Author: Roger Bloom

As we previously reported, a proposed new utility tax was snuck through the California State Legislature in just three days at the close of last year’s session with no public testimony.

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Now that the results of the March 5th state primary election have come into focus, Irvine will be expanding the City Council to seven members and transitioning to district elections come November; State Senator Dave Min (D-Irvine) survived an onslaught of negative mailers and ads to become his party’s nominee for Congress; and current Representative Katie Porter (D-Irvine) will soon be out of a job.

Measure D on the Irvine ballot has been approved by voters, 60% to 40%. That means the Irvine City Council will be expanded from five to seven seats, with six Councilmembers elected from geographic districts across Irvine plus the Mayor, who will be elected citywide as the seventh member of the Council.

The Irvine City Council will reach out to the Irvine Unified School District (IUSD) to talk about...

Dozens of Irvine residents attended an information session organized by the office of Vice Mayor Larry Agran regarding a proposed change in how electricity is billed. The change would upend California’s decades-old commitment to encouraging clean energy and energy efficiency.

“A utility tax of $30 will increase bills for anyone who lives in an apartment, condo or small home, which is a problem,” said Cailey Underhill of the Solar Rights Alliance. Underhill pointed out that the new utility tax is not capped and could be raised at any time. Utility companies originally submitted a plan for a tax of up to $70 — about seven times the national average for a utility tax — and that $70 per month remains a target figure.

Last month, Councilmember Tammy Kim directed $5,000 of City funds to the Korean American Chamber of Commerce of Orange County (KACCOC) and sought another $50,000 in City funds for the organization, all after she received a maximum campaign donation from the Chamber’s president, who also hosted a fundraiser for Kim’s mayoral campaign.

The second item Kim proposed was for the City to give $50,000 from federal COVID relief funds to the Chamber for a sponsorship at the World Korean Business Convention to be held in Anaheim and co-sponsored by the Chamber.