Latest news with #PublicSafetyCommittee
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Isle of Palms considering restrictions on shore-based shark fishing
ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCBD) – A Lowcountry beach community is considering implementing new regulations on recreational fishing that would prevent anglers from intentionally trying to catch sharks. The discussion comes after an Isle of Palms resident raised safety concerns about a commercial shark fishing business operating from the beach near their home. 'If you're attracting larger sharks from offshore, bringing them in where it's a threat possibly to swimmers and surfers, I think that's something we definitely ought to look at,' Councilman Rusty Streetman said during a Public Safety Committee meeting last month. Current city law prohibits commercial activity on the beach, but nothing in the code specifically stops someone from recreationally fishing for sharks or other species in the surf, according to Isle of Palms Police Chief Kevin Cornett. As shore-based shark fishing becomes increasingly popular along the coast, city councilmembers are now looking at ways to curb the potentially dangerous activity. 'Shark fishing has a long and checkered history off the South Carolina coast,' Councilman Blair Hahn wrote in a June 9 message to News 2. 'It has been made in Horry County and many coastal communities for decades. For multiple reasons, the IOP never addressed this practice…I believe the time has come to do so.' The practice involves releasing chum into the water from a structure like a pier to attract sharks closer to the shore, sometimes with the help of drones or kayaks. Anglers then use heavy rods and other specialized gear to reel them in. 'We currently have multiple individuals that set up between 47th and 50th Avenue, paddle ten-pound-plus hunks of meat 200 yards offshore and set large steel J hooks,' Hahn said. He explained that an underwater ridge about one mile offshore, called the 'bump,' has become a hotspot for sharks and other large fish such as tarpons that feed on shrimp, noting that tiger sharks, bull sharks, and even Great Whites have been tracked in the area. 'Bringing these predators to shore, especially after making them angry and hungry, is an exceptionally bad idea,' Hahn said. 'I have watched individuals drag shark through surf, past multiple individuals swimming in the ocean on multiple occasions. Shark bites are bad on many levels. Obviously, shark bites create life-threatening injuries. In addition, shark bites tax our EMS services and have a chilling effect on tourism.' These techniques not only increase the likelihood of an unwanted interaction between sharks and swimmers, but the use of larger fishing gear also presents safety risks to those enjoying other activities on the water. 'The last thing we want is a kid to get stuck on a hook, and depending on what they're fishing for, could dictate how big that hook is,' Chief Cornett said during a June 3 committee meeting. The proposed restrictions would be modeled after ordinances and guidelines already in place in other parts of the state, including Seabrook Island and Horry County, according to officials. Southern Shrimp Alliance study reveals a majority of Charleston-area restaurants serve imported shrimp While the specifics are being worked out, the ordinance would generally prohibit someone from intentionally fishing for sharks and require that they be immediately released if caught – an extension of a state law that already mandates catch-and-release for certain species. Chumming with raw meat or fish parts, excluding poultry products, within a certain distance of the beach and using certain equipment like drones and trot lines would also be prohibited. 'You're not going to take feed, dead fish, and others and put it in the water,' said Councilman John Bogosian, who chairs the Public Safety Committee. 'That's specifically attracting sharks, and that activity shouldn't be legal.' Still, Bogosian questioned how the rules would be enforced given that recreational fishermen do not usually know what they will catch when casting a line. 'If you put it in there that fishing for shark is illegal, to me it's unenforceable unless someone says, 'Yeah, I'm fishing for shark,'' he said. Cornett acknowledged that enforcing a shark fishing ban would be challenging overall, but certain acts like chumming would be 'easy to verify.' The issue is expected to go back before the committee in July for further discussion. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
HPD vacancy task force under Council scrutiny
