Our View: Team effort brings Stanislaus a big legislative win

Sometimes, watching politics can be as entertaining as watching a sports event. After all, at its best politicis is a “team” sport, and it was at its best on Friday night.

SB 107 came to a vote at around 10:20 p.m., the waning moments of the special session called by the governor. Budget “trailer” bill are like adendums to the actual budget passed in July. But they’re critical. SB 107 had several provisions, one of which will save Stanislaus County $3 million a year by righting a wrong that began 35 years ago.

Called the “negative bailout,” it was born of a legislative fix for the impacts of Proposition 13 on counties. Stanislaus was on the short end of that fix, and over the years it has cost the county $74 million in property tax revenues that should have come back to the county, but were instead given to the state. The fix was lumped in with an item that would cost cities “lost interest” on loans they had essentially made to themselves, so many cities fought SB 107 tooth-and-nail.

Thanks to the dogged efforts four legislators – two from each party – and even the govenor, it passed.

In fact, it passed twice. Early Friday afternoon, it passed in the Assembly, where Republican Leader Kristin Olsen and Democrat Adam Gray, who both represent portions of Stanislaus County, worked every angle, pressed every button, engaged every member of the Assembly on both sides of the aisle and came away a 42-38 win. In essence, they had a victory “cushion” of exactly 1 vote.

Then it moved to the Senate, where everyone knew the vote would be even closer. Republican Anthony Cannella and Democrat Cathleen Galgiani picked up where Gray and Olsen had left off, and were joined by the governor’s staff. It was expected the vote would come down to one senator who represents part of Stanislaus County but also part of Fresno County, where opposition to the bill was most intense. Tom Berryhill, a Stanislaus native but now a resident of Twain Harte, was in a lose-lose situation.

We’re not sure how it happened, but when the final vote was taken, it passed the Senate with four votes to spare.

On Friday afternoon, when it appeared Berryhill held the deciding vote, The Modesto Bee took the unprecedented step of posting a mid-day editorial, urging Berryhill to help Stanislaus County get free of the burden of “negative bailout.” As it turns out, his vote wasn’t needed. Sen. Berryhill abstained, meaning his Fresno constituents can’t blame him for its passage. It is possible that if he had voted against the bill, it would have signaled others they could do the same and it might have failed. We don’t know. But abstaining was better than “no.”

What was utterly essential in this legislative tug of war were the Herculean efforts of Assemblymembers Gray and Olsen and Senators Cannella and Galgiani. They set aside significant party differences and worked as a team for the good of every person living in Stanislaus County. Such selfless efforts are seldom seen in Sacramento. But that’s what it took to end 35 years of extremely costly unfairness to Stanislaus County.

At the core of this victory is County Supervisor Vito Chiesa. He took what most considered a dead issue, a losing battle and made it a priority. It became a cause for Chiesa, if not an obsession. Regardless, without the tireless team effort of all five, Stanislaus would still be getting back only a quarter of what some other counties get. Not only are congratulations in order, but gratitude as well.

This story was originally published September 11, 2015 at 4:18 PM with the headline "Our View: Team effort brings Stanislaus a big legislative win."