build an amphitheater next to the Queen Mary to draw in world class music acts or giant poster boards laying out where the city is going to invest hundreds of millions in city parks, streets and other projects. With the city staring down large deficits and the final year of being bailed out by COVID-19 relief funding, city officials are focusing on “bread and butter” issues like code enforcement, public safety and general maintenance. It’s a reality for the city, which needs to figure out how to close a projected $20 million funding gap next year but some of the upcoming ballot measures discussed above could decrease the need for cuts to services in 2025.
Something to keep an eye on
Budget season is officially upon us and this is your opportunity to get involved. Tuesday will be the first hearing for the proposed budget and will provide a broad overview of the spending plan but the following weeks will zoom in from the forest view and get down into the trees of how the police, fire and other departments plan to spend their funding. It’s a time for communities to advocate for needs in their neighborhoods and if they’re persistent enough they just might get it. Here’s a list of the upcoming meetings. I’ll see you out there.
Editors note: The story has been updated to include the additional funding the city would receive after 2025 if the countywide tax is approved.
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