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Libertarian Party of San Francisco News

  • PROPOSITION C

    HOUSING TRUST CHARTER AMENDMENT:   Creates a Housing Trust Fund by setting aside general fund revenues to create, acquire and rehabilitate affordable housing and promote affordable home ownership programs.  $20 million would be set aside in 2013.  An additional $2.8 million would be set aside each year after that, for the next 11 years.  NO.

     

    With this measure City government is attempting to subsidize a much greater portion of residents.  As always, the gains of those who receive subsidies are made at the expense of those who do not.


    What changed:

  • PROPOSITION B

    CLEAN AND SAFE NEIGHBORHOOD BONDS:  This proposal incurs a bonded debt of $195,000,000 for the construction, reconstruction, renovation, demolition, environmental remediation, and/or improvement of park, open space, and recreation facilities.  It authorizes landlords to pass-through 50% of resulting property tax increase to residential tenants. NO.

     

    A bond issue is a tax on future taxpayers to pay for what present day voters want, and should be used more cautiously than done in this proposal.


    Who benefits from Proposition B:

    This project is city-wide so all residents benefit from the beautification provided by this project.

  • PROPOSITION A

    CITY COLLEGE PARCEL TAX:  Authorizes the Community College District to levy a special property tax of $79 per parcel for eight years for the purpose of funding City College.   NO.

     

    A parcel tax is always a compulsory payment which must be made without regard to the quality or value of the output.  This is especially true in the case of Proposition A.  Insisting in a full reform of serious, long-standing structural failings affecting City College would benefit students, teachers, and San Francisco more than accepting band-aid solutions.


    Who benefits from Proposition A:

  • S F PRIDE FESTIVAL JUNE 23-24, 2012

    The annual San Francisco Pride Festival is probably The City's biggest event.  Locals, tourists, kids, families, all colors and preferences have great fun watching the Parade and visiting the hundreds of Exhibitor Booths.  As has been the case for the past decade, Outright Libertarians will host an Exibitor Booth.  Outright's mission is to "serve as a two-way bridge between the Libertarian Party and those people with differing sexual orientations."  Through activism and outreach, Outright introduces to the LGBT community Libertarian principles of individual rights, inclusiveness, equal rights, equal responsibilities.   The Sunday Parade is along Market Street.  The booths, food and drink, and entertainment stages are at Civic Center, for both Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 am to around 5:00

  • Primary Elections June 2012

     

    Elections Update: 

     

    Local Measure A - Garbage Collection and Disposal:  Folks in San Francisco chose to stay with Recology, possibly because "If you love MUNI, you will love a City-owned Waste Management Center."

    Local Measure B - Coit Tower Policy:   A close call, but the Yes votes won. 

     

    Candidates:

    We are always proud of Gail Lightfoot's efforts, since a third-party candidate wages an uphill battle against the established political machine.  Under the new Top-Two rules, it will be difficult for a third-party candidate to participate in the General Elections at all.

  • Mayor Ed Lee implicated in old corruption scandal; new one in the making?

    This wasn't headline news, but should have been: In 2008, Deborah Vincent-James, former executive director of the Committee on Information Technology that qualified prospective city vendors, said in a court deposition that Ed Lee, then the city purchaser, told her to qualify a company called Government Computer Sales as a city contractor, after then-mayor Willie Brown had directed Lee to do an alternate evaluation process, according to a Feb. 14 article in the Chronicle.

  • LPSF Recommendations For The November Ballot

    The Libertarian Party of  San Francisco at its Aug. 13. 2011 busines meeting made the following recommendations on the San Francisco ballot initiatives on the November ballot.

     

    A School Bonds - Vote NO

    B Road Repaving and Street Safety Bonds - Vote NO

    C City Retirement and Health Care Benefits - Vote NO

    D Retirement Benefits for City Employees - Vote YES

    E Amending or Repealing Legislative Initiative Ordinances and Declarations of Policy - Vote NO

    F Campaign Consultant Disclosures - Vote NO

    G Sales Tax - Vote NO

    H School District Student Assignment System - No Recommendation

     

    Ron Getty

    Vice Chair

    Chair Initiatives Committee


  • Municipal Elections -- Bah Humbug or Crucial?

    Traditionally, folks do not turn out in good numbers to vote in municipal elctions, so all kinds of interesting proposals turn into City law to the surprise of many.  Municipal elections are coming up on November 8, 2011.  Have no doubt that whatever local measures pass into law will affect each and every one of us one way or another.   Please make your voice heard -- vote.  The Libertarian Party of San Francisco has made its recommendations -- all on the basis of aiming for smaller government responsive to the voters, less bureaucracy, and more individual freedoms.


  • Meeting Folks at Pride

    Pride Week is over, and Libertarians were there.  Over the years, Outright Libertarians have volunteered their time and resources to staff a vendor booth at Pride.  Not only to outreach, but also to listen.  How does a Libertarian respond to someone who says she would never vote Libertarian because she needs the protection from discrimination that government affords.  Not an easy question, and the most sincre response we could offer was to suggest that if she would want to marry her partner, the government would simply say "no."  How much time does a staff at the booth dedicate to a teen who realizes that what we are saying is not taught at his school -- all the time it takes to answer all his questions.  How about the comment that Libertarians are "all white and rich?"  Oh, that's an e