Four Congress members say sales tax, toll lanes are an insult

Four members of the House of Representatives, all representing parts of the San Gabriel Valley, have just issued a press release saying the sales tax hike that Metro wants to take to voters is inequitable. All four -- David Dreier, Grace Napolitano, Gary Miller and Hilda Solis -- also say the Gold Line Foothill Extension should receive more money in the sales tax spending plan:

"The Federal government has stood up and done its part to demonstrate support –- our local Congressional delegation has already delivered $27.1 million. If Metro would commit its share, we could fight for an additional $320 million in federal funds. Rather than join us, Metro said no to the San Gabriel Valley."

They also say it's insulting that Metro and Caltrans are going ahead with a plan to convert the El Monte Busway into a toll lane without giving Congress time to learn more details of the program and that the agency has shared too few details of it with the public.

The sales tax spending plan calls for $735 million in revenues to go to the Gold Line Foothill Extension, although more than $200 million of that would be for a rail maintenance facility. Overall, proponents of the sales tax say it could raise $30 billion to $40 billion over the next three decades.

I just spoke with Don Lyster, Solis' chief of staff, and he said that Solis "is exploring actively campaigning against" the sales tax effort.

Of course, it's not actually on the ballot yet, but things just keep getting more interesting.

The whole release is after the jump.

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Representatives Hilda L. Solis (CA-32), David Dreier (CA-26), Grace F. Napolitano (CA-38), and Gary G. Miller (CA-42)  issued the following statement on the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority’s decision yesterday to shortchange the San Gabriel Valley on transportation projects and to implement toll roads on the I-10 and I-110.

“Yesterday was a three strikes kind of day for the San Gabriel Valley at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (Metro) board meeting.

“First, Metro turned its back on the residents of the San Gabriel Valley by refusing to support greater equity in the half cent sales tax proposal. The result? If the sales tax makes it onto the ballot in November and voters choose to support it, they’ll be paying almost $61 more per year and likely getting far less than 50% of their money back in transit and transportation projects.

“Adding insult to inequity, Metro voted a second time to implement toll roads on the I-10 corridor, in conjunction with implementation of toll roads on the I-110. There’s a clear reason why we and several other Members of Congress urged Metro to delay yesterday’s vote on this matter. Many critical details about how this proposal, which will cost more than $130 million to implement, are still missing – such as pricing plans, efforts to mitigate costs on low and moderate income consumers and small businesses, and impacts of congestion transfer. In fact, the document that Metro voted today to execute wasn’t even available for public review before the vote was taken. Yesterday’s vote made it clear – Metro’s just chasing the money at the expense of our residents and commuters.

“If inequity and insult aren’t enough, Metro Board Members said no to a commitment of less than one half of one percent of its capital budget for the only project ready to be built in LA County – the Gold Line Foothill Extension. This project could save our residents money – households that use public transit save an average of $6,251 every year. It could create jobs - every $1 spent on infrastructure results in a gain of $6 in jobs. Construction alone could create at least 2,000 new jobs. It could deliver needed economic development – more than $40 billion by 2030.

“The Federal government has stood up and done its part to demonstrate support – our local Congressional delegation has already delivered $27.19 million. If Metro would commit its share, we could fight for an additional $320 million in Federal funds. Rather than join us, Metro said no to the San Gabriel Valley.

“Residents of the San Gabriel Valley deserve better than what Metro delivered yesterday. It’s time to say no to inequity, no to insult, and yes to economic development in the San Gabriel Valley. It’s time to say no to Metro.”

Comments

[Sharon Bates]

Is it greed, ego or stupidity that David Dreier, Grace Napolitano, Gary Miller and Hilda Solis don't support improving transportation in the region? I am so tired of politics getting in the way of much needed improvements. Finally, someone has stepped up to do something good for the citizens of Los Angeles County and these yahoos are threatening to get in the way. Did any of them ever offer solutions or alternatives? Any bone-head can tear something down. It takes true leadership to build something. The tax proposal may not be perfect. But it's the best deal we've got going. They are obviously not in touch with the people they are supposed to represent - the ones who actually pay exorbitant prices for gas and sit for hours in traffic. It will be interesting to see if these four get labeled for actually making traffic worse in Los Angeles "Your three-hour, $40 commute today was brought to you by David Dreier, Grace Napolitano, Gary Miller and Hilda Solis." Running against them next term should be a breeze..

[transit booster]

Steve,

Thanks for your reporting on transportation issues. It has been a major improvement for the Times.

Given the SGV's congressional opposition to the sales tax, especially Rep. Solis. I think the citizens of LA County need to have some of the following questions answered since this all affects us as well whether we live in their congressional districts or not.

1. How does MTA's support for accepting the Bush Administration's $213M for the toll lane experiment have anything to do with the sales tax proposal? Why would you encourage LA County voters not to approve the sales tax because of this?

