In North County cities, voters approved three out of four sales tax increases. But the sales tax measure that didn’t pass was surprising.
Encinitas has far more registered Democrats than Republicans — and Democrats are usually happy enough to pass a sales tax increase. But in this case, voters declined the sales tax and they also threw out the politicians that supported it.
“Coupled with overall frustration with the rising cost of living, it likely came down to a deeper dissatisfaction among Encinitas residents with how their city is being run and financially managed,” our Tigist Layne writes.
One political consultant said that sales taxes tend to pass when four things line up. Voters feel they can afford it; they believe the money will benefit their community directly; they trust the people pushing it; and the sales tax has an end date.
The consultant said at least three of these things need to be true for sales taxes to have a good chance of passing.
In this case, housing may also have played a role. Three politicians who opposed the sales tax also plan to fight the state on housing laws going forward. They all won.
New Council President Is La Jolla Secession-Curious
At his first press conference as San Diego City Council president, Wednesday, Joe LaCava refused to say he opposed the movement to separate La Jolla, his neighborhood, from the city.
Supporters have mounted the most serious version of the effort yet and claim they have enough signatures to eventually force votes on the issue. It would be an almost unfathomably complex unwinding of ties between San Diego City Hall and one of the most wealthy neighborhoods in the world. But it is steadily moving forward.
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria recently weighed in suggesting La Jollans would not even support the move after they truly confronted the cost and difficulty of separation from the city.
Remaining neutral: “La Jollans clearly need someone who will just give them objective answers to their questions. That’s the role I’m playing right now,” LaCava said.He pointed out that no community in California has successfully seceded from a larger city since Coronado voted to leave the city of San Diego in 1890.
In Other News
- San Diego’s jails have the highest jail death rates in California. It’s a crisis that has haunted past and current leaders. Now, the County Board of Supervisors are giving a civilian oversight board more powers to investigate in-custody deaths and employees within the jails. (CalMatters, Union-Tribune)
- Related: Sheriff Kelly Martinez made a lot of headlines yesterday with her response to the board’s decision to bar the county from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. She released a statement saying the board does not set policy for the Sheriff’s Office. She said, “The Sheriff’s Office will not change its practices based on the board resolution…” (Union-Tribune)
- East County residents dealing with power outages because of strong winds, could likely spend the rest of the week without power. San Diego Gas & Electric shuts off power to reduce wildfire risks. Residents spoke to KPBS about how they are dealing with the outage. CBS 8 spoke to business owners in Ramona who are growing increasingly frustrated. “It breaks my heart to throw away any meat,” said one grocery store owner.
- El Cajon police shot and killed a person in a pickup truck who allegedly ran over a police officer near the police station on Civic Center Way. Police officials said the driver also tried to hit another officer. (Fox 5)
- Geoff Patnoe is Carlsbad’s new city manager. The former assistant city manager is replacing Scott Chadwick who left the city to become the new president and CEO of the Port of San Diego. (Union-Tribune)
The Morning Report was written by Will Huntsberry and Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.
Did opponents successfully frame this as a ‘blank check’ for city hall? Would a sunset clause or independent oversight have changed minds?