Officials to Address Sales-Tax Issue

As part of a campaign for Ventura County voters to extend a half-cent sales tax, the Board of Supervisors will consider a resolution Tuesday allocating all funds from the tax to fire, police and criminal justice agencies.

The resolution follows the state Legislature’s requirement that counties spend all money from the extended tax on public safety.

But the state left it up to each county to define what public safety is, Supervisor Vicky Howard said.

Ventura County voters will decide in November whether to extend the sales tax, which is due to expire at the end of the year. The tax raises about $26 million to $30 million each year for the county.

Under the board’s proposed resolution, the county would dedicate all of the funds to the Sheriff’s Department, Fire Protection District, the Corrections Services Agency and the offices of the district attorney and public defender.

“Our general fund monies have shrunk due to the action of the state taking money from us, so it’s good to know you have a dedicated source for public safety,” Howard said. “Public safety is so important for people in Ventura County.”

The resolution grew out of a series of meetings between county officials, union representatives for county workers and members of Citizens for a Safe Ventura County, a group that led a campaign earlier this year against threatened cuts to the Sheriff’s Department’s budget.

If the board approves the resolution, Citizens for a Safe Ventura County will work hard to persuade voters to approve the half-cent sales tax extension in Proposition 172, group president Otto Stoll said.

“Once the Board of Supervisors commits to what it’s going to spend the money on and we have a clear mandate about that, we will do everything we can to help them pass Proposition 172,” he said.