LB Police Officers Union PAC Adds $100,000 To Committee Urging Sales Tax Hike...That Council Could Spend On Any Gen'l Fund Items Including Raises In Contracts Up For Negotiation

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LBPOA PAC Total = $113k+; LB Firefighters Union PAC Total = $57k+; First Mailer (Showing Photo of Mayors O'Neill, Foster & Garcia) Lands In Mailboxes

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(April 21, 2016, 8:57 a.m., updated 9:25 p.m.) -- The Long Beach Police Officers Association Political Action Committee (PAC) has added $100,000 to the campaign for a Mayor/Council sought sales tax hike to 10% (currently 9% in Signal Hill/Lakewood, 8% in most OC cities) that current and future City Councils could spend for any general fund purposes...including raises in upcoming contract negotiations. The $100k is in addition to $13,316.67 previously contributed by LBPOA's PAC to the campaign; the LBPOA's PAC made the $100k contribution on April 11, reflected in papers filed on April 14 with the City Clerk's office

As previously reported by LBREPORT.com, the LB Firefighters Association PAC has contributed $57,625 to the campaign for the sales tax increase.

An April 13 filing by the "Mayor Garcia, Foster & O'Neill Committee To Support Measures A & B To Protect Police & Fire And Repair Infrastructure In Long Beach" for the period Jan 1-April 3 indicates that of those total sums, $13,316.67 from the LB Police Officers Ass'n on March 28, and $7,625 from the LB Firefighters Ass'n PAC on March 29, were non-monetary contributions for polling.

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The two city employee unions are the sales tax increase's first two and only campaign contributors listed to date, providing a combined total to date of $170,000 (of which $20,941.67 were non-monetary contributions for polling.)

On April 20, a mail piece landed in a number of LB mailboxes, displaying a picture of Mayors O'Neill, Foster and Garcia with text above their signatures telling recipients that "the additional revenue will provide us with a historic opportunity to make repairs to our city's streets and sidewalks and water systems to ensure that we protect our 9-1-1 response times and first responders..."

The proposed sales tax increase doesn't legally guarantee funding for these items, because the City Council chose not to include them or any specific items in the tax text itself, thereby leaving the measure a general tax that current and future Councils can spend on any general fund items.

The police and firefighter union contracts come up for negotiation in the coming months; in 2015, the Council voted to extend a contract with the city's other major public employee union (IAM, representing non-public safety employees) until the second half of 2016 [after the June 2016 election]

As previously reported (first again) by LBREPORT.com, Mayor Garcia used his officeholder account (funded by individuals, including some lobbyists, and a number of interest groups with a newly allowed total tripled by Council voted action in early 2015), plus support from LB police officers and firefighters unions, to fund a survey contending that the public would support "increased revenue" to increase police and fire staffing and fix potholes and maintain local streets.

In late January and early February 2016, the Council voted without dissent to put a measure on the ballot that doesn't legally guarantee these items but includes a ballot label telling voters [ballot text, all caps in original] "CITY OF LONG BEACH PUBLIC SAFETY, INFRASTRUCTURE REPAIR AND NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES MEASURE. To maintain 911 emergency response services; increase police, firefighter/paramedic staffing; repair potholes/streets; improve water supplies; and maintain general services; shall the City of Long Beach establish a one cent (1%) transactions and use (sales) tax..." Including the words "and maintain general services" is the only indication that the measure is actually a general tax that the Council could spend for any general fund purposes. (State law prohibits false or misleading ballot titles but no party challenged City Hall's ballot lablel verbiage in court.)

From September 2009 (FY10) forward, there is no record of the LB Police Officers Association testifying in opposition to Council budget actions that erased the largest number of police officers available for citywide deployment for LB taxpayers within a five year period in the more than 100 year history of the City of Long Beach. The LBPOA PAC's leadership has also supported the re-election and advancement of Councilmembers who voted for these actions, including then-1st dist. Council rep Garcia (elected Mayor in 2014) and most recently Council incumbents Al Austin (8th dist.) and Dee Andrews (6th dist.)