It’s going to be a big year

Looking ahead to 2024

I struggled with what to write about this week. I don’t expect many of you to read this missive given the chaotic nature of the holiday season, and I officially absolve you from any guilt you may feel if you don’t. 

Truthfully, knowing this newsletter’s deadline is Thursday is probably the only reason I know what day it is this week. 

But the good thing about this newsletter is that it’s emailed to your inbox and you can open it whenever it’s convenient for you. And hopefully, that’s sometime before the upcoming elections.

We’ve visited what’s at stake here in Long Beach in 2024. There are four City Council seats as well as school board and college trustee positions that will be decided, but the “even year” elections typically carry more weight outside of the city because they include the Presidential ticket and typically a slew of statewide ballot measures, bonds and other votes that you’ll have a hand in deciding.

There are a few ways that issues can end up in front of voters. The easiest, at least for the Democratic supermajority in the Legislature, is to have lawmakers vote to place an issue on the ballot, which it has done a few times already this year.

The harder road requires signature gathering, which means collecting 8% of the number of votes cast in the previous gubernatorial election for a constitutional amendment or 5% for a new law. The latter is equal to 546,651 verified signatures this year. 

So far, 12 issues have qualified for the ballot through signature gathering or legislative referral.

One we should be familiar with: The referendum vote on the oil-well setback law (SB 1137), which the city has said could ding the general fund to the tune of about $20 million per year, is on the ballot.

But because ballot measures are never uncomplicated, a separate, very similar initiative has been cleared for signature gathering. This could set up a potentially confusing November where SB 1137 could win and lose on the same day. 

There’s also a proposal that would raise the state’s minimum wage for all employees to $18 per hour by 2026 with a built-in annual cost of living adjustment.

Another, perhaps less controversial, measure would amend the state’s constitution by stripping away the 2008 Proposition 8 language that defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman. While Proposition 8 was invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2015, it remains in the state’s constitution and a “yes” vote would replace it with language establishing a right to marry for all adults.

Then there are a handful of measures that would change the thresholds for how new taxes could be passed.

One that was put on the ballot by the Legislature would reduce the threshold from two-thirds to 55% for new local special taxes that would fund housing or public infrastructure investments.

The “Taxpayer Protection and Government Accountability Act” would keep the local requirement for special taxes at two-thirds voter approval and require new statewide taxes, like the controversial “gas tax” that was signed into law in 2017, be approved by two-thirds of the Legislature and the state’s voters. The City Council voted to formally oppose this measure earlier this year.

Possibly the most contentious (so far) to qualify for the ballot is the initiative that could repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which prohibits rent control measures being placed on single-family homes, condos and new construction apartments that were built after 1995.

There’s still potentially more to come. 

Initiatives that could legalize psilocybin mushrooms, reduce local property taxes and eliminate assessments for homes that are passed onto family members, increase penalties for fentanyl dealers and expand the public’s ability to get their hands on public records (we like this one) have all been cleared for signature gathering.

And of course, there’s that minor question of who should lead the country for the next four years. Like I said, it’s going to be a big year.

Cheers to 2024.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS WEEK:

If you’re not like me and clinging to a fake Christmas tree that you purchased eight years ago, it’s probably approaching the time when you need to think about how you’re going to get rid of your Douglas or Noble Fir. The city offers a free tree recycling program with 12 drop-off locations across the city or if you want to hold onto the holiday spirit a little longer, Long Beach will do a citywide tree pick-up service on Jan. 13. Read this story to learn more about how you can get rid of your old Christmas tree in the coming weeks.

PAY ATTENTION TO THIS NEXT WEEK:

With public meetings expected to pick up again closer to the middle of January, the dearth of city meetings continues this week. That doesn’t mean that we won’t have any excitement. Rain is forecast in the city for at least two days, and for people on the Peninsula, that means it could be sandbag time. Potentially damaging tidal activity is expected in the region over the weekend, so if you can, try and stay safe and dry. I look forward to covering the city for you in the new year, and as always, if you have anything you think we should look into, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Happy New Year, everyone.