2. Why should the Gold Line extension be the #1 priority for the County, when its projected ridership is very low and its FTA effectiveness score is well below that of other county projects?

3. What job centers will the extension serve? How much will this extension benefit the rest of the system and increase usage on other lines?

4. If population is the primary metric for ensuring balance in projects then does not working or daytime population matter at all? Should places like LAX and Century City which have few or no residents not have rail service even though hundreds of thousands of people try to access these destinations?

5. There are critics of this extension who feel it is a largely a pork barrell project for local developers since the line goes through areas which will have significant real estate development around it. How would you answer this?

[Kymberleigh Richards]

A note to "J in Pasadena" (likely Wendell Cox hack):

The Northridge earthquake, although with an epicenter in Northridge, delivered energy on diagonals far from there. We all remember what happened to the freeway bridge on the 10. That was farther from Northridge than the subway.

The Davis article you cite predicted problems with the segment of the Red Line that was about to begin tunneling underneath the Hollywood Hills. Said problems did not manifest.

Davis also made much of former Mayor Riordan's involvement, but he apparently failed to research the fact that when Riordan was elected, he resigned from his law firm and placed all of his financial interests in a blind trust.

In fact, Davis appears to have used the Bus Riders Union as his primary source of information (and wrote an article worthy of their praise, but no one else's) and we all know they were violently opposed to the Red Line when it was under construction.

Find a credible source to quote from next time.

[J in Pasadena]

Response to Tony (likely MTA hack) is the following quote from The Nation, v261, n8 (Sept 18, 1995) at http://www.radicalurbantheory.com/mdavis/trainbus.html :

"All of the major Red Line contractors, screened from effective oversight, have been allowed to run roughshod. Tunneling through hazardous subsoil conditions that include pockets of dangerous gas as well as treacherous water-saturated sands, contractors have routinely failed to build subway walls to the required thickness or to grout unstable soil."

The Northridge earthquake was called that because -- well -- it was centered in Northridge, not Los Angeles. With this information and a quick search of LA Times archives on the topic, there is little reason to believe the current Red Line will withstand seismic events in similar manner to the world's major subways. (This is my *warning to the world*, incidentally.)

Moreover, the earlier Red Line construction was plagued with graft and political corruption so flagrant it resulted in a Justice Department probe that landed arrests on kickback schemes.

There is a lot to write here, even about other supposedly sparkling MTA efforts. Unfortunately, my experience is that with the MTA the only guide for the future is that history usually repeats itself.

[Kymberleigh Richards]

It doesn't surprise me that Hilda Solis is amongst the four Congressmembers opposed to converting the El Monte busway to a HOT lane.

After all, it was Solis who, as a state Senator, authored the legislation in 1999 which temporarily eased the restrictions on the busway for use as a HOV lane. When the number of passengers was dropped from three to two as a result of that, the busway became so jammed that the purpose of an HOV lane was defeated (and the transit service that the busway was designed for got caught in the increased traffic, affecting the non-driver commuters as well).

Here's the Times article from 2000 reporting on the mess:
http://articles.latimes.com/2000/jan/22/news/mn-56559

Note that Solis, even when her pet project turned into a debacle, still defended herself by saying the lane “was underutilized.”

Ultimately, the state legislature passed emergency legislation which undid the project after only seven months, but by that time Solis had been elected to her present position in Congress.

Politicians, for the most part, do not understand traffic engineering and public transportation. Unfortunately, they get the media coverage because of their offices.

[Simon]

One more response for J in Pasadena.

Even County Supervisor Zev Yarovslasky, the man who wrote the proposition that stopped the subway, says that Metro as an agency has made a lot of improvements from the 80s and 90s and has really turned itself around.

But your example of the Big Dig is interesting. Yes, the big dig took forever, and yes, it was absurdly expensive, but it was also massively successful. The city of Boston is much, much, much better off now that that project is complete and it's vastly improved travel times, spurred business investment, added new parks, and a billion other buzzword ways of saying it's been a really good thing.

Multi-billion dollar infrastructure projects are inherently messy. That doesn't mean we should tolerate incompetence or corruption, but it does mean that you can't expect a huge public project to go smoothly. What matters is that the end result will be well worth it, and the political dynamic has changed in such a way that if this sales tax passes, we can be confident a good subway and many other important projects will be built.

