Bug Abatement Tax to Drop by 20 Cents

The tax that Valley property owners pay to fight insect infestations will drop by 20 cents this year, except along the Los Angeles River, where assessments are being raised to fight a black fly invasion.

Officials with the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District said the general reduction in the tax rate is a result of changes in mosquito control practices.

But along the Los Angeles River, a 15-cent tax increase will nearly offset the reduction elsewhere.

The 4 million residents of the 1,300-square-mile region covered by the vector control district had been paying $2.10 per year. But in July, district trustees voted to cut the basic charge to $1.90 because of savings on mosquito control. The district changed its policy this year to spray only when mosquitoes are found in an area.

The city of Los Angeles had been paying the district at least $50,000 a year to fight black flies along the river. However, this year city officials asked the district to take over the program entirely and pay for it with the special assessment, said district spokeswoman LuAnn Munns.

District trustees voted unanimously Thursday in South Gate to impose the new black fly assessment, Munns said. The assessment will be imposed on residents along the river from Reseda Boulevard to where the river intersects the Santa Monica and Pasadena freeways. District officials said the area includes more than 300,000 property owners.