BAN ON PRO-UNION CONSTRUCTION DEALS CHALLENGED

S.D. rules panel OKs putting measure on November ballot

San Diego’s voter-approved ban on controversial, union-friendly construction deals called “project labor agreements” could be overturned in November.

Propelled by local labor leaders and Democrats on the City Council, a ballot measure that would overturn the city’s project labor agreement ban was approved this week by the council’s Rules Committee in a party-line vote.

Supporters of the new ballot measure say it would ensure San Diego gets its fair share of state funding for crucial local projects by eliminating the city’s 9-yearold ban on the agreements, known as PLAs.

That’s because two state laws have passed since San Diego voters banned PLAs in 2012 which say that cities with laws prohibiting PLAs are ineligible for discretionary state construction funds. Those laws are SB 922 and SB 829.

Critics of the new ballot measure say it’s a power grab by local labor unions based on lies and distortions.

They stress that San Diego got about $140 million in state funding for the Pure Water project despite the PLA ban, and that special state legislation allowed the city last summer to establish its first-ever PLA specifically for Pure Water.

Project labor agreements are pro-union construction deals. They are common in Los Angeles and the Bay Area but are relatively rare in San Diego due to the region’s tradition of mostly conservative politics.

Such pacts have been used locally to build two North County dams, to expand San Diego International Airport and to build Petco Park. But the city wasn’t the lead agency on any of those projects.

The Rules Committee voted 4-1 Wednesday to have City Attorney Mara Elliott finalize language for the November 2022 ballot measure and submit it to the full council next year for placement on the ballot.

Republican Chris Cate, who cast the lone “no” vote, said the city’s PLA ban — 2012’s Proposition A — has not cost the city any money at all. The measure was approved by nearly 60 percent of voters.

But Cate also acknowledged that San Diego’s electorate appears to have shifted significantly to the left since 2012, making it possible voters will reverse themselves and eliminate the ban.

Councilmember Raul Campillo is spearheading efforts to overturn the ban.

“Project Labor Agreements are a good thing for San Diego, and labor unions are a good thing for San Diego,” he said. “They prioritize local jobs, boost our local economy and ensure local workers obtain wages and benefits and protections.”

Campillo also noted that his proposal creates new oversight, accountability and transparency for city contracting.

“We will have a process in place for fraud, abuse and waste to be stopped,” he said. “Everything that’s built into this is to make sure that taxpayers get what they are paying for.”

Justine Murray, a member of Campillo’s staff, said the unusual efforts required to secure state funding for San Diego’s Pure Water project should not become the norm.

“We cannot keep putting the city in risky situations where our state representatives have to maneuver to secure funding for San Diego since we are out of compliance with state law,” she said.

Eddie Sprecco, leader of the anti-PLA Associated General Contractors, said Campillo and other supporters are mischaracterizing things.

“The whole premise of this thing is stupid,” said Sprecco, contending that no state money is at risk.

He said the ballot measure would give the local chapter of the state Building and Construction Trades Council more leverage in getting city construction contracts, especially large ones.

“It’s basically the Building Trades trying to push their big contracts,” said Sprecco, whose group represents about 900 union and non-union contractors.

He noted that all city construction contracts require the payment of prevailing wages, which are essentially union-level wages. He said that ensures contractors don’t have an incentive to pay workers poorly.

A March 2020 poll funded by the Building and Construction Trades Council found that 63 percent of people supported eliminating the PLA ban, 11 percent were against and 22 percent were undecided.

In June, a Chula Vista measure explicitly allowing PLAs was approved by city voters with more than 67 percent support.