No Support From SB County Board of Supervisors Leads To Continued Lawsuit

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - Nov. 5, 2018 - PRLog -- Introduction
Despite over four hours of public testimony combined with 15,130 written responses, in which not a single person expressed support, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors approved expansion of Fire Prevention Zone Five. I f the expansion is not halted in court, $26.9 million dollars in additional revenue will be extracted, via a special tax, from property owners located only in the unincorporated areas of the county.

This action by the Board of Supervisors is a clear violation of the California Constitution which states "No local government may impose, extend, or increase any special tax unless and until that tax is submitted to the electorate and approved by a two-thirds vote."

In addition, the process selected by the supervisors to "gauge public reaction" to the expansion was riddled with inequities. In effect these inequities violated provisions of the United States Constitution that entitle citizens to equal protection under the law.

In response, The Red Brennan Group and a growing list of concerned organizations and citizens will press its legal challenge in San Bernardino County Superior Court. The non-profit, dedicated to "big-hearted communities and small governments" has partnered with The Lucerne Valley Economic Development Association, the Johnson Valley Improvement Association, the Homestead Valley Community Council, along with a number of county residents as plaintiffs in the legal challenge.

The BackStory
In 2006, 1,022 voters in the small desert community of Helendale, CA voted to approve a special tax. Improvement Zone Five, covering 5.6 square miles, was established to provide full-time fire service to this community of 5,000. In 2008, via the San Bernardino Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), fire services across the county were reorganized and the expanded agency named the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District. Helendale's improvement zone was renamed Fire Prevention Zone Five (FP-5) and included in the new district as part of the reorganization.

Eight years later the City of San Bernardino, working hand in glove with LAFCO, off-loaded its fire services to San Bernardino County. This was in 2016 with the city mired in its fourth year of bankruptcy. Shifting over $30 million per year in fire services to the County was likely a significant factor in allowing the city to exit bankruptcy a year later. Curiously, LAFCO completed this annexation by drawing a second set of boundaries for FP-5.  Beleaguered city residents were dismayed to find they were now paying an additional special tax of $148 per year for fire services.

In 2016 LAFCO, using FP-5 as its preferred service zone, also accommodated the City of Needles and the 29 Palms Water District by shifting fire services to the county. This added an additional $4.3 million to County Fire's budget requirements. The City of Upland followed in 2017, opting to cede local control of fire services to the county and adding another $10 million to County Fire's tab. Effectively, 1,022 affirmative votes in Helendale were leveraged by LAFCO and cash strapped communities to add roughly $44 million to County Fire's budget requirements - and impose the FP-5 special tax on the homes and property of over 325,000 county residents.

In June of 2018, upon recommendation by County Fire Chief Mark Hartwig, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution to expand FP-5 to cover the entire unincorporated area of the county. The Fire Chief's recommendation was offered as a solution to cover County Fire's ever increasing budget requirements which accelerated sharply in in response to the annexation driven growth over the last four years. During the June presentation, Chief Hartwig identified a $29 million dollar shortfall for the fiscal year and projected continued deficits. The presentation offered no solutions for these deficits. Even with the additional funding created by expanding FP-5 over the entire unincorporated area, County Fire still predicted a $2.5 million shortage in the next year's budget. A service zone originally created to cover 5.6 square miles would swallow the 19,278 square miles of unincorporated county area.

As part of the June meeting, the supervisors also approved a "protest process" to"gauge public reaction" to the FP-5 expansion effort. Affected landowners were granted 30 days, a public hearing, and the opportunity to submit a "no" vote via a protest form. The form was not included in the materials mailed to the affected landowners.

An "ex parte" motion was filed on Thursday, October 11, 2018 in San Bernardino County Superior Court. The suit claimed that the expanded zone, which would be imposed only on landowners in the unincorporated areas, violated the Equal Protection clause of the United States Constitution. Additionally, FP-5 includes a special tax implemented without a vote of the affected landowners, a clear violation of the California Constitution. Essentially, the ex parte procedure requested the courts to stop the FP-5 expansion process immediately. Without evaluating the legal merits of the case, Judge Brian McCarville denied the ex parte motion allowing the expansion process to continue.

FP-5 expansion was on the Board of Supervisors' regularly scheduled meeting held Tuesday, October 16th. The board was presented with a broad spectrum of legitimate concerns. After public comments, the meeting was temporarily adjourned while a representative of SCI completed the tally of the protest votes.

The final affirmative vote was cast by Supervisor James Ramos.

In consequence, the supervisor earned a formal complaint to the California Fair Political Practices Commission. Based on a reported $7,800 in campaign contributions received from various organizations associated with the fire suppression industry, campaign watchers claim Mr. Ramos, acting as County Supervisor, should have recused himself from the vote.

In response to the County of San Bernardino's violation of the California Constitution, The Red Brennan Group will continue its court challenge to FP-5.