Vista City Council to vote mayor out of SANDAG for Mileage Tax opposition

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – On Tuesday, Feb. 23. the Vista City Council voted Mayor John Franklin off of SANDAG because of his opposition to the Mileage Tax.

The tiebreaking vote was cast by Corinna Contreras who also works as a lobbyist for the Climate Action Campaign. Mayor Franklin claims that this impacted her decision to vote him off of SANDAG, and that she should have withheld her vote due to the conflict of interest. Now, he believes he has grounds for a lawsuit based on the Political Reform Act.

The Mileage Tax, technically considered a road user charge, is the major funding mechanism for SANDAG’s $163 billion Regional Transportation Plan. SANDAG CEO Hasan Ikhrata is continuing to push for the Mileage Tax while other Democrats refuse to speak out against the unpopular proposed charge. The Mileage Tax is wildly unpopular amongst average San Diego voters because it would disproportionately affect lower income and middle class workers with longer commutes.

Legislative bodies in San Diego continue to do what they can to silence opposition to the Mileage Tax. Voting Mayor John Franklin off of the board was another step towards approving the funding mechanism.

KUSI’s Rafer Weigel went live with Mayor Franklin for his perspective on the situation.