JOHN TAVAGLIONE

John Tavaglione sided with developers on a series of warehouse projects that residents say have contributed to dangerous air pollution. Riverside County already has some of the worst air in the nation, with a 2001 study finding that children living near the warehouses had slower lung development, increasing their risk for future respiratory illnesses. One project in particular, a 1.4-million-square-foot warehouse center, is so controversial that the states Attorney General joined a lawsuit against the county in 2011 to prevent its construction on environmental grounds. In addition, during the late 2000s recession when Riverside County was cutting over 2,000 county jobs, Tavaglione ordered a $54,000 luxury SUV as his county-provided vehicle, paid for by the taxpayers. Finally, Tavaglione was a top bundler for President George W. Bushs 2004 reelection campaign.

Supported Polluting Developers

LIBERTY QUARRY
In May 2012, Tavaglione voted to certify an environmental impact report submitted by Granite Construction for the construction of Liberty Quarry, an open-pit mine near Temecula, California. Although Tavaglione voted to reject Granite Constructions quarry construction proposal in February 2012, by voting to certify the companys environmental impact report, Tavaglione opened the way for Granite Construction to reapply their permit for Liberty Quarry. Residents have expressed concerns that the quarry will damage area air quality, and even Granite Constructions environmental impact report stated that the quarry would have significant and unavoidable impacts to air quality and traffic/transportation.

Tavaglione First Voted Against Construction of Quarry

Tavaglione and Riverside County Supervisors Rejected Proposal by Granite Construction for Quarry. In February 2012, Tavaglione cast the deciding vote against allowing Granite Construction to construct a large rock quarry in Riverside County. According to Los Angeles Times, The Riverside County Board of Supervisors on Thursday rejected a proposed mammoth rock quarry on a mountain overlooking the Temecula Valley, ending seven years of debate that has roiled the southwest corner of the county. The board voted 3-2 against the open-pit mine after four days of testimony and deliberation that attracted hundreds of union members in support of the rock mine and community members fighting it. There are just too many uncertainties to me, said Supervisor John Tavaglione, whose district includes several similar aggregate mines in Corona. [Los Angeles Times, 2/16/12]

Tavaglione then Reversed and Voted for Developers Environmental Impact Report, Allowing Construction to Continue
Tavaglione Voted to Certify Granite Constructions Liberty Quarry Environmental Impact Report. According to North County Times, The Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday to affirm its denial of Granite Constructions Liberty Quarry project, a rock mine that had been proposed for land on the city of Temeculas southern border. But in a twist that was described as shocking, a surprise and bizarre by foes of the project, the board during the same meeting voted 3-2 to certify the quarrys environmental impact report. That voluminous document details how the project, which had been projected to produce 5 million tons of aggregate material annually, would affect the areas air quality, traffic patterns, migrating animals, land considered sacred by the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians and more. Those casting yes votes to certify the report were Supervisors John Tavaglione, Marion Ashley and John Benoit. Supervisors Bob Buster and Jeff Stone dissented. The votes to affirm the February denial of the project were cast by Tavaglione, Buster and Stone, with Ashley and Benoit dissenting. [North County Times, 5/15/12] North County Times: By Certifying Environmental Report, Granite Construction Can Reapply for Permit to Construct Quarry. According to North County Times, By the board certifying the report, Granite Construction can try again to get the project approved with the wind of a certified EIR in its sails, a prospect decried by Temecula Mayor Chuck Washington. [North County Times, 5/15/12]