[John von Kerczek]

It's pretty revealing to see Gary Miller is one of the Congress members pushing so hard to steer funds into the San Gabriel Valley and the Inland Empire. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) list him as one of the 22 most corrupt members of Congress (http://www.beyonddelay.org/summaries/miller.php), stemming from his questionable and illegal land dealings in Monrovia, Rancho Cucamonga, Rialto, and Fontana as well as his use of his Congressional office to secure public funds that would benefit his personal business and real estate interests. Why else is he butting his nose in on the Foothill debate since his 42nd congressional district doesn't even cover the San Gabriel Valley? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California%27s_42nd_congressional_district)

More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Miller

[Tony Fernandez]

Hey J in Pasadena, that Red Line subway with so-called paper thin walls in earthquake country sure stood up pretty well to the Northridge quake. Care to stop lying and fear-mongering? Ever think that the reason they can't get more done is because the state keeps stealing funding and because of NIMBYism in this county? Look at what the MTA has done with so little: Red Line, Blue Line, Purple Line, Orange Line, Green Line, Gold Line, and soon to come the Expo Line and Foothill Extension. Oh, and did you forget about our bus system with the highest ridership in the country and our many rapid lines?

Please, if you're going to try to attack Metro, at least try to argue something that has any trace of truth to it.

[John von Kerczek]

Since I did not get a chance to speak at Thursday's meeting, here is what I had planned to say in my one minute re: the Foothill Line:

Supervisors Antonovich and Molina and Councilman Fasana, you have repeatedly voiced concerns about funding equity with regards to the Foothill line. How do you reconcile this talk with the fact that the Foothill line is not even equitable within the context of the San Gabriel Valley? How do you reconcile that the Foothill extension would be of little to no benefit to residents of the cities along the I-10 corridor? Compared to the Foothill cities from Pasadena to Azusa, the area from Alhambra to El Monte has a third higher population living at more than double the density but still making roughly 1/2 the income. The racial composition of the I-10 cities is also over 70% non-white compared to 45% non-white in the Foothill cities. In light of these facts, do you still believe the Foothill line constitutes an equitable use of transit resources?

Perhaps you should address the inequities within the San Gabriel Valley before obstructing other more equitable and regionally beneficial projects like the Expo and the Westside Extension.

[J in Pasadena]

The MTA is a mismanaged joke. I TOTALLY agree with these members of congress. Pass that new tax and they will squander the money. Look at what they already did: The Redline subway was the 1980s equivalent of Boston's Big Dig -- corrupt, overly costly and built with contractor corruption so egregious it left paper thin concrete walls in earthquake country. Every time MTA promises something they backtrack. I am now thinking their goal is NOT to build regional transportation system but to stifle progress for God knows what corrupt political reasons. Really, how long does it take -- everyone knows we need to build transportation and they do it slow as molasses. Screw the MTA they make living in LA suck. I would ONLY support the tax if the MTA were abolished and replaced with regional transportation authorities.

[Spokker]

Who would want to ride a light rail line from Azusa to Downtown LA? Wouldn't that distance be better served by commuter rail?

I mean, I don't know so that's why I'm asking.

[calwatch]

AD, Do you object to people paying to have better seats at the Hollywood Bowl or Disney Concert Hall (a public institution) or closer parking at the Fairplex, or at the airport (also public)? How about beaches charging more for parking on weekends than weekdays (which is routinely done)? We accept that phone calls made during peak hours are going to be more expensive, that rich people are going to have better seats at the ball game, and that if you pay the valet a fee you can have him park your car faster and not miss the start of the movie at Ontario Mills. How is this any different?

Congestion pricing is a sound means of raising revenue while selling excess capacity. Houston has done what LA is proposing to do on the 110 and 10: increase HOV lane occupancy requirements while selling the excess capacity. (They did this on the Katy and Northwest Freeways, if you are interested in looking up the studies.) Reports show that the carpool lanes, which were once at bumper to bumper levels, have cleared up, and that the two person carpools have accepted the fact that they need to pay. The public in Houston has strongly accepted this plan. In San Diego, a carpool lane was converted to a toll lane, and the money used to provide express bus service (the Inland Breeze Line 990) where there was no bus service before. Once again, studies show that the public has accepted the plan, because they know that if they are running late, they can pay a small fee to bypass traffic. It’s about giving people choices. That's why I support congestion pricing.

[Chris Bucka]

oh! and Steve, I owe you a couple of photos, I know. Didn't forget, just been BUSY this week. I'll try for this weekend!

[Chris Bucka]

Is anyone surprised by this? These ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES (ahem, and hint, DON'T re-elect them) are crying like preschoolers in a sandbox because they want to build a new jungle-gym for everybody, but those crying reps want to play on the see-saw, and think that a new see-saw should have been bought, too. Well, my WHINEY congressman and any constituents that agree with them, I would completely be on your side if there were destination-based stops along the goldline to the proposed extensions. Fact of the matter is, there are COUNTLESS more destination spots along a subway to the sea route, a route that is more economically viable. Support the common good and quit crying that you're not getting your "fair share." It's politicians like this that ensure the lack of efficiency in our government.

