In 2022, County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer used campaign funds to cover about 30 percent of her child care bills for the year.
A 2019 state law allowed politico parents like Lawson-Remer to use campaign donations to pay child care bills they wouldn’t have had absent campaign activities – and her use of those funds represents an early test of the law.
Lawson-Remer, who is in a heated battle with ex-San Diego mayor Kevin Faulconer to hold onto her seat, says her use of more than $7,500 in campaign funds was within the bounds of the law – and said she’s grateful the law helps working parents like her run for office.
Some opponents have raised concerns that she personally benefited from the campaign funds.
Our Lisa Halverstadt dug into Lawson-Remer’s spending and spoke with legal experts who spotlighted the current lack of clarity on when spending may cross the line.
Family Seeks Restraining Order on DeMaio
A Rancho Bernardo family is seeking a restraining order against their neighbor, Carl DeMaio, who is running for the 75th Assembly District, which does not include Rancho Bernardo.
A judge declined to grant it immediately and a hearing is scheduled for next month. Our Scott Lewis talked to the man who filed the complaint with his wife. It stems from a long-running dispute between the family and DeMaio and his husband, Johnathan Hale. They share a property line. DeMaio threatened the family with legal action if they didn’t come to an agreement on plants and other work the family was doing on their property.
More interesting for the public: In that written threat, which was via email, DeMaio signed off with his address, the address of his and Hale’s property in Rancho Bernardo. But DeMaio is running for the 75th District in the Assembly and has claimed he officially lives in Fallbrook.
A campaign spokesperson insisted he does actually live in Fallbrook but only visits his other home to record his frequent podcast.
Toxic Tijuana River, Toxic South County Politics
A simmering feud between Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre and Board of Supervisors Chair Nora Vargas has burst into the public eye, writes South County reporter Jim Hinch.
The Imperial Beach Democratic Club, which Aguirre chairs, took the unusual step of rescinding their endorsement of Vargas, in her race against Republican Alejandro Galicia.
Why? According to the club’s communications director, the rebuke came because of Vargas’ lack of “concern and care,” for Imperial Beach residents.
Much of the club’s beef revolves around one issue: the Tijuana River sewage crisis. In their view, Vargas, who has at times put forward slightly mixed messaging about the urgency of the long-standing environmental, has downplayed the concerns of local residents and recently even stalled efforts to designate the area a toxic superfund site.
San Diego Unified’s No Good, Very Bad Deficit
If the upheaval of firing a superintendent wasn’t enough, San Diego Unified leaders are also facing a significant budget shortfall. Come next year, the district’s deficit is set to reach $176 million.
During a budget workshop Monday, leaders said they’d already identified solutions for $100 million of the deficit. Those will include cuts, mostly to center office staff, and through attrition. Officials have also said they will offer benefits to staff who choose to retire early but have been mum on whether they will resort to layoffs. Still, some layoffs seem all but certain.
San Diego Unified’s structural deficit isn’t going away: The deficit is set to grow to $230 million the year after next, as costs continue to rise. The loss of Covid-era recovery funds has played a big role in the deficit, as has declining enrollment and reductions in funding, officials said. But some recent district decisions have likely contributed mightily to the growing deficit.
In 2023, officials granted 15 percent raises to staff, adding an estimated $200 million to the district payroll per year. Overall, the district spends more than 85 percent of its budget on employee salaries and benefits, about 7.7 percent more than the average California school district.
Song of the Week
Digigurl, “Playboy”: Sebastian Alvarez’s latest tunes, under the moniker Digigurl, find him diving headfirst into doo-wop. The genre is a snug fit for the musical shapeshifter who sounds both genuine and fresh. On “Playboy,” Alvarez bemoans being defined as a lothario, singing sweetly “Darling, don’t you believe them. They say that to hurt us, don’t think of me as a playboy,” which would seem to me to be exactly what a playboy would say. In any case, the track is an infectious daydream of a song.
Read more about the Song of the Week here.
Like what you hear? Check out Digigurl at The Fazes’ album release show at sixtytwo on Thursday, Oct. 31.
Do you have a “Song of the Week” suggestion? Shoot us an email and a sentence or two about why you’ve been bumping this song lately. Friendly reminder: all songs should be by local artists!
Coffee with a Side of Catastrophes
Come meet our resident catastrophes reporter MacKenzie Elmer for a listening session and coffee at IB Espresso on Sunday, Oct. 27 at 10:30 a.m.
Elmer will dish on her coverage of the border sewage crisis, dirty beaches and all things environment. You can RSVP here.
In Other News
- The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a proposal by Monica Montgomery Steppe to audit the organization the county hired earlier this year to help flood victims of the January storm following months of criticism from community members about the group’s work. (KPBS)
- Crash investigators with the Texas Department of Public Safety released a report Monday about the car crash that three San Diego firefighters were involved in last month. According to the report, the driver may have fallen asleep. The three men were part of a strike team traveling to North Carolina to help with hurricane relief efforts. (Union-Tribune)
- This sea turtle took “a cool dip” to another level. SeaWorld’s rescue team is treating a loggerhead sea turtle that swam all the way to icy waters in Canada. (Union-Tribune)
- One San Diegan is trying to reunite a family album found on Fiesta Island with its rightful owners. (Fox 5)
- The city is proceeding with the expansion of its two homeless campsites following a City Council vote earlier this month.
The Morning Report was written by Lisa Halverstadt, Jakob McWhinney and Andrea Lopez-Villafaña. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.