On Oct. 1, a new half-cent per dollar sales tax took effect across LA County.
asserted
tax → take → County
It will cost families hundreds of dollars a year.
asserted
It → cost → dollars
But that’s not even the worst of it.
asserted
that → ’ → it
Here’s the craziest part: By law, not one penny of the new revenue can be spent.
asserted
penny → ’ → revenue
If you’re doing a double take after reading that, you are not alone.
asserted
you → do → that
LA County raised the sales tax from 9.75% to 10.25% for five years, to raise money to pay for county health care services.
Sign up for the California Morning Report newsletter
The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.
Thanks for signing up!
In some areas, where there are additional local taxes, people will be paying even more at the register: 11.25% in Santa Monica, and 11.75% in Palmdale, the highest sales tax in the nation.
asserted
people → raise → nation
I was the lone “no” vote when the county Board of Supervisors placed Measure ER on the ballot.
asserted
Board → place → ballot
That wasn’t because I doubt that a healthcare crisis exists.
asserted
crisis → doubt → ?
I built my 35-year county career on public health, health services, and mental health policy stewardship.
asserted
I → build → health
Because the need is so great, nearly three-quarters of our county’s budget already flows to those services.
asserted
quarters → flow → services
My concern was about the “who” — who pays.
asserted
who → pay → who
It should not be the working people of LA County.
asserted
It → work → County
Rural hospitals are closing, and emergency rooms are overwhelmed statewide, yet the LA County Board of Supervisors wants local taxpayers to backfill what is fundamentally a federal and state responsibility with a regressive local sales tax.
asserted
what → close → tax
The tax hike comes in what is already one of the most expensive regions in the country, where residents already feel pain at the pump and a squeeze at the grocery store.
asserted
residents → come → store
But voters weighed in, and 50.6% said yes.
asserted
% → weigh → ?
That is how democracy works, and I respect it.
asserted
I → work → it
Which brings us to a lawsuit.
asserted
Which → bring → lawsuit
On Aug. 31, the Libertarian Party of LA County sued to invalidate the tax hike, challenging Assembly Bill 1768, the state law that allowed LA County to exceed the state’s sales tax cap.
asserted
County → sue → cap
The county’s position is that this challenge is without merit, and I share that confidence.
asserted
I → share → confidence
The county followed the law at every step.
asserted
county → follow → step
But confidence doesn’t unlock an escrow account.
asserted
confidence → unlock → account
State law requires the revenue to sit untouched until the lawsuit is resolved, which could take two to three years.
uncertain
which → require → years
Residents pay the tax.
asserted
Residents → pay → tax
Clinics and hospitals wait.
asserted
Clinics → wait → ?
Roughly $1 billion a year, meant to cushion patients losing coverage under federal changes, will sit frozen in escrow while LA Health Services, our county’s integrated healthcare system, braces to lose more than $700 million in federal and state revenue by 2028.
asserted
Services → mean → 2028
So, here we go again, stuck in the land of litigation.
asserted
we → go → litigation
For many residents, this lawsuit may feel like an extension of what already felt unfair: being asked to pay more, and now being asked to wait on top of it.
uncertain
what → feel → it
Patients with diabetes or a high-risk pregnancy don’t stop needing care while lawyers argue.
asserted
lawyers → stop → care
It’s hard to find a silver lining in this situation.
asserted
It → ’ → situation
I want to be candid about where our troubles started.
asserted
troubles → want → ?
Too often in California, the state sneezes and the counties catch pneumonia.
asserted
counties → sneeze → pneumonia
That’s why I believe Sacramento should help us out of it.
asserted
Sacramento → ’ → it
State leaders should work with the county on how to keep the social safety net from tearing apart in the meantime, and provide the care residents desperately need.
asserted
residents → work → care
While the litigation proceeds through the court process, Los Angeles County residents shouldn’t be left holding the bill for a problem that the state and feds should be addressing.
asserted
state → proceed → that
Kathryn Barger represents the Fifth District on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
asserted
Barger → represent → Supervisors
The Aporia
