Public Safety First
The primary role of government is public safety. Sadly, there is no question our State often fails to fully fund essential public safety services. All too often, public safety takes a back seat in State budget discussions. Furthermore, bureaucrats and politicians frequently propose new taxes to fund public safety, when it should be funded with the first dollars of the budget, not the last. But given the current budget shortfalls, it is clear increased funding for public safety is not possible without new funding sources. That is why I and 30 other pro-public safety Legislators are proposing AB X8 42 to protect public safety by supplementing fire protection throughout California without adding painful or counterproductive taxes on families and small businesses that cannot afford them.
To boost public safety funding, AB X8 42 would utilize a portion of the new revenues that would be contributed to the state as the result of a proposal to allow more efficient and environmentally friendly oil drilling to occur off the coast of Santa Barbara at Tranquillion Ridge. This modern, high tech process would replace several existing oil platforms and allow more oil to be produced locally with minimal visual impact and minimal potential threat to the environment. While I cannot claim there is a consensus, many local environmental groups support this project because of the benefits it could provide to the region and state.