The Honolulu City Council is set to vote Wednesday on a proposed task force to reduce the Honolulu Police Department's dire staffing shortage of 456 uniformed officer vacancies—which despite mitigation efforts has grown 32 % in some four years. Council member Andria Tupola, who introduced Resolution 160 to form a task force, says HPD's staffing shortage is an ongoing crisis that puts the public at risk. 'We can't be burning days. This is a big issue, ' said Tupola during the Council's Public Safety Committee meeting Thursday. 'By the end of this year, we don't want to hit 500 ' police officer vacancies. The Council's Public Safety Committee has recommended that the City Council adopt Resolution 160 to fill vacancies and promote officer retention at HPD. Tupola's resolution states HPD 'is currently experiencing a severe staffing shortage, with 456 uniformed officer vacancies as of February 2025, compared to 345 vacancies in February 2021, despite ongoing efforts to reduce the shortage.' 'This staffing shortage has resulted in inadequate police coverage across Oahu, increased emergency response times, unmanageable caseloads for police detectives, and increased safety risks for both officers and the public, ' the legislation says. Resolution 160 highlights that in 2024, HPD conducted an internal 'Commander Performance Survey ' in which survey responses noted 'high vacancy rates, increased workloads, insufficient resources, and overall safety risks.' Tupola's resolution alleges that HPD's inability to resolve its officer vacancies rests with its leadership, in this case Police Chief Arthur 'Joe ' Logan. 'The City Council finds it necessary to hold the Chief of Police accountable for the failure to adequately address vacancies in a timely and effective manner, which has directly contributed to the current crisis, and to take swift action to resolve this issue, ' Resolution 160 states. 'Council believes it is critical to establish a task force to develop actionable strategies for reducing vacancies, improving retention, and ensuring that the HPD can effectively serve and protect Oahu communities.' Logan did not immediately respond to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser's request for comment. Tupola's resolution also noted that part of HPD's challenge is that the department is not using all of its annual appropriations. In fiscal year 2024, HPD's patrol division let approximately $15 million in funding lapse—the largest lapsed amount of any city department, according to the Status of the City's Finances 2025 report issued by the Office of Council Services. The report also noted that HPD let $50 million of its overall fiscal year 2024 appropriation lapse. To put that into perspective, in March, HPD submitted a fiscal year 2026 operating budget request of nearly $400 million to fight crime. Resolution 160 also requests that the task force 'remain in effect to monitor progress on its recommendations and may be dissolved by the Council once (HPD ) demonstrates sustained improvement in recruitment, retention, and staff levels.' Tupola announced at Thursday's meeting that she had taken part in a recent meeting to discuss the task force proposal with Logan, Council Public Safety Committee Chair Val Okimoto and Police Commission Chair Kenneth Silva. She said the group 'all agreed that a written plan about addressing the vacancies, and not just recruitment (but ) also retention ' was needed and that budget-line items needed to delineate how to 'fund each of the things that we think will help the department move forward.' Tupola thanked city Managing Director Mike Formby for his assistance. 'He's been participating in a lot of these discussions, so he's included as well in the list of nine people ' on the task force, she added. Tupola noted that the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers and the Hawaii Government Employees Association could 'also play a role ' in advising Logan on how to retain positions or recruit to fill vacancies. The task force, Tupola said, also should have a representative from an outside police department. HPD Maj. Parker Bode, assigned to the department's Human Resources Division, told the committee that he favored Resolution 160. 'We support the intent of the task force, ' he said. Eddie Fujioka, a retired city Emergency Medical Services district chief, was among others who testified in support of forming a task force. Fujioka said he was pleased that a focus of Tupola's resolution is shoring up police dispatchers. 'I've noticed that the Police Department has always been short of dispatchers, ' he said. 'They're the primary answering point for the County of Honolulu, which means every 911 call must go to the Police Department, and it's routed to either EMS or Ocean Safety.' He added that HPD's dispatchers 'are the only dispatchers who are nonuniformed personnel, which means they make the lowest wages of any dispatcher in the county, yet they do the most amount of work, answer the most amount of calls.' 'And I've seen times when they're on skeleton crew and when a dispatcher who's on the radio has to go on a break, another dispatcher has to manage two districts, which is very dangerous and stressful for the dispatchers, ' Fujioka said. Council member Esther Kia 'aina suggested increasing the task force's 90-day timeline to produce a written report to 180 days. 'People who are going to be part of this task force will have their own opinions, and you don't rush something, ' Kia 'aina said. 'You discuss it and ensure that out of the collective voices you will hopefully have a unified front to wean out what should be actionable items.' Tupola said she was agreeable to a verbal amendment to increase the timeline to 180 days, but said, 'It does not prohibit us from finishing it faster.' Waianae Coast Neighborhood Board Chair Philip Ganaban told the Star-Advertiser after the meeting that his board supports Tupola's Resolution 160. A lifelong Waianae resident, Ganaban said increasing police presence in the area is a good thing, but it won't solve all crimes that occur there, particularly gun-related violence involving youth and families. 