Time to get involved and move forward on Measure L

We can all take one big collective sigh of relief. Election year is over. After almost five months of panicked doomsday bankruptcy prophesies, firefighters knocking on the doors of registered voters, and the light blue “Protect Lodi’s Future” signs plastered all over town, voters passed Lodi’s half-cent sales tax increase (Measure L) with 58 percent of the vote. Entering 2019, the political debate can end, and life can return to normal... I think.

As we get back into the swing of everyday routines and move on from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, some of us are happy for our lives to return to normal, while the rest of us wish it was still Christmas break. In this season of self-improvement (and renewed gym memberships), it’s understandable to not want the responsibilities, politics, and problems of 2018 to carry over into 2019 and distract us from the “New Year, New Me” mindset.

Personally, my New Year’s resolution was to talk less about politics and more about my faith. Unfortunately, old habits die hard, and immediately flipping the switch and going into “2019 mode” is easy to say, but not so easy for me to do.

Sure, I think we all want to put 2018 behind us and start over with a clean slate, but as much as I want to leave politics in the past and focus on Lodi’s new challenges and obstacles, we need to remember that passage of Measure L was just the beginning, and the future of Measure L — ultimately, the future of our city — depends tremendously upon the decisions of 2019.

This year is important not only for the city departments fighting for their slice of “Measure L pie,” but also for the transparency of Lodi’s city government as a whole. For the first time, Lodi will have independent oversight over tax revenue and expenditures with the establishment of Measure L’s oversight committee.

Although this sounds great on its surface, the level of transparency and government accountability depends greatly upon the committee’s structure and composition of committee members. One of the major concerns during the 2018 campaign was whether or not this new committee would actually provide government accountability. As the measure was written, the committee’s only role is to provide an advisory function, but does not have the power to actually direct the council on how to spend the tax revenue.

The committee’s only responsibility is to review tax revenue and expenditures already made by the council, and produce an annual report that requires city council approval before the information is made public. Because this basically gives the council the ability to veto a report that shows signs of any wrongdoings or misappropriation of funds — in addition to no power or process for the committee to punish bad actors — there is still an enormous amount of concern that this committee would simply be increasing the size of government bureaucracy rather than providing actual accountability.

Therefore, it is vital that the committee is comprised of individuals who are unafraid to signal red flags to the public, and community members that will actually keep government accountable to ensure that the revenue is spent on what the voters were promised — with additional police officers being the first priority.

I believe that 2019 will also show the true colors of our city council and the direction of our city, because for the first time since the Great Recession, Lodi will have a sizable pot of general fund revenue at its disposal.

For years, our council has claimed to be “fiscally conservative” (despite advocating for a new tax ncrease). However, it was easy to be “fiscally conservative” when the city had no choice but to be frugal due to the constant barrage of unfunded mandates by the state and having very few resources to work with.

So one thing to closely monitor is whether the council’s spending habits will reflect that fiscal conservatism once the city has a large pot of money in front of them. It will be interesting to see if the city council chooses to prioritize the promise of more officers, or if the council will funnel money into capital improvement/infrastructure projects to reward the real estate companies that donated to a majority of their campaigns. And with homelessness in the forefront of everyone’s minds, it will be interesting to see if increased investment in programs aimed at reducing homelessness will actually translate into getting people off of our streets and out of our parks, or if Lodi’s investments will fall in line with the programs spearheaded by San Francisco and Los Angeles, who have thrown millions of dollars into counteracting homelessness with little results.

With Measure L projected to bring in an additional $5.4 million in revenue each year, I believe our city council has a reason to be optimistic, but should proceed with extreme caution.

Our city’s pension liabilities will continue to chip away at Lodi’s projected revenue over time. So it is extremely important for our city to view Measure L as a safety net that addresses our existing needs for increased public safety and better parks, instead of a source of revenue to make our wildest dreams come true.

We as community members have a civic duty when it comes to this tax increase (After all, these are our hard earned tax dollars at work). For those who have a passion for your community and the issues we face, I encourage you all to get involved. “Follow the money” of Measure L funds, and ensure that our officials spend them on exactly what you were promised. And if you’re inclined, apply to be on the Measure L oversight committee.

I was staunchly against Measure L last year because I felt that there was no guarantee as to where the money would be spent, but that was 2018’s battle, and I accept that I can’t change the past. Moving forward, all I can do is encourage greater fiscal responsibility, and advocate for increased government transparency and community awareness surrounding our city’s issues. Spencer Rhoads is a Legislative Analyst for a Sacramento-based government consulting firm that specializes in public safety, technology, and local government issues. He is and past Lodi City Council, District 2 candidate, and is a proud husband, father of two, and worship team musician for local churches. You may contact Spencer at spencerrhoads@yahoo .com or follow him on Twitter at @LodiRhoads.