Wilson Signs Three-Month Extension for Secession Bid

Gov. Pete Wilson signed legislation rescuing a hard-pressed San Fernando Valley secession campaign Wednesday, giving activists three extra months to petition for a study and possible vote on splitting the Valley from Los Angeles as a new, independent city.

Without Sacramento’s intervention, the fate of the Valley secession campaign appeared uncertain at best. Valley VOTE, the group leading the petition drive, by Sunday had collected 137,000 signatures--technically enough but 20% short of the cushion the group felt was needed to cover invalid signatures. The group had been trying to meet a deadline of today but now has until Nov. 27.

“This is significant for the citizens of the San Fernando Valley,” said Wilson, a long-standing ally of the Valley activists leading the campaign. “This allows them the necessary time to determine whether the current government services being provided are adequate.”

Valley VOTE needs to collect signatures from 25% of the registered voters in the Valley--about 135,000 of the 526,000 people on the rolls--to trigger the secession study. Group leaders had said they hoped to collect at least 180,000 to ensure that the petition qualifies even if some signatures are disqualified by county elections officials, either because signers live outside the Valley or are not registered voters.

Until last week, leaders of Valley VOTE had assumed Wilson’s approval was a sure bet, since he often expressed support for putting Valley secession on the ballot. However, their confidence disintegrated when the governor vetoed state funding for the secession study last Thursday. Wilson said he opposed the use of state money to pay for a regional concern.

Their spirits were revived by his support Wednesday.

“This will make it a virtual certainty that we will get the signatures necessary,” said Richard Close, chairman of Valley VOTE--Valley Voters Organized Toward Empowerment.

Close said he doubts that the group will need the entire 90 days and predicted that Valley VOTE will be able to submit all the petitions in about a month.

According to Valley VOTE, more than 200,000 petitions still are in circulation, meaning that the group may already have tens of thousands of signatures yet uncounted.

If the petition drive is successful, the Local Agency Formation Commission will be required to study whether secession would be a financial burden on either the Valley or the rest of the city. If the study’s findings favor Valley secession, voters citywide could be asked to vote on the issue as early as 2000.

The bill granting the three-month extension, which was co-sponsored by Assemblymen Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks) and Tom McClintock (R-Northridge), coasted through Sacramento’s political process, winning the Legislature’s approval less than two weeks after being introduced and with only one dissenting vote.

Hertzberg admitted the bill’s chances were slim when he filed it in early August. Emergency legislation requires two-thirds approval in both the House and Senate, and the measure had to pass before lawmakers adjourn Monday.

The bill’s quick ascent began after staunch opponents of Valley secession, including state Sen. Richard G. Polanco (D-Los Angeles), lined up in support of Hertzberg’s bill, joined by key legislative leaders.

After voting in favor of the petition extension, Polanco said he still opposes the Valley breaking away from Los Angeles. However, he supported the legislation to make amends to the group, whose members had been barred from gathering signatures at the city-owned Van Nuys Airport during a July air show.

Hertzberg’s bill also entitles Valley VOTE to a 15-day extension immediately after the deadline if the petition drive falls short. State law already provides for the 15-day extension, but requires petitioners to wait up to three months before it begins.

Close remained concerned that the voter registration rolls may be inflated by 10% to 20%, since they may be littered with the names of people who have died or moved. If true, Valley VOTE’s task of getting signatures from 25% of the registered voters in the Valley will be extremely difficult because they “cannot collect signatures from dead people,” Close said.

Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder Conny McCormack said Valley VOTE’s concerns are groundless.

Morain reported from Sacramento and Willon from the San Fernando Valley.