LandWatch Action Alert
Attend the Monterey County Board of Supervisors Meeting

Dear Concerned Citizen:

LandWatch urges members to attend this important meeting to insist that the Board of Supervisors put GPU4, the Community General Plan Initiative, and the Butterfly Village/ Rancho San Juan Referendum on the same ballot!

Although the Board appeared to be poised to put two of these measures on the ballot (GPU4 and the Community General Plan Initiative), they may be backing away from that commitment The alternative actions outlined in the agenda and staff report for the January 3rd meeting could lead to a series of decisions that give the impression that GPU4 will go to the ballot, and instead lay the foundation to deceive the public.

On December 19th, the Board of Supervisors unanimously agreed to consider the following actions on January 3rd:

1. certify the Final EIR for GPU4;

2. put GPU4 on a ballot to be voted up or down by the voters of Monterey County;

3. put the Community General Plan Initiative on a ballot to be voted up or down (this action was made conditional, allowing for investigation as to its legality and seeking resolution with various litigants seeking to force the County to put the measure on the ballot and parties seeking to force the County to keep the measure off the ballot); and

4. translate GPU4 and the Community General Plan Initiative into Spanish as part of the voting materials made available to the public as required by election law.

On December 29th, the agenda and staff report for the January 3rd meeting were released and they do NOT identify the motion as understood by the public on December 19th. The misunderstanding involves the way in which the agenda and staff report describe the timing and manner of approval anticipated for GPU4. The staff report identifies a variety of options for the Board to consider concerning approval of GPU4, including the optionof putting GPU4 on the ballot for a public vote as an additional act – AFTER GPU4 is already approved by the Board on January 3rd.

If the Board were to enact this motion, it would, in essence, not be submitting GPU4 for an up or down vote by the public. Instead, it would asking the public to rescind the Board’s earlier approval or to endorse its earlier approval through their public vote. Whether intended or not, this lays the foundation for three members of the Board to later reverse its decision to allow for a vote, and at the same time, deny the public the right to petition and referend the approval of GPU4 to a public vote.

Once the Board approves GPU4 it becomes law in 30 days. This 30-day interval is also the time period when citizens must collect petition signatures to referend any decision by the Board. If the public believes that GPU4 is going to the ballot and does not collect signatures, it surrenders the right to force GPU4 onto the ballot. Thirty-one days after approval by the Board of GPU4, the Board could then take GPU4 off the ballot. Assuming that the election date is set in June or sometime after June, there is nothing in the election code that would prevent the Board from removing GPU4 from the ballot, and that act would be entirely legal and within the discretion of the Board.

We will not let this happen!

If the Board chooses to impose GPU4 on the public, with only the “possibility" that an election on GPU4 might take place, we will referend the approval of GPU4 to ensure that the public gets an opportunity to vote on it.

The Board should take action to ensure that GPU4 is not approved unless it is approved by the voters of Monterey County and only if voters also can decide on the Community General Plan Initiative and the Butterfly Village/Rancho San Juan Referendum measures at the same time. While we would like to believe the board will do the right thing, their long record of anti-democratic actions, including past actions that denied citizens the right to vote on Butterfly Village/Rancho San Juan, the Community General Plan Initiative, and the incorporation of Carmel Valley, demands that we remain careful and vigilant.

Please attend this important meeting and tell the Board what you think!

The new County Administrative Building is behind the Old County Jail Building, in the County Court House complex on Alisal Street, between Church and Capitol Streets in Salinas.

Regards,Chris Fitz, Executive Director
LandWatch Monterey County

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Posted 01.01.07