The Impact of Political Action Committees on Politics in Chula Vista, CA

The CVE PAC (Political Action Committee) is a campaign organization established to support the Chula Vista Elementary School District (CVESD) school board. According to Article 81000-9101 of the Code, detailed disclosure of the role of money in California politics is mandatory. This includes the disclosure of contributions and expenses related to campaigns that support or oppose local candidates and electoral bills. In San Diego, governance is the responsibility of state and federal governments and a wide range of local and regional institutions, such as a county government, cities, tribal nations, special districts, specialized regulatory agencies, and the San Diego Government Association (SANDAG).For more than two decades, San Diego residents and local officials have been debating whether this complex governance structure is sufficient to address the region's growing transportation, housing, environmental, and other challenges.

In response to high housing costs in the region, SANDAG has taken a series of measures aimed at increasing housing affordability. Each local agency has a representative on SANDAG, including small towns like Del Mar (with a population of less than 5,000) and large cities like Chula Vista (with a population of more than 200,000).In 1975, the Legislature created the county transportation agencies - now known as the Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) and their northern counterpart (the North County Transit District or NCTD) - to plan, build and operate public transportation systems in San Diego County. This would ensure that all cities in the region and the county will receive at least their current level of sales tax revenue for years to come, as long as the community continues to have a comparable (or higher) level of sales tax transactions. As Figure 1 shows, in the two decades between 1982 and 2003, the population of the San Diego metropolitan area grew by 61 percent (from 1.8 million to 2.9 million residents) and the average number of miles traveled daily in vehicles in the region grew by 120 percent (from 31 million to 68 million miles traveled daily in vehicles).Two former Democratic city councilors and an opponent of the political right are running in the special elections to occupy the seat of the 80th Assembly District. The voting membership of these committees generally includes six locally elected officials - one from the San Diego City Council, another from the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, and one elected from each of the four geographic sections of the county designated in Chapter 743. The Portlands Metropolitan Service District (Metro) is an elected regional government serving a population of approximately 1.4 million people living in three counties and 25 cities.

The taxpayer access portal is a web-based data recording system that allows candidates and campaign committees to submit disclosure reports required by the city of Chula Vista and the California Political Reform Act to the Electronic Archiving System.

Political Action Committees

have had an immense impact on politics in Chula Vista over time. The CVE PAC has been essential for advocating for increased funding for education initiatives within CVESD. Additionally, SANDAG has taken steps to increase housing affordability throughout San Diego County. Furthermore, MTS and NCTD have been established to plan, build and operate public transportation systems in San Diego County.

Finally, Metro has provided an elected regional government for 1.4 million people living in three counties and 25 cities. The presence of Political Action Committees has been critical for ensuring that local candidates are adequately represented in elections. Moreover, PACs have been instrumental in advocating for increased funding for education initiatives within CVESD as well as increasing housing affordability throughout San Diego County. Additionally, PACs have helped create MTS and NCTD which plan, build and operate public transportation systems in San Diego County. Finally, PACs have provided an elected regional government for 1.4 million people living in three counties and 25 cities.