'We need to really find ways to make things positive for these kids, ' he said, adding that the cost of living and a lack of youth-oriented programs along the Waianae Coast increase the challenges. 'So these kids can fall into the wrong crowd, and can get them things that they can't do the legal way—which comes with the guns.' 'Don't get me wrong, I would love to have more police, ' he added, 'but I think it's not going to prevent anything.' To promote prevention and education, Ganaban said he favors restarting Drug Abuse Resistance Education, or D.A.R.E., or the Scared Straight program where at-risk youth are exposed to jail or prison life. 'Those are good programs that are not in the schools anymore, and I don't know why, ' he said. 'That's one of those HPD things that they did have that actually really made a difference when it started at a young age with the kids.' Jeff Merz, the Waikiki Neighborhood Board's Subdistrict 1 vice chair, said he favored improvements to HPD's staffing but also recognized that crime in the island's prime tourist zone will still occur. 'Again, anything we can do to shed light on the issue is good, but I'd like to see some absolutes, or some things that come out of this that are actionable and that would need to be required to be taken by the city, ' Merz, a 23-year Waikiki resident, said of the proposed task force. 'If those are the recommendations that they have to implement, or try to make them so we can solve this issue, as opposed to coming up with a report and putting it on the shelf.' 'So I think if it's got some teeth to it, and the City Council and the mayor agree to implement the recommendations, then I think we have something to stand on there, ' he added. However, Merz noted recruiting for police officers in high-priced Oahu is difficult. 'We're not the only city suffering from a lack of police officers ; it's nationwide, ' he said. 'Possibly, we're not going to be able to fill all of those positions ; it's expensive in Hawaii, and it's just not an occupation that a lot of people want to pursue.' Merz said employing new technologies—including ground-based surveillance cameras and aerial drones—may be alternate ways for law enforcement to reduce crime in Waikiki and elsewhere on the island. TASK FORCE REQUIREMENTS The HPD staffing and retention task force, formed by Resolution 160, will be composed of the following nine members :—The Council chair, or the chair's designee—A representative from the mayor's office—The chief of police, or the chief's designee—A Honolulu Police Commission representative—A city Department of Human Resources representative—A State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers representative—A Hawaii Government Employees Association representative—A current HPD officer, to be appointed by the Council—A representative from another police department with success in reducing officer vacancies, also to be appointed by the Council. Once formed, Resolution 160 says the new task force should study the following issues :—Analyze HPD recruitment and retention challenges and identify the primary causes of vacancies.—Review and evaluate existing hiring and retention initiatives, including financial incentives.—Assess HPD's hiring standards to determine whether they are unnecessarily restrictive and preventing qualified applicants from being hired.—Develop a strategic plan with short-and long-term recommendations to reduce vacancies and improve officer retention.—Evaluate HPD's budget to ensure funding is directed toward staffing priorities.—Submit a report to the Council within 180 days of the adoption of the resolution, which provides the task force's analysis and recommendations, and provide a copy of the report to the Honolulu Police Commission to support its evaluation of the chief of police. Source : Resolution 160
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
HPD vacancy task force under Council scrutiny
The Honolulu City Council is set to vote Wednesday on a proposed task force to reduce the Honolulu Police Department's dire staffing shortage of 456 uniformed officer vacancies—which despite mitigation efforts has grown 32 % in some four years. Council member Andria Tupola, who introduced Resolution 160 to form a task force, says HPD's staffing shortage is an ongoing crisis that puts the public at risk. 'We can't be burning days. This is a big issue, ' said Tupola during the Council's Public Safety Committee meeting Thursday. 'By the end of this year, we don't want to hit 500 ' police officer vacancies. The Council's Public Safety Committee has recommended that the City Council adopt Resolution 160 to fill vacancies and promote officer retention at HPD. Tupola's resolution states HPD 'is currently experiencing a severe staffing shortage, with 456 uniformed officer vacancies as of February 2025, compared to 345 vacancies in February 2021, despite ongoing efforts to reduce the shortage.' 