[El Gato Malo]

There may be some skepticism among the SGV folks because when we voted for the last infrastructure bond, there was the 10/605 interchange on the list of projects that the bond would fund. Well, guess what? That isn't on MTA's long-term transportation plan, anymore, at least not unless (we are being promised, again) this new sales tax passes. Bait and switch.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

[Simon]

It's really this simple:
If the SGV officials oppose this tax and defeat it, the Gold Line will not be built.
If they support the tax and it passes, the Gold Line will be built.

Do they really expect to destroy the region's only chance for transportation infrastructure in twenty years and then somehow produce billions of dollars for their gold line extension magically? None of these projects are being funded up front, they're all waiting for the sales tax. There's no money to fund them up front or else we wouldn't need the sales tax in the first place.

I hope this is just bluffing or some attempt to get some weird extra concession because I see no benefit to the SGV if this thing doesn't pass.

[Tony Fernandez]

David, I'm with you. I would like to see the extension completed to Azusa, but I'm annoyed with the way they have gone about trying to secure that money. I've tried writing to a few politicians, and I encourage more to do the same, especially if you live in the SGV and want this sales tax to be passed.

[Dominic Soto]

Why do we need to raise funds for transportation through such a regressive tax such as sales taxes?

Why can't we return the car registration fee to what it was before - before Arnold destroyed it to assuage Orange County NIMBYite voters.

And why can't we look at amending Prop 13? That law is suffocating our state of much need revenue for the benefit of wealthy home owners.

And no one wants to look back to the fact that Prop 13 was a reaction to the Serrano Case ruling, which said that children in Compton and Boyle Heights deserve as much money as children in Palos Verdes and Manhattan Beach.

You know, if things keep going the way they are, people are going to react in a physical and destruction manner. So lets get race and politics out of this and fix the sixth largest economy in the world.

[David Raether]

I live in Pasadena and use the Gold Line daily and desperately hope it gets completed to Claremont.

But this approach by our local Congressmen and women is wrong.

It's basically -- give us everything we want or nobody gets anything.

They keep this up and the Foothill Extension will never get built.

[Anon]

Understanding how transportation infrastructure is financed is certainly difficult. From the arguments I have seen by politicians and people commenting on this board iy is clear that most people are not particularly well informed about the matter. The link below will take those who care to educate themselves to Martin Wachs' paper on the subject, which is a good primer for someone new to the concepts (you must download the pdf). It would be nice if some of these politicians would read this paper and get a better grasp of the subject before they take a strong stance on the matter one way or another.

On a side note, many of the people who live in SGV work on the Westside and commute across the city. These commuters experience some of the greatest delays in the region and improvements to infrastructure on the westside would lead to the greatest time savings for them.

http://www.brookings.edu/reports/2003/04transportation_wachs.aspx

[Tommy]

So let me get this straight. The Gold Line extension has been earmarked for $720 million in the sales tax plan. The San Gabriel Valley is not content with that, and they're willing to risk losing ALL $720 million in order to fight for more money? Don't they realize if this sales tax plan doesn't pass, they're not going to get one cent for a Gold Line extension?

[richard schumacher]

The Four Morons of the Apocalypse have spoken: "We oppose a transit funding sales tax because the Gold Line Extension won't get built fast enough". Do they imagine that it will get built sooner *without* more local funding? Or maybe they expect to raise property taxes or income taxes to pay for it? Idiots.

Oh, by all means, eliminate future transit options. That will serve us well when gas is $6 per gallon.

[D. Malcolm Carson]

I don't get what the SGV politicos are so upset about. They pretty much got what they wanted, which was to have their pet train project that scores the lowest of any transit project on any objective criteria of merit, leap-frogged to the front of the list of projects slated for funding. If they wanted the funds now even before the sales tax is approved, they were just dreaming. There isn't any extra money in the Metro budget for worthwhile projects, much less ones that perform as poorly as the Gold Line Extension. If the sales tax passes, they'll get their money; yet, they're threatening to oppose it. It would be pretty ironic if they defeated the sales tax (and thus funding for the Gold Line) because they're upset at Metro for not funding the Gold Line!

[Irwin]

SGV politians should be outraged that money is going to a useless Gold Line rather than something useful, like a Red Line subway extension. But instead, they are outraged that not eoungh money is going towards a useless Gold Line. Politics has a way of taking common sense out of decision making...

By their reasoning, I guess Westside residence should be outraged about the years of their money going towards funding the Metrolink. Or the tunnel under 710... it would be a lot cheaper to pave over South Pasadena to extend the freeway.

[AD]

Making toll lanes effectively makes traveling on the freeways segrated by economic class. The toll would hurt low income people much more than high income. Why don't you make car pool lanes and force people to rideshare, save time, gas, reduce traffic, and a new concept...pay for more public transportation. Higher frequencies of buses, bus only lanes, etc. Get with the program you politicians or WE ARE GOING TO VOTE YOU OUT along with your special interests.