The SJCOG, San Joaquin Council of Governments, Board voted, by unanimous vote, to support Proposition 69 (also known as Assembly Constitutional Amendment 5), which would provide constitutional protection for all new transportation revenues generated by Senate Bill 1 (SB 1).

“This initiative will protect our transportation funds from being diverted by the Legislature so that all Californians can have better roads,” said San Joaquin County Supervisor and SJCOG Chair Kathy Miller.

If Prop. 69 is approved by a majority of California voters in the June 5, 2018 Primary Election, the State Legislature and Governor would be prohibited from borrowing or diverting SB 1 revenues.

Specifically, Prop 69 will: Extend constitutional protections to SB 1 revenues that aren’t currently protected, prohibit the Legislature from borrowing or diverting these revenues for non-transportation purposes; including prohibiting loaning the funds to the State General Fund or another special fund, and ensure SB 1 funds can only be used for transportation improvement projects.

SB 1 funds have already been committed to San Joaquin County. Under the law, each city and the County of San Joaquin receives an annual sum of SB 1 funds to repair and maintain existing local roads. In general, local governments in San Joaquin County will see their budget for filling potholes and fixing local streets nearly double. The projects receiving these funds are reviewed and approved in public meetings by city councils and the Board of Supervisors, and are disclosed at this state website: www.catc.ca.gov/programs/sb1/lsrp. Additional information about SB 1, can be found at www.rebuilding.ca.gov

San Joaquin Council of Governments is a joint powers authority comprised of the County of San Joaquin and the cities of Stockton, Lodi, Manteca, Tracy, Ripon, Escalon, and Lathrop. The agency serves as the federally-designated metropolitan planning organization, the state-designated regional transportation planning agency, the implementing agency for the habitat conservation program, and the local transportation authority (overseeing Measure K, the local half-cent transportation sales tax) for the San Joaquin region. For more information, visit sjcog.org, follow SJCOG on Facebook and Twitter, or call 209-235-0600.