Certifying Environmental Report Would Benefit Granite Construction in any Future Permit Application Process
Temecula Mayor: To Deny a Project But Certify an Environmental Report was a Recipe for How You Could Circumvent the California Environmental Quality Act. According to North County Times, By the board certifying the report, Granite Construction can try again to get the project approved with the wind of a certified EIR in its sails, a prospect decried by Temecula Mayor Chuck Washington. All the things we argued during the commission hearings, the professional expertise of the consultants ... all those things went undocumented now, none of those are valid, he said. We have a problem with that. In response to the county boards action, Washington said the council will discuss at its upcoming meeting taking legal action to challenge the reports certification. Its very rare to deny a project and certify an EIR. The danger in that action ... if a project is denied and the EIR is certified, the applicant can reapply with an approved, certified EIR ... its a recipe for how you could circumvent the California Environmental Quality Act, he said. [North County Times, 5/15/12] Certifying the Environmental Report Means that Another Environmental Report Would be Unnecessary for a Reapplication for Permit. According to Temecula Patch, Certifying the report means if Granite decides to reapply for a permit, they will not have to make another report, which is a long, expensive process. The report cost Granite $10 million, according to Karie Reuther, a spokesperson for the company. The certification means the county accepts the facts presented in the report as reliable. This means critics will be unable to cite problems with the report as their reason for urging the supervisors to reject the project. Our whole argument was that (the report) wasnt (reliable), said Mike Naggar, Mayor Pro-tem for Temecula. [Temecula Patch, 5/15/12] Certifying the Environmental Report Limits Arguments Quarrys Opponents Can Make if Granite Construction Chooses to Reapply for Permit. According to Temecula Patch, Certifying the report means if Granite decides to reapply for a permit, they will not have to make another report, which is a long, expensive process. The report cost Granite $10 million, according to Karie Reuther, a spokesperson for the company. The certification means the county accepts the facts

presented in the report as reliable. This means critics will be unable to cite problems with the report as their reason for urging the supervisors to reject the project. Our whole argument was that (the report) wasnt (reliable), said Mike Naggar, Mayor Pro-tem for Temecula. [Temecula Patch, 5/15/12]

Granite Construction Contributed $4,000 to Tavaglione, $2,000 of Which was Refunded

2011: Granite Construction Contributed $4,000 to Tavaglione, $2,000 of Which was Refunded. On both October 3, 2011 and December 20, 2011, Granite Construction contributed $2,000 to Tavaglione. Tavaglione refunded $2,000 of Granite Constructions contributions on December 20, 2011. [Transparency Data, Contributor Granite, Recipient Tavaglione, accessed 5/16/12] Press-Enterprise: Granite Construction Contributed to Tavaglione. According to The Press Enterprise, Since 2001, the company proposing a quarry near Temecula has donated more than $59,000 to political candidates in Riverside County - including at least $38,000 to county supervisors who will decide if the project gets built. Campaign finance records show that Granite Construction gave to all five supervisors and local lawmakers, including state assemblymen and city council members outside Temecula. One donation went to a Moreno Valley councilwoman who serves as Supervisor Marion Ashleys chief of staff. [] Since 2001, Granite has donated at least $38,316 to supervisors Ashley, John Benoit, Bob Buster, John Tavaglione and Jeff Stone, according to the California secretary of states online campaign finance records. The money includes contributions to Benoits state assembly campaign fund and Stones unsuccessful state Senate run. Supervisors stressed that Granites dollars wont influence their votes. Buster, whose district includes the quarry site, said he objected to a plan in the 1990s that would have restricted non-toll lanes on Highway 91. Granite stood to benefit from that plan, he said. While he declined to say how hed vote on the quarry, Buster in 2009 called the quarry the introduction of a huge new use in one of the most fragile areas weve got. At the time, Buster served on a boundary-setting panel that denied Temeculas attempt to annex the quarry site. Buster and Tavaglione voted in favor of the citys proposal. [] Tavaglione did not respond to a request for comment. [The Press Enterprise, 7/7/11]

Citizens Groups Said Quarry Would Hurt Area Air Quality

Granite Construction Said Liberty Quarry Would Improve Area Air Quality. According to North County Times, Granite, pointing to studies it commissioned and the countys environmental report, has long argued the mine project would have improved air quality in the Temecula region by removing pollution-emitting trucks from the roads. Those vehicles travel from quarries in the Corona and Lake Elsinore areas and other northern spots through Southwest County to markets in San Diego County, trips that Granite contends would be eliminated with a large source of aggregate material available on the southern border of Riverside County. [North County Times, 5/15/12] Opponents to Quarry Said Quarry Would Worsen Area Air Quality. According to North County Times, Opponents of the project have blasted that argument, saying the project would worsen area air conditions because of blasting, dust emitted on the project work site and the trucks headed to and from the site. [North County Times, 5/15/12] Save Our Southwest Hills: Liberty Quarry Would Hurt Area Air Quality. A citizens group opposed to the construction of Liberty Quarry, Save Our Southwest Hills, named reasons on their website why the quarry would hurt area air quality. They wrote, Our air quality will suffer tremendously. That clean, fresh air we enjoy coming through the Rainbow Gap would no longer exist. That is the proposed quarry site. The dust from blasting, digging, transferring material, trucks going up and down the mountain will be with us constantly. Granites own Environmental Impact

