GARDEN GROVE : Dinsen Seeks Help to Stem Budget Cuts

Furious over state budget cuts, Councilman Robert F. Dinsen is mailing letters to all of California’s 468 cities, seeking support for a ballot measure that would prevent Sacramento from reducing property tax allocations to local governments.

Dinsen said Thursday that he hopes that his letters to other council members across the state will spark a revolt over continued cuts in state funding to municipalities.

In the letter, Dinsen calls for a constitutional amendment that would reserve certain tax revenues for cities and restrict the state from dipping in.

He said he hopes that the city officials statewide will help collect the 1 million signatures needed to place the measure on the ballot.

“I’m doing this because the state is taking revenue from the cities and putting cities in a precarious situation,” Dinsen said. “In Garden Grove, we have police, fire and city employee jobs vacant and we can’t fill them because we don’t have the money. Cities throughout the state are hurting.”

The city is facing a possible $7-million deficit in its fiscal 1993-94 budget, and city officials estimate a $2.5-million deficit this fiscal year.

“The state has got to be realistic and start cutting into its own budget,” Dinsen said. “I’m trying to rally support for an amendment to the state Legislature, but I can’t do it by myself. I have to have a lot of help or this is a dead issue.”