Coalition of local advocacy groups aims to institute term limits for Kern Board of Supervisors
Sep. 9—A coalition of local advocacy organizations has formed to institute term limits for the Kern County Board of Supervisors.
The group hopes to qualify a measure for the ballot that would limit supervisors to two four-year terms in office. Currently, like most counties in California, supervisors do not face any limits on the number of times they can be reelected.
Composed of three local unions, environmentalist and political advocacy organizations, the Dolores Huerta Foundation and the American Civil Liberties Foundation of Southern California, the group has submitted paperwork to the Kern County Elections Division and hopes to qualify the issue for one of the 2022 elections.
"Our coalition's collective feeling is that board members understand very well they could spend a lifetime in their seats and without accountability, the odds are good they can stay in their seats if they choose to," Sonja Bennett, a retired Kern County employee, said during a virtual press conference announcing the campaign. "But we want fresh ideas and fresh perspectives."
To qualify for the ballot, the proponents must collect more than 20,338 signatures of registered voters, which is 10 percent of the total number of votes cast in the 2018 gubernatorial election.
"We have no doubt that we will be able to reach that threshold," JB Afoh-Manin, a union representative for United Domestic Workers, said during the press conference. "There is a cross-section of dissatisfaction with the status quo."
A lack of funding for roads, libraries and public parks were some of the grievances cited by the coalition during the press conference. According to the term limit proponents, supervisors have failed to fund quality-of-life investments even as the county's finances have expanded.
But the county has put forward a different narrative of its financial situation. Throughout this year's budget approval process, the County Administrative Office has said revenue has not risen as quickly as expenses, limiting their ability to expand services to residents.
Nevertheless, the coalition contends that new elected supervisors would better divert resources to services that impact everyday residents.
Four of five supervisors have already been elected to at least two terms. It is unclear if the initiative would take effect retroactively if passed by voters. If not, supervisors may be allowed to stay in office for eight more years after the ballot initiative is approved.
The coalition also includes AFL-CIO Kern, Inyo, Mono Counties Central Labor Council, Service Employees International Local 521, Sierra Club, Faith in the Valley, Democratic Women of Kern, and the Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment.
"The neglect is very visible to me in California City," in-home supportive services worker Sandy Moreno said. "The library and parks are not adequately funded. Trees aren't watered. Public spaces look run-down and forgotten. They don't really have to tell us that they don't care about us. We can observe it."
You can reach Sam Morgen at 661-395-7415. You may also follow him on Twitter @smorgenTBC.