'This staffing shortage has resulted in inadequate police coverage across Oahu, increased emergency response times, unmanageable caseloads for police detectives, and increased safety risks for both officers and the public, ' the legislation says. Resolution 160 highlights that in 2024, HPD conducted an internal 'Commander Performance Survey ' in which survey responses noted 'high vacancy rates, increased workloads, insufficient resources, and overall safety risks.' Tupola's resolution alleges that HPD's inability to resolve its officer vacancies rests with its leadership, in this case Police Chief Arthur 'Joe ' Logan. 'The City Council finds it necessary to hold the Chief of Police accountable for the failure to adequately address vacancies in a timely and effective manner, which has directly contributed to the current crisis, and to take swift action to resolve this issue, ' Resolution 160 states. 'Council believes it is critical to establish a task force to develop actionable strategies for reducing vacancies, improving retention, and ensuring that the HPD can effectively serve and protect Oahu communities.' Logan did not immediately respond to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser's request for comment. Tupola's resolution also noted that part of HPD's challenge is that the department is not using all of its annual appropriations. In fiscal year 2024, HPD's patrol division let approximately $15 million in funding lapse—the largest lapsed amount of any city department, according to the Status of the City's Finances 2025 report issued by the Office of Council Services. The report also noted that HPD let $50 million of its overall fiscal year 2024 appropriation lapse. To put that into perspective, in March, HPD submitted a fiscal year 2026 operating budget request of nearly $400 million to fight crime. Resolution 160 also requests that the task force 'remain in effect to monitor progress on its recommendations and may be dissolved by the Council once (HPD ) demonstrates sustained improvement in recruitment, retention, and staff levels.' Tupola announced at Thursday's meeting that she had taken part in a recent meeting to discuss the task force proposal with Logan, Council Public Safety Committee Chair Val Okimoto and Police Commission Chair Kenneth Silva. She said the group 'all agreed that a written plan about addressing the vacancies, and not just recruitment (but ) also retention ' was needed and that budget-line items needed to delineate how to 'fund each of the things that we think will help the department move forward.' Tupola thanked city Managing Director Mike Formby for his assistance. 'He's been participating in a lot of these discussions, so he's included as well in the list of nine people ' on the task force, she added. Tupola noted that the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers and the Hawaii Government Employees Association could 'also play a role ' in advising Logan on how to retain positions or recruit to fill vacancies. The task force, Tupola said, also should have a representative from an outside police department. HPD Maj. Parker Bode, assigned to the department's Human Resources Division, told the committee that he favored Resolution 160. 'We support the intent of the task force, ' he said. Eddie Fujioka, a retired city Emergency Medical Services district chief, was among others who testified in support of forming a task force. Fujioka said he was pleased that a focus of Tupola's resolution is shoring up police dispatchers. 'I've noticed that the Police Department has always been short of dispatchers, ' he said. 'They're the primary answering point for the County of Honolulu, which means every 911 call must go to the Police Department, and it's routed to either EMS or Ocean Safety.' He added that HPD's dispatchers 'are the only dispatchers who are nonuniformed personnel, which means they make the lowest wages of any dispatcher in the county, yet they do the most amount of work, answer the most amount of calls.' 'And I've seen times when they're on skeleton crew and when a dispatcher who's on the radio has to go on a break, another dispatcher has to manage two districts, which is very dangerous and stressful for the dispatchers, ' Fujioka said. Council member Esther Kia 'aina suggested increasing the task force's 90-day timeline to produce a written report to 180 days. 'People who are going to be part of this task force will have their own opinions, and you don't rush something, ' Kia 'aina said. 'You discuss it and ensure that out of the collective voices you will hopefully have a unified front to wean out what should be actionable items.' Tupola said she was agreeable to a verbal amendment to increase the timeline to 180 days, but said, 'It does not prohibit us from finishing it faster.' Waianae Coast Neighborhood Board Chair Philip Ganaban told the Star-Advertiser after the meeting that his board supports Tupola's Resolution 160. A lifelong Waianae resident, Ganaban said increasing police presence in the area is a good thing, but it won't solve all crimes that occur there, particularly gun-related violence involving youth and families. 'We need to really find ways to make things positive for these kids, ' he said, adding that the cost of living and a lack of youth-oriented programs along the Waianae Coast increase the challenges. 