Report states, This project would result in significant and unavoidable impacts to air quality and traffic which cannot be mitigated to a level of significance. [Save Our Southwest Hills, Quarry Facts, accessed 5/16/12]

Granite Constructions Environmental Impact Report Said Quarry Would Impact Area Air Quality
Granite Constructions Draft Environmental Impact Admitted There Were Significant and Unavoidable Impacts to Air Quality. In July 2009, Granite Construction released their draft environmental impact report. Granite Construction admitted there were significant and unavoidable environmental impacts, writing [Draft Environmental Impact Report] No. 475 determined that the proposed project would result in significant and unavoidable impacts to Air Quality and Traffic/Transportation, which cannot be mitigated to below a level of significance. In addition, the DEIR determined that the proposed project would contribute to cumulatively considerable and unavoidable impacts to Air Quality (criteria pollutants and greenhouse gases), Biological Resources (wildlife movement), Traffic/Transportation (funding and timing of road improvements), and Utilities (water supply), which cannot be mitigated to below a level of significance. As a result of the potential significant and unavoidable impacts, adoption of a Statement of Overriding Considerations will be required in order for the project to be approved. [Liberty Quarry Facts, Draft Environmental Impact Report No. 475, NOC, July 2009]

MIRA LOMA COMMERCE CENTER

Tavaglione Supported Mira Loma Commerce Center Construction
1995: Plans Finalized for Giant Warehouse in Mira Loma. According to Press Enterprise, PriceCostco Inc., the warehouse retailing giant, is finalizing plans to build a 1.4-million-square-foot distribution facility in Mira Loma that initially will employ as many as 400, county officials said Thursday. The $ 40 million depot would be the largest warehouse in the county and serve as a magnet for other businesses to locate near the Highway 60 and I-15 interchange. [Press Enterprise, 10/27/95] Tavaglione Called Project to be Expedited. According to Press Enterprise, Its going to bring a lot more, said Supervisor John Tavaglione, who asked the county to expedite the project. You saw what happened in Ontario, which has become a hotbed of warehousing and distribution. The project, which will create an estimated 250 construction jobs when work begins in about a year, is scheduled to go before the county planning commission Nov. 8. [] We dont want all our growth to be warehousing, said Tavaglione. We want to create jobs. [Press Enterprise, 10/27/95]

Tavaglione Supported Construction of Warehouse Project. In May 2011, Tavaglione supported construction of the 1.4-million-square-foot Mira Loma Commerce Center warehouse project. According to City News Service, The commerce center project was approved by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors in May following numerous hearings. [City News Service, 9/8/11] Background: Tavagliones District Includes Mira Loma, Which has More than 70 Commercial Warehouses. According to Press Enterprise Editorial, At Supervisor John Tavagliones urging, the board authorized a study last year to recommend rules for limiting diesel pollution from large trucks. Tavagliones district includes Mira Loma, which has more than 70 commercial warehouses where big rigs roll around the clock, and, not surprisingly, is home to the

regions unhealthiest air. [Press Enterprise Editorial, 5/20/05] Warehouse Project Was to be Built in the Heart of Tavagliones District. According to City News Service, According to the project plans, a half-dozen warehouses would be built on a 60-acre space near Etiwanda Avenue and the Pomona (60) Freeway, in the heart of Supervisor John Tavagliones district. [City News Service, 9/8/11]

