Roberti Seeks to Override Wilson’s Library Fund Veto

Senate President Pro Tem David A. Roberti (D-Van Nuys), irked by the governor’s veto of a library funding bill, will attempt to muster enough votes to override the veto when the Legislature reconvenes in January.

Roberti press secretary Steven Glazer said Thursday that, although successful override attempts are rare, “Sen. Roberti feels very strongly about the issue.”

The bill, which Roberti authored at the request of Los Angeles County library officials, would have allowed local governments to set up assessment districts to levy charges on property owners to help pay for library services. Similar charges are used to fund sewer, flood control, street lighting, and parks services.

Arguing that the bill would have created “a new tax masquerading as a benefit assessment,” Wilson vetoed it last week, disappointing library advocates who hoped it would reverse recent cutbacks.

As a result, county officials said they may have to revert back to a plan to close public library branches, including some in the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys.

An override attempt next January would come just as Roberti is gearing up for an important year politically. Faced with voter-mandated term limits that will soon toss him from office, the Senate leader has said he plans to run for state treasurer if Kathleen Brown runs for governor.

“The senator is free to seek an override,” Wilson spokesman Kevin Eckery said Thursday. “But that doesn’t change our concern that the bill is an inappropriate way to raise taxes for what otherwise is a good cause.”

Override attempts often fail in large part because governors do not like to see their actions undone, and aggressively lobby lawmakers to vote “no” on overrides. A two-thirds vote by each house of the Legislature is required to override a veto.

Glazer noted that Roberti’s bill had the support of both political parties when it was approved and sent to the governor’s desk.