'So these kids can fall into the wrong crowd, and can get them things that they can't do the legal way—which comes with the guns.' 'Don't get me wrong, I would love to have more police, ' he added, 'but I think it's not going to prevent anything.' To promote prevention and education, Ganaban said he favors restarting Drug Abuse Resistance Education, or D.A.R.E., or the Scared Straight program where at-risk youth are exposed to jail or prison life. 'Those are good programs that are not in the schools anymore, and I don't know why, ' he said. 'That's one of those HPD things that they did have that actually really made a difference when it started at a young age with the kids.' Jeff Merz, the Waikiki Neighborhood Board's Subdistrict 1 vice chair, said he favored improvements to HPD's staffing but also recognized that crime in the island's prime tourist zone will still occur. 'Again, anything we can do to shed light on the issue is good, but I'd like to see some absolutes, or some things that come out of this that are actionable and that would need to be required to be taken by the city, ' Merz, a 23-year Waikiki resident, said of the proposed task force. 'If those are the recommendations that they have to implement, or try to make them so we can solve this issue, as opposed to coming up with a report and putting it on the shelf.' 'So I think if it's got some teeth to it, and the City Council and the mayor agree to implement the recommendations, then I think we have something to stand on there, ' he added. However, Merz noted recruiting for police officers in high-priced Oahu is difficult. 'We're not the only city suffering from a lack of police officers ; it's nationwide, ' he said. 'Possibly, we're not going to be able to fill all of those positions ; it's expensive in Hawaii, and it's just not an occupation that a lot of people want to pursue.' Merz said employing new technologies—including ground-based surveillance cameras and aerial drones—may be alternate ways for law enforcement to reduce crime in Waikiki and elsewhere on the island. TASK FORCE REQUIREMENTS The HPD staffing and retention task force, formed by Resolution 160, will be composed of the following nine members :—The Council chair, or the chair's designee—A representative from the mayor's office—The chief of police, or the chief's designee—A Honolulu Police Commission representative—A city Department of Human Resources representative—A State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers representative—A Hawaii Government Employees Association representative—A current HPD officer, to be appointed by the Council—A representative from another police department with success in reducing officer vacancies, also to be appointed by the Council. Once formed, Resolution 160 says the new task force should study the following issues :—Analyze HPD recruitment and retention challenges and identify the primary causes of vacancies.—Review and evaluate existing hiring and retention initiatives, including financial incentives.—Assess HPD's hiring standards to determine whether they are unnecessarily restrictive and preventing qualified applicants from being hired.—Develop a strategic plan with short-and long-term recommendations to reduce vacancies and improve officer retention.—Evaluate HPD's budget to ensure funding is directed toward staffing priorities.—Submit a report to the Council within 180 days of the adoption of the resolution, which provides the task force's analysis and recommendations, and provide a copy of the report to the Honolulu Police Commission to support its evaluation of the chief of police. Source : Resolution 160
The Star
25-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
The Ohio legislation that could force Chinese scientists to sell their US homes
Xiang Zhang, a professor of genomics at the University of Cincinnati, drove more than 1,000 miles over two days to oppose a proposed law that would force him to sell his home, even though he is a US permanent resident. 'I never thought that one day, I would have to stand here in front of you to defend myself solely because of my nationality,' he told a packed hearing room in the Ohio Statehouse on Tuesday morning, after cutting short a trip to make it back and give his testimony. 'I never thought that one day, I would lose my house in Ohio solely because of my nationality.' Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team. Zhang – who arrived in the US in 1998 with just a suitcase and a US$100 bill, and now leads a major research facility that supports hundreds of life scientists across the country – told Public Safety Committee lawmakers that he had been living his American dream. The midwestern state is following in the footsteps of Florida and Texas by proposing legislation to ban non-citizens from 'foreign adversary' countries – such as China, Iran, and Russia – from owning land within 25 miles (40km) of critical infrastructure. House Bill 1, which is supposed to address national security concerns like espionage and cyberattacks, would apply even to green card holders like Zhang. Under SB 88, a related Senate bill, he would be required to sell his house within two years. Ohio Realtors, the state's largest professional trade association, said