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Supervisor Barger Casts Lone Vote Against Property Owners Tax Funding Waterway Cleanup

Supervisor Kathryn Barger cast the only vote against a plan to tax property owners in order to fund a federally mandated clean up of local waterways, in a 4-1 vote by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.


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The plan will now be on the ballot in Los Angeles County’s November election, when voters from Santa Clarita and the rest of L.A. County will decide on the measure.

Barger’s main concern regarding the proposed measure is the burden it will add onto property owners, considering the potential future parcel tax which will fund a structural deficit in the fire department, and the possible upward pressure it would put on rental rates.

“The proposed initiative far exceeds the requirements of the MS4 permit which governs pollutant levels in local waterways,” Barger said. “The permit is based on assumptions that are antiquated and require updating before we go to the taxpayers for more money.”

Barger’s stance reflects the concerns of homeowners who urged board members to rethink certain elements of the plan, calling the plan “not ready for voters.” The protestors have accused the board of creating an overly burdensome process for property owners to get credit for improvements that support conservation.

Many have asked for a sunset clause to be included which would prevent the tax from becoming a “forever tax.”

“Without … this (sunset) clause, this tax stands very little chance of passage. Get it right. Don’t be greedy,” said Laura Olhasso of the Pasadena-Foothills Association of Realtors.

The measure, referred to as the Safe Clean Water Program, is expected to raise $300 million annually if it is passed to capture, clean and conserve stormwater that currently runs downstream, polluting rivers and beaches.

Supporters of the tax believe keeping the oceans clean should be a priority.

Shelley Luce, the president and CEO of Heal the Bay, a nonprofit working to clean up the Los Angeles coastline, said the measure would ultimately “save millions of dollars of taxpayer dollars” by putting the county in compliance with the federal Clean Water Act.

The region’s two main waterways, the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers, have been found to have excessive levels of aluminum, copper, cyanide, zinc and fecal bacteria, due to urban runoff and untreated stormwater.

Those rivers drain into Santa Monica Bay and the Pacific Ocean, leaving areas near storm drains closed to swimmers and surfers after heavy rains.

The tax would allocate 50 percent of its funds to watershed agencies for regional water projects, 40 percent to cities for local priority projects and 10 percent to the county flood control district for district or educational programs and administration.  

The average tax is estimated to be $83 per year and property owners can calculate their bill at www.safecleanwaterla.org, which relies on GIS mapping to identify hard-scraped areas versus green space.

Schools would be exempt from the tax.“Every year a full 100 billion gallons of water runs down our curbs and out into the ocean,” said County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, who co-authored the bill. “We have to get water-wise.”

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Supervisor Barger Casts Lone Vote Against Property Owners Tax Funding Waterway Cleanup

4 comments

  1. I’m with You Ms. Barger. I will continue to vote for You. It has to be difficult to stand up against the radical leftist groups in California.

  2. Is it the article or the bill that is so vague about how the actual clean up will be done? I didn’t see anything that relates to clean water. There is just a lot of money to pay more government workers to keep their thumbs up their….

  3. The politicians think the public is gullible and will knee-jerk reaction to anything related to water quality. You do realize that this is storm drain water we are talking about. If the EPA needs this monitor, they fund it already.

  4. another attempt to raise taxes again more excuses

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About Lori Bashian

Lori Bashian joined KHTS AM 1220 as a staff writer in 2017 following a news internship. She started working in news during her time at College of the Canyons writing for Cougar News. She is currently studying at California State University, Northridge working towards a bachelor’s degree in Journalism with an emphasis in print.