www.sdchamber.org

Public Policy Update

By Scott Alevy, Vice President of Public Policy & Communications

With three elections facing voters in 2008, the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors took official positions on seven state ballot initiatives at their first monthly meeting of the year on January 24, 2008.   As the leading business organization in the region, these positions are important to voters and business owners.

The Board, led by new Chair Phil Blair, addressed the ballot measures following a month-long vetting of the initiatives by the Chamber’s public policy committees that featured presentations by proponents and opponents of all of the initiatives. 

The Board voted to support Proposition 91, a measure that would change the California Constitution to ensure that funds earmarked for state and local transportation infrastructure improvements can be used only for those systems, and prohibit diverting of those funds to other non-transportation purposes.  We felt this was an important decision and based much of positioning on the fact that the original proponents of the measure had pulled back from their support because it had become irrelevant with the passage of Proposition 1B.

The Board voted to oppose Proposition 92, which would mandate significantly increased funding levels for community colleges in the state. The Chamber strongly supports and values the important role of community colleges, but there were concerns for the “ballot box budgeting” and unfunded mandates that the initiative creates.

Proposition 93, the ballot measure addressing term limits for state legislators, was also rejected by the Board of Directors.  The initiative, which proposes to change the number of years legislators may serve, was viewed as an extension for 42 legislators who currently serve in the state house. 

Four ballot measures, Propositions 94, 95, 96 and 97, individually address the Indian gaming compacts between the State of California and four separate Native American tribes located in San Diego and Riverside counties.  Following presentations by proponents and opponents of the controversial ballot measures, the Chamber Board voted to support all four, which would ratify amendments to existing gaming compacts, including that of the Sycuan tribe in eastern San Diego County.