House Bill 1 would be likely to become 'the most restrictive law of its kind in the entire nation'. Unlike similar laws, Ohio's bill covers nearly all real estate in the state and makes no exceptions for legal residents. In testimony, the association warned that the bill's broad definition of critical infrastructure – which includes electric generation plants, water treatment facilities, and telecommunication systems – would make nearly all property in Ohio off-limits to affected immigrants. The association also noted that the bill could face legal challenges for potentially violating federal laws, including the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution. It would also hinder Ohio's universities from 'attracting the best talent from across the globe'. About 100 people attended the hearing, making it one of the most well-attended in recent years, a Statehouse employee said. The crowd was so large that some had to move to an overflow room to watch a live stream of the event. Many in the room were US citizens who would not be directly affected by the bill. They said they came to speak out against what they viewed as a discriminatory law. Among those who testified was Anquan Wang, a senior aerospace engineer at GE Aerospace in Cincinnati. With decades of experience in the aviation industry, Wang said that he had had first-hand encounters with overseas attempts to steal US technologies. 'We need to counter real foreign adversaries. We need to be laser-focused, because the threat is real,' he said. 'But targeting ordinary people who came here legally to study and work is out of focus. Depriving them of constitutional rights to acquire properties is completely wrong and has nothing to do with national security.' Wang said the bill made him feel discriminated against, as it targeted individuals based on national origin – something no one could choose. By casting all citizens from certain countries as potential threats, the law promoted fear and prejudice, he added. 'House Bill 1 is about racial profiling and fear mongering. If this isn't racial profiling, I don't know what racial profiling is. If this isn't fear mongering, I don't know what fear mongering is.' Wang added that his colleague and neighbour Dr Li, a China-born US citizen and senior military aircraft engineer, was already considering leaving Ohio because of the bill. 'Dr Li has worked on military aircraft engine programmes for more than 20 years,' he said. 'When experienced people like him start to leave, it's a great loss to our company. Twenty years of experience in our industry is worth tens of millions of dollars. It also hurts our defence programmes.' I've always believed in passing on my knowledge and skills to the next generation of scientists here in the US, because science, at its heart, is about building something greater than ourselves Wing Keung Chan, a biomedical researcher at The Ohio State University in Columbus, said he had noticed a steady decline in the number of China-born scientists around him over the past couple of years. The bill would only accelerate that trend, he said. Chan, who came to the US in 2008 after completing his PhD at the University of Hong Kong, said he came to pursue his American dream and now worked alongside both Americans and immigrant colleagues on diseases that affected everybody. His efforts included supporting clinical trials, mentoring students, and collaborating across institutions. 'I've always believed in passing on my knowledge and skills to the next generation of scientists here in the US, because science, at its heart, is about building something greater than ourselves,' he said. Citing data from Science and other leading journals, Chan noted that China-born researchers made up a significant portion of the US medical and STEM workforce, contributing heavily to research, healthcare, and higher education. But growing suspicion towards scientists of Chinese descent had already taken a toll, he said. Nearly 20,000 left the US between 2010 and 2021, including more than 1,000 life scientists who departed in 2021 alone. 'Legislation like House Bill 1 and Senate Bill 88 does not protect our future – it jeopardises it,' Chan said. 'It risks turning away the very people who help make Ohio a leader in research, innovation, and healthcare.' Following the hearing, committee chairwoman Cindy Abrams reportedly announced the bill would be amended before advancing further. One possible change would exempt green card holders, but many attendees said that would not go far enough. Xin Yuan, a green card holder and vice-president at JPMorgan Chase & Co in Columbus, warned that if the bill passed, it would send a message to the rest of the country and encourage other states to adopt similar legislation. Yuan testified that her greatest concern was for her young son, who was born in Ohio and considered it home. 'My biggest fear when I had him was how to protect him,' she said. 'If we don't even have the basic right to have a home, what am I supposed to tell him – and how can I protect him?' More from South China Morning Post: For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2025.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Our View: Is Measure N living up to its campaign promise?
