By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- The Los Angeles Police Protective League, the union representing LAPD officers, announced Tuesday that it will oppose Measure FD, a permanent half-cent sales tax on the Nov. 3 ballot.
- The measure was placed on the ballot by United Firefighters of Los Angeles City Local 112 and is expected to generate about $345 million a year for the Los Angeles Fire Department.
- The police union plans to spend several million dollars on broadcast and digital ads and mailers; the firefighters union has already spent more than $2 million and will ask members on Oct. 16 to authorize another $3 million.
- Measure FD needs a simple majority to pass and would raise the city’s sales tax rate to 10.75%.
- Until now, the main organized opposition has come from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
LOS ANGELES — The union representing Los Angeles police officers said Tuesday it will campaign against Measure FD, a half-cent sales tax that firefighters placed on the Nov. 3 ballot, setting up a costly contest between two of the city’s most influential unions, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The Police Protective League said it plans to spend several million dollars on broadcast and digital advertising and mailers. League President Ricky Mendoza said the union’s objection is to the measure’s permanence, calling it a “forever tax,” and described the issue as one of affordability rather than opposition to firefighters. “We’re 100% for hiring firefighters and prioritizing public safety,” Mendoza said.
Doug Coates, president of the firefighters union, said his organization respects the police union but disagrees with its position, arguing that opposing the measure keeps vulnerable communities at risk. He urged voters to approve it.
The opposition prompted the firefighters union to call a special membership meeting Oct. 16, according to an email obtained by the Times. The union’s executive board will ask members to authorize an additional $3 million for the campaign, on top of the more than $2 million already spent. The email cited internal polling showing majority support for the measure, but said the police union’s opposition requires a strong response.
Measure FD would raise Los Angeles’ sales tax rate to 10.75%. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association estimates it would cost an average of $86 per person, or $345 for a family of four, each year. The Fire Department’s budget is already close to $1 billion, and the tax is expected to bring in an additional $345 million annually. The measure would also require the city to keep funding the department at the average share of the general fund it received over the decade before the measure was placed on the ballot.
The firefighters union says the revenue would allow the department to build at least 30 new fire stations, buy new trucks and add about 1,400 personnel by 2050. The measure passes with a simple majority of votes.