Environmental Group, Attorney General Sued To Stop Project For Environmental Concerns
Environmental Group Sued to Halt Construction, Said it Would Raise Diesel Emissions to Harmful Levels. The Center or Community Action and Environmental Justice filed a lawsuit attempting to halt the construction of the Mira Loma warehouse project. According to City News Service, The Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice is challenging the project on the grounds that it allegedly violates the California Environmental Quality Act. Newman, the groups executive director, said the commerce center is a threat to residents quality of life. We are so grateful to have the attorney general join us in what is truly a fight for their lives, she said. [City News Service, 9/8/11] California AG Joined Suit. According to City News Service, California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced today that the state had joined a lawsuit seeking to stop construction of a 1.4million-square-foot warehouse project in Jurupa Valley that critics allege will increase pollution to harmful levels. The proposed Mira Loma (Commerce Center) carries significant health risks to a community that is already suffering the impacts of what are among the worst particulate pollution levels in the nation, Harris said during a visit to Riverside today. All California residents could be put at risk if developments like this are pushed through by officials without appropriate, and legally mandated, consideration of the environmental effects on health and welfare, she said. [] The attorney generals complaint, which is in support of a lawsuit filed by the Riverside-based Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice, names the county and the new city of Jurupa Valley as defendants. [City News Service, 9/8/11] California AG Said Trucking to Warehouses Threatened Air Quality, that Riverside County was Unwilling to Erect Proper Buffer Zones to Protect Residents. According to City News Service, According to Harris, in approving the Mira Loma Commerce Center, the county neglected to ensure that diesel emissions from the roughly 1,500 semis coming and going from the facility daily would be mitigated. In court papers, the attorney general pointed out that an environmental impact report assessing the project plans concluded that cancer risk from diesel particulate matter (generated) from the project, with mitigation, will exceed the threshold of significance, resulting in cancer risk increases for area sensitive receptors. [] Harris emphasized that the area already is dotted with 90 mega- warehouse complexes that serve as depots for shipments from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, resulting in 15,000 truck trips to the warehousing district every day. According to the attorney general, the EIR recommended a buffer zone replete with trees and bushes that would enhance residents breathing space with the project in place, but county officials refused to consider the idea and didnt come up with an alternative before approving the commerce center. [City News Service, 9/8/11]

Environmental Group Said Air Quality Near Planned Warehouse Development was Three Times Worse than Air at Tavagliones Home. According to The Press Enterprise, Environmentalists opposing warehouse development in northwestern Riverside County deployed a new weapon in their fight: hand-held machines that measure fine-particle pollution any place, any

time. They used the machines to make a point: Ultrafine-particle pollution, such as diesel soot, is much worse in Mira Loma than it is in the places where some of the people approving those warehouses live and work. In a comparison released Thursday, the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice found that air in the neighborhood closest to a planned warehouse and business-park development had, on average, three times the level of pollution measured in front of Riverside County Supervisor John Tavagliones home in central Riverside and just outside the County Government Center in downtown Riverside. [The Press Enterprise, 9/8/06] IDI Vice President: You Have No Legal Right to Breathe Clean Air. According to Press Enterprise, Residents, Newman says, have a right to breathe clean air. Not so, counters developer Alan Sharp. The right to breathe clean air is not a right as defined by statute. Its a luxury, Sharp said. If there were a right to clean air, we wouldnt allow dairies because they create their own brand of pollution. Sharp is vice president of construction for Industrial Development International, which has eight warehouses in Mira Loma, a ninth under construction and is looking to build a threebuilding, 1.7 million-square-foot facility on Harrel Street, west of Etiwanda Avenue. Sharps contention is well-grounded in law, experts say. [Press Enterprise, 3/04/01]

Tavaglione Defended Project Against Environmental Concerns

Tavaglione Defended Project, Arguing that the Project Followed Some of the Strictest Emission Policies in the Nation. According to City News Service, Penny Newman and the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice have a long history of suing Riverside County for approving large industrial projects, Tavaglione said in a statement. We are following the countys general plan and conditioning these projects to mitigate the impacts they bring. This approval represents a compromise that creates new jobs in our county and protects its citizens by placing the strictest conditions on diesel emissions anywhere in the state, and probably the nation. Having not had the time to review the filing by the state attorney general, I cannot comment on why she would choose to get involved. [City News Service, 9/8/11] Tavaglione Criticized Environmental Group, Said they had a History of Suing Large Industrial Projects. According to City News Service, Penny Newman and the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice have a long history of suing Riverside County for approving large industrial projects, Tavaglione said in a statement. We are following the countys general plan and conditioning these projects to mitigate the impacts they bring. This approval represents a compromise that creates new jobs in our county and protects its citizens by placing the strictest conditions on diesel emissions anywhere in the state, and probably the nation. Having not had the time to review the filing by the state attorney general, I cannot comment on why she would choose to get involved. [City News Service, 9/8/11]