Again, the question is being asked: Are Bakersfield residents getting what they were promised by Measure N — the 1% sales tax hike voters approved in 2018? Last month, Bakersfield city officials told the Public Safety Vital Services Measure Oversight Committee that much of the money this year will have to be spent on nondiscretionary things, including personnel expenses and transfers to the city's general fund to cover 'operational needs.' Additional money is being reserved for capital projects, such as $4 million for street improvements along 18th and 19th streets, and $3 million for improvements on H Street. 'We've seen increases in insurance; we've seen increases in workers' compensation; we've seen in vehicle equipment, other equipment and technology,' City Manager Christian Clegg told the committee. The oversight committee was established as part of Measure N to assure voters that the 1% tax hike would be spent as promised, rather than absorbed into the city's general fund. The committee is advisory only, with the final spending decisions left to Bakersfield's elected City Council. Committee recommendations, which are developed during public meetings, do not have to be followed by council members. Committee member Cathy Abernathy responded that she is concerned that Measure N money is being spent on a whole lot of staff that includes obligations to pay for such things as health care and pensions. Two years ago, when the city realized a large unexpected increase in sales tax money, committee member Abernathy expressed the same concern about the city's proposed surplus spending. 'Let's honor what it was supposed to be about, which is police,' Abernathy said in response to the city's spending proposal that included animal shelter improvements. 'What we wanted to see was what can the money be spent on to make our town safer and to make it a more attractive community for business growth. That's generally neighborhoods, roads, streets, that kind of work, not enhancing animal care,' Abernathy said. The Public Safety and Vital Services ballot measure that barely passed in 2018 read: "To prevent cuts/improve 911 emergency response, police/fire protection, anti-gang/drug units, neighborhood police patrols; rapid response to assaults, robberies, gang violence, home burglaries; crime prevention; address homelessness; retain, attract jobs/businesses; unrestricted general revenue purposes; shall the measure be adopted approving an ordinance establishing a one-cent sales tax providing $50,000,000 until ended by voters, requiring independent audits, citizens oversight, all funds for Bakersfield?" Since passage, oversight committee members repeatedly have expressed concern that PSVS dollars were not being used as advertised to voters. Even the Kern County grand jury expressed concerns. But according to the city, staffing funded by PSVS dollars has included 189 positions in the police department; 27 in the fire department; 46 in development services, including code enforcement and homeless encampment clean up; 21 rangers to provide park security; 22 in technology services; 16 in economic and community development; 13 in public works; 12 in the city manager's office; five in human resources; and two in finance. The Parks Department ranger force, which is separate from the Police Department, was established in 2023, when the city enjoyed a sales tax surplus. Startup of the program was estimated to cost $1 million, with the predicted annual cost of $2.4 million paid out of Measure N enhanced sales tax revenues. Today, the city's sales tax revenues have remained either flat or declined across several industries, Bakersfield Finance Director Randy McKeegan told PVSV oversight committee members last month. Bakersfield also is expecting a $6.5 million decrease in sales tax revenues because some county residents were being incorrectly charged the city's higher tax rate for the past two years. How City Council members ultimately decide to spend these decreasing tax revenues will determine public confidence in and support for the 1% tax hike voters approved in 2018. Measure N was crafted to avoid 'sunsetting' — a common requirement that voters must approve the continuance of a taxing measure every few years. Instead, Measure N specified it would continue until 'ended by voters.' This leaves Measure N vulnerable to discontented voters, who may conclude that the money is not being spent as advertised.
