EDITORIAL:Diverting tax funds unwise

The City Council and Measure A Oversight Committee should think carefully before allocating $125,000 from the special half-cent sales tax in place since July 1 toward stabilizing a section of Bluebird Canyon that was not part of the June 1, 2005 landslide.

Landslide recovery coordinator Bob Burnham and others working to shore up the slide zone say this is an easy and relatively inexpensive way to avert a potential future landslide in an area that has had two major slides in 26 years.

But it’s clearly not a use of these special tax funds that was called for when voters approved the tax in December 2005.

The tax revenues were specifically earmarked for a three-fold purpose: 1. to restore municipal programs that were eliminated, reduced or delayed because of funding needs to respond to the Bluebird emergency; 2. to restore Flamingo Road and associated sewer lines, storm drains and other city facilities; and 3. to create a $2.5 million reserve fund for future disaster response.

Stabilization of an area to forestall a potential disaster was not a reason given for the five-year tax.

Councilwoman Elizabeth Pearson-Schneider and Oversight Committee member Linda Brown both have gone on record opposing the use of tax funds for this purpose, and their advice should be heeded.

As Brown points out, opening up the purse strings to non-Bluebird Canyon landslide related expenditures will set a precedent for use of the funds that could easily use up the funds earmarked for future disasters — a key selling-point of the tax.

The council — minus Pearson-Schneider — has voted to ask the Measure A Oversight Committee to consider this expenditure.

The committee will meet in January to make this determination.

The committee, and the council, should think twice before diverting these voter-approved funds for another use, whatever the merit of the project may be.