SAN GABRIEL VALLEY : Legislative Plan to Cut Funds to Cities Assailed

Officials from 19 San Gabriel Valley cities on Monday attacked a plan to reduce the share of California property taxes and vehicle license fees received by cities as an unscrupulous raid on funds that pay for police and fire protection.

“State legislators are, in their desperation, their opportunism, attempting to shift the burden of balancing the state budget onto the cities,” Pasadena Mayor Rick Cole said at a news conference at Pasadena City Hall.

If Gov. Pete Wilson and legislative leaders succeed in implementing the plan, some San Gabriel Valley cities could lose as much as 22% of their general fund budgets, which pay for essential services, city officials said. Many cities, already strapped for funds, have prepared balanced budgets for fiscal 1993, based on layoffs or hiring freezes. Democratic and Republican leaders have spoken favorably about reducing aid to cities. Wilson has not said what he will do.