☆ CM David Cohen was opposed to letting locals vote on taxes—until he was for it
SJ CM David Cohen's confused embrace of Prop 5 (which would lower from 66% to 55% the threshold for new local taxes) struck many Opp Now readers as surprising, as just a few week's prior, he was advocating against the Taxpayer Protection Act. In the former, he championed letting locals vote on tax thresholds; in the latter, he opposed the tax threshold initiatives—aligning himself with Gov. Newsom and others who worked to prevent the TPA from even being on the ballot. An Opp New exclusive.
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☆ Bay Area history profs: Hit the books with these enlightening top picks (part 1)
In this exclusive Opp Now installment, four history educators (from SJ, Berkeley, and SF) discuss what book/documentary/podcast they'd assign local politicians as “required reading.” Spanning from the beginning of time itself, to ancient Greece, to our modern world—their recommendations (poignant and powerful) read below.
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☆ Federal Transit Admin (FTA) confirms: BART-to-SJ not a done deal
Despite local officials acting like full funding has been secured for the super late, wildly expensive, and widely panned BART-to-downtown-SJ project, the facts don't support their claims. According to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, the FTA has been very clear with VTA that their funding is only for preliminary work—and further funding is still contingent on future developments and achievements by VTA that are by no means guaranteed. An Opp Now exclusive.
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☆ Opinion: Palo Alto CM says SB-1047 (AI regulation) could negatively impact CA's role as innovator
According to Palo Alto councilmember Greg Tanaka, SB-1047, ostensibly designed to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) and prevent potential harm—if signed into law—will hamstring technological progress, stifle small businesses, and harm California’s competitive edge in the global AI race. His Opp Now exclusive comments below.
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☆ Libertarian AI bot takes a stab at San Jose's most pressing challenges
Austrian economist and vice presidential hopeful Mike ter Maat put out the Libertarian Intelligence System Application (LISA) as a public resource providing limited-gov't perspectives on policy issues. Considering a few of SJ's extant debates, Opp Now peppered LISA with exclusive questions on bond measures, shady nonprofits, and more—the resulting discourse (our questions embellished for flair) below.
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☆ Merc covers RM4 story about biased ballot language with—get this—biased language of its own
The irony was delicious: BAHFA last week was compelled to admit it had been peddling prejudicial and inaccurate information in its RM4 ballot language. So the Merc played defense for BAHFA by employing—you guessed it—a bushel of bias of its own in its coverage of the walkback. An Opp Now exclusive media analysis by FOON (Friend of Opp Now) Susie Murillo.
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☆ VTA is two years late submitting required report on Warm Springs to Berryessa BART extension
As VTA pushes to lock in $6 billion of federal support for Phase II of its Silicon Valley BART extension, a required evaluation of Phase I remains incomplete. Cato Institute’s Marc Joffe provides analysis in this Opp Now exclusive.
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☆ Palo Alto Councilmember Tanaka calls for restraint in city's political advocacy
Greg Tanaka, Palo Alto CM, chimes in on San Jose's debate about city councils taking positions on ballot initiatives that should be decided by the people. He says cities need to respect diversity of opinon and not sideline that diversity "in pursuit of artificial consensus." An Opp Now exclusive.
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☆ Is San Francisco Public Utility Commission under water?
The reason we can live on the Peninsula is because we have water. We buy it from San Francisco Public Utility Commission (SFPUC) as part of a consortium of 26 agencies (BAWSCA); and the sustainability of our civilization here, on the coast, is under threat—not just from the potential ~56% cutbacks in the 3rd year of the next drought, but from a lack of FISCAL sustainability. Opp Now exclusive op/ed by Gregg Dieguez, Vice Chair of the Midcoast Community Council, here expressing his own opinions.
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☆ Regional housing tax to make retired and middleclass homeowners subsidize rentals for the well-to-do
A $20 billion regional housing bond to raise property taxes for the next 54 years in Santa Clara and eight other counties has a somewhat strange definition of “affordability.” Since when did folks who make over $200,000 need a handout from working class homeowners, renters, and retirees on a fixed income? Will Sherman reports in this Opp Now exclusive.
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☆ Khamis: Regional housing tax will inflate local cost of living
The former SJ councilmember and advocate for responsible gov't spending sees trouble in the upcoming tax scheme. He notes how SJ Council blithely supported it without understanding key impacts--especially how the tax will make living here even less affordable. An Opp Now exclusive.
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☆ "We speak for ourselves:" Community leaders call for SJ City to stand down from taking positions on ballot initiatives
An Open Letter from San Jose residents to SJ City Council requesting that the city quit endorsing ballot initiatives is going viral, and gaining the support of notable community leaders. Pat Waite of Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility and Sandra Delvin of Families and Homes SJ urge the city to stay in its lane. An Opp Now Exclusive.
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