Today’s U-T editorial on the San Diego Service Authority for Freeway Emergencies (SAFE) program is spot on. Some excerpts…
…SAFE has built up $12.8 million in reserves over the years even though use of the call boxes plunged by 93 percent as cellphones proliferated. But instead of moving to rescind or reduce the $1 surcharge, the local politicians on the SAFE board have chosen to use the funds for other projects…
Three of the SAFE board members – Carlsbad City Councilwoman Ann Kulchin and county Supervisors Ron Roberts and Bill Horn – look at this status quo and think it’s just fine. Kulchin and Roberts, in particular, believe it’s great that public funds can be used in ways akin to venture capital and “invested” in speculative technologies.
Read the entire editorial: End call-box program’s mission creep
San Diego City Councilmembers David Alvarez and Lorie Zapf have done much in an attempt to end the continued collection of fees from motorists to fund a now largely unneeded program. The San Diego County Taxpayers Association also awarded SAFE a “Golden Fleece” in May. And, while the UT Watchdog takes credit for its stories on the subject, it cannot be ignored that Dave Maass at San Diego CityBeat appears to be the first to have detailed the ongoing SAFE issues going back to March, resulting in other local media taking an interest.
The San Diego County Republican Party recognized Councilmember Zapf for her SAFE-related efforts a few months ago, following the first CityBeat story. In so doing, the party was clearly saying that what is going on at SAFE is simply wrong.
Yet, Republicans Kulchin, Roberts and Horn seem to be getting a pass from much of the GOP establishment while they continue to fund what has become tantamount to a personal slush account. The strength of incumbency?
No Republican should be sitting idly by and treating a fundamental taxpayer issue as nothing but a policy dispute between GOP elected officials, seemingly because the three that are dead wrong on the matter happen to be “ours.”
Let’s put it this way: Democrat David Alvarez gets it. Lefty CityBeat gets it.
Mull that one.
Comments 5
Thanks, Greg!
Greg, we don’t “take credit” for anything that’s not our own, I hope….
We just completed a five-part series on San Diego SAFE. The first piece, a backgrounder and set-up, credited CityBeat for starting this ball rolling, and in fact linked to the CityBeat story. [http://bit.ly/nID8QL]. The remaining four stories were Chris Cadelago’s original work, moving the story forward.
Thanks for your post.
Ricky Young
Watchdog editor
Thanks for that, Ricky. You may be reading it differently than I intended, but it’s more likely my poor choice of wording. “Takes credit” as in deserving, or properly taking that credit. It would have better read, “And, while the UT Watchdog gets credit for its stories on the subject…” Kudos to Chris Cadelago as well!
I get it now! Thanks.
A photo of Tony Krvaric handing a “Defender of the
Taxpayer” award to Lori Zapf for her work on SAFE
is part of an April, 2011 SD Rostra story. Here is
the link to that account and photo:
http://sdrostra.com/?p=15134