Mira Loma Air Quality

Press-Enterprise: Mira Loma Residents Already Breathe Some of the Most Polluted Air in Nation. According to Press Enterprise, Air quality experts say people living in the west Riverside County community of Mira Loma breathe some of the filthiest air in the nation. [Press Enterprise, 10/7/03] March 2001: Study Found Mira Loma to have Worst Air Quality in Region. According to Press Enterprise, Mira Loma has the worst particulate pollution in Southern California, a new study shows, fueling residents complaints that diesel traffic and pro-liferating warehouses are harming the health of their children. The study, released this week by the regional air-quality agency, was ordered after research by USCs medical school found that Mira Loma childrens lungs develop more slowly, putting the youngsters at risk for future respiratory illnesses. [] The samples taken by the South

Coast Air Quality Management District indicate that diesel soot and road dust kicked up by traffic may be major contributors to the particulate pollution, although the evidence was not conclusive. Diesel soot is a major component of particle pollution and has been linked to cancer. [Press Enterprise, 3/23/01] Mira Loma Childrens Lungs Developed More Slowly, Putting them at Greater Risk for Respiratory Illnesses. According to Press Enterprise, The study, released this week by the regional air-quality agency, was ordered after research by USCs medical school found that Mira Loma childrens lungs develop more slowly, putting the youngsters at risk for future respiratory illnesses. [] USC researchers found that the lung capacity of Mira Loma schoolchildren grows about 10 percent more slowly than that of children in coastal communities, where the air is cleaner. Slower lung growth means the children will probably have a tougher time fighting off respiratory illnesses when they become adults, said Dr. James Gauderman, an author of the USC study. [Press Enterprise, 3/23/01] Residents Blamed Diesel Traffic. According to Press Enterprise, Air samples taken in December and January found that Mira Lomas air has higher concentrations of an unhealthy soup of soot, dust, tire rubber, chemical compounds and other materials than neighboring Rubidoux, a community that for years has had the regions worst reported particulate pollution. Local residents blame the diesel traffic generated by the dozens of warehouses in Mira Loma. We already have thousands of truck bays upwind from the high school, said Paul Wakefield, who blames the pollution for his sons chronic respiratory problems. Why would we want to add more to an already-bad situation? [Press Enterprise, 3/23/01] Tavaglione Emphasized Studys Results on Dust, Said the Area Will Always have Diesel Trucks. According to Press Enterprise, Riverside County Supervisor John Tavaglione formed a 28-member task force to study warehouse development and the air-quality implications in Mira Loma. Tavaglione said the AQMD study pointed to road dust as a major contributor to the air pollution. We need more street sweeping, better drainage, more landscaping and irrigation. All of that will help, he said. Highway 60 always will bring diesel trucks through the area, Tavaglione said. Diesel trucks are going to be there whether another warehouse is built or not. [Press Enterprise, 3/23/01]

Tavagliones Taxpayer Funded Luxury Car

At a time when Riverside County was cutting 2,000 jobs, Tavaglione ordered a taxpayer-funded $54,000 luxury SUV as his county car. Tavaglione frequently called the recession-era cuts as painful but necessary.

RIVERSIDE COUNTY CUT AT LEAST 2,000 JOBS DURING RECESSION, WAS FACING $100 MILLION REVENUE SHORTFALL
NYT: Riverside County Eliminated 2,000 County Government Jobs Over the Past Two Years. According to The New York Times, The current proposal includes a tax stream for the next five years, but John Tavaglione, the president of the California State Association of Counties, said many worry that the money is not guaranteed in the long term. If they shift without funding for the future, we are going to be in an even bigger mess, said Mr. Tavaglione, who is also a supervisor in Riverside County. This is the worst any of us has seen since the Great Depression, and I dont see it getting any better. The difference between the local governments and the state is that weve all bitten

the bullet and been cutting. The state is only starting to do that now. Riverside, he said, has eliminated 2,000 positions in county government in the last two years, even as more and more residents are reliant on county services like public health clinics and work placement programs. [The New York Times, 1/30/11] May 2009: Riverside County Faced a $130 Million Revenue Shortfall. According to The Press Enterprise, The county is struggling with how to cut costs and plug a $130 million revenue shortfall for next fiscal year, which starts July 1. [The Press Enterprise, 5/2/09]

Tavaglione Said Recession-Era Cuts Were Painful but Necessary

Tavaglione: We Have No Choice, The County Must Downsize. According to The Desert Sun, Supervisors held off on whats proving to be one of their stickiest budget decisions - how much should be spent in future budgets to backfill the loss of sales tax revenue pegged for public safety and rescheduled those related votes until Feb. 9. Really consider the reality of what were dealing with: We have to cut back, Supervisor John Tavaglione said. We have no choice but to cut back. The county organization needs to downsize. [The Desert Sun, 1/27/10] Tavaglione: Everybody is Going to Need to Share in the Pain. According to City News Service, Stone disliked the idea of trimming public safety payrolls, a sentiment echoed by Supervisor John Tavaglione, who added that even so, everybody is going to need to share in the pain. We have to start living within our means until we bring this organization to the right level, the supervisor said. We dont all work on the same page, but lets try to get everybody on the same page. [City News Service, 1/26/10]

TAVAGLIONE ORDERED $54,000 LUXURY SUV IN APRIL 2008

2008: Riverside County Purchased a Fully-Loaded 2008 Yukon Hybrid SUV, Worth $54,000, as Tavagliones County Car Around the Beginning of the Recession. According to The Press Enterprise, Tavaglione will keep his county car, a 2008 GMC Yukon Hybrid, but will pay all gas and maintenance costs associated with it, said chief of staff John Field. Generally, the county provides and pays for gas and maintenance for supervisors work vehicles. [] An article in The Press-Enterprise focused on the countys purchase of the costly, fully-loaded cars last year at a time when the economy was worsening. Since then, some union members have criticized the supervisors for the cars. Tavaglione and Ashley have said they did not know the countys finances would deteriorate so dramatically when they ordered the new SUVs. [] The county spent $54,000 last year on Tavagliones SUV, which included a rear-seat DVD player, leather seats, Bose speakers and other features. Field said this week that Tavaglione will offset costs and not purchase a new county car for at least six years if he is in office for that time. [The Press Enterprise, 5/2/09] Tavaglione Had the County Buy Him the Car in April 2008, Just Months After County Supervisors Approved 5 Percent Across-the-Board Budget Cuts. According to a PressEnterprise Editorial, Supervisor John Tavaglione drove his $53,955 GMC Yukon hybrid off the lot in April. And from a February 2009 news article: Supervisor John Tavaglione, who has repeatedly called for county departments to rein in spending, had the county buy him a 2008 GMC Yukon hybrid that cost nearly $54,000 with a rear-seat DVD player, Bose speakers, leather seats and other features. The purchase was last spring, just months after supervisors approved this fiscal years 5 percent across-the-board budget cuts. [Press-Enterprise Editorial, 2/25/09; The Press Enterprise, 2/24/09]

SUV Included Features Such as Rear-Seat DVD Player, Bose Speakers, and Leather Seats. According to The Press Enterprise, The county spent $54,000 last year on Tavagliones SUV, which included a rear-seat DVD player, leather seats, Bose speakers and other features. Field said this week that Tavaglione will offset costs and not purchase a new county car for at least six years if he is in office for that time. [The Press Enterprise, 5/2/09]

Insufficient Fuel Efficiency

Tavagliones Hybrid SUV Did Not Meet Riverside Countys Minimum Fuel-Efficiency Guidelines. According to The Press Enterprise, Two supervisors county cars, including Tavagliones hybrid sport utility vehicle, do not meet the minimum fuel-efficiency guidelines supervisors recently approved. [] Tavaglione and Ashley said their new SUVs cost more in part because they are environmentally friendly hybrids. Both said many of the extras on their new vehicles came as part of options packages, so they were not aware of and did not request all of them. Other features, such as four-wheel drive and seating for as many as eight passengers, are necessary for their jobs, they said. []Tavaglione said he was considering trading in his Yukon hybrid, because its fuel efficiency is not what he expected. The car was bought about seven months before county supervisors set a 25 mile-per-gallon minimum for county vehicles fuel efficiency. Despite the car being a costly hybrid, the Environmental Protection Agency says the car averages 20 miles to the gallon. [The Press Enterprise, 2/24/09]

Cutting Staffers Cars

April 2009: Amid County Hiring Freeze, Several County Supervisors Said they Plan to Have their Staffers Give up their County Cars. According to The Press Enterprise, Riverside County supervisors Tuesday instituted a countywide hiring freeze, slashed contributions to managers retirement funds, limited use of county cars and approved other budget cuts - and did not approve a $15,000 increase to County Executive Officer Bill Lunas compensation. [] Several supervisors said they plan to have their staffers give up their county cars to save money. Supervisors John Tavaglione and Marion Ashley said they will relinquish their county cars, which the county purchased for more than $50,000 each last year. [The Press Enterprise, 4/11/09] Tavaglione Aide: Because We Are Laying People Off, County Government Needs to Scale Back. According to The Press Enterprise, We anticipate very likely losing county cars for staffers at this point in time, John Field, Tavagliones chief of staff, said of his expectations for Lunas report. During a crisis like we are going through right now, I suspect he is going to support it, he said of Tavaglione, who did not return a call for comment. We are laying people off. Its hard not to support anything that is going to help stem the bleeding. Most county supervisors assign key staffers the take-home use of county cars. [The Press Enterprise, 3/27/09]

TAVAGLIONE DEFENDED PURCHASE

Tavaglione Said the Luxury SUV was Necessary to Shuttle Aides Around the County. According to The Press Enterprise Editorial, Ashley says he needs the SUV because of the size of his district. He and Tavaglione also say the SUVs are necessary to shuttle aides around the county. But Wilson and his staff cover District 4 - the countys largest - with a Toyota Camry. [The Press Enterprise Editorial, 2/25/09] May 2009: Tavaglione Agreed to Pay for the Vehicles Gasoline and Maintenance Costs, Although he Decided to Keep the SUV as his County Car. According to The Press Enterprise,

Two Riverside County supervisors whose work vehicles each cost more than $50,000 said they will help offset the cars price tags by paying for gasoline, maintenance and other expenses. Supervisors John Tavaglione and Marion Ashley had announced a few weeks ago they planned to relinquish their cars and take a $550 monthly vehicle stipend and mileage reimbursement from the county instead. They said they wanted to save the county money. Both supervisors changed their mind about returning the cars to the county or buying them back after consulting with staff. Other supervisors also told them turning in the cars could cost taxpayers more money. Tavaglione will keep his county car, a 2008 GMC Yukon Hybrid, but will pay all gas and maintenance costs associated with it, said chief of staff John Field. Generally, the county provides and pays for gas and maintenance for supervisors work vehicles. [The Press Enterprise, 5/2/09]

PRESS CRITICIZED PURCHASE

Press Enterprise Editorial Criticized Countys High-End Tastes in Car Purchases. In February 2009, the Press-Enterprise published an editorial. They wrote, Riverside County supervisors need to craft a car-buying policy that accommodates official business without indulging high-end tastes at taxpayer expense. New rules could assure county residents that public money invested in county vehicles actually funds public needs rather than executive perks. A PressEnterprise review of supervisors rides published Tuesday found that the county bought Supervisor Marion Ashley a $52,745 2009 Toyota Highlander hybrid in November. Supervisor John Tavaglione drove his $53,955 GMC Yukon hybrid off the lot in April. And Supervisor Jeff Stone is driving a $37,064 Dodge Charger the county purchased in June. All three are fully loaded. It is unclear why the supervisors and other top county officials need high-end, late-model vehicles to carry out their duties. Or why board members who make $143,000 a year cannot buy luxury cars on their own, if theyