Sales Tax Campaign Rings Up $2.4 Million

Backers of a measure on the Nov. 2 ballot that would boost the sales tax to pay for more police and sheriff’s deputies in Los Angeles County have raised more than $2.4 million for their campaign.

In its final finance statement before the election, the Yes on Measure A committee Friday reported collecting $460,488 from Oct. 1 through 16. The campaign had $390,924 in its treasury.

The contribution report shows that the measure continued to receive support from contractors who do business with the city or county and prominent citizens who support the sales tax hike to put more officers and deputies on the street.

Motorola, which has a major communications contract with the Los Angeles Police Department, gave $50,000, boosting its total contributions to $60,000.

GC Services, a Houston-based firm that has contracts with both the city and county to collect from those who fail to pay traffic tickets and court fines, gave $50,000.

DreamWorks SKG executives Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen gave a total of $50,000.

The campaign also reported Friday that it received a $100,000 late contribution on Wednesday from Edith Wasserman, widow of Lew Wasserman, the Hollywood patriarch and former chairman of MCA Inc.

Casden Properties, a major Los Angeles developer, gave $50,000, as did the union representing California Highway Patrol officers.

Although the fundraising pace has been brisk, Measure A political consultant Rick Taylor said the campaign would fall short of its $3.8-million goal.

To conserve funds, the campaign did not air commercials this week. Los Angeles mayoral candidate Antonio Villaraigosa filled the void with his own ads supporting the tax increase for more police.

Taylor said the campaign has paid for $1.2 million in television advertising for the final week of the campaign.

If two-thirds of the county’s voters approve, the measure would raise the sales tax from 8.25% to 8.75% -- matching the highest rate in the state.

The additional tax would produce $560 million in revenue during its first year to pay for an estimated 5,000 new police officers and sheriff’s deputies. A portion of the money would be spent on county jails, communications improvements and additional prosecutors.

At the option of the Board of Supervisors and city councils, up to 15% of the money could be spent on youth and adult programs that deter crime.

There is no organized campaign against the measure, but Supervisor Mike Antonovich, activist Tom Hayden and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. are opposed.

The campaign’s biggest contributor is the Los Angeles Police Protective League, which gave $500,000. The union represents LAPD officers.

A. Jerrold Perenchio, chairman and chief executive of Spanish-language broadcaster Univision Communications, donated $430,000.

AEG, the sports and entertainment group that owns Staples Center, hosted a recent fundraiser that boosted its total contribution to just under $211,000. The company, a subsidiary of the Anschutz Corp., wants to build a $1-billion hotel and entertainment complex next to the arena.

Other large donors have contracts with the Sheriff’s Department.

They include Compass Group, one of the world’s largest food service companies, and SBC Communications, which provides collect telephone service for inmates in the county jails. Compass gave $99,500, and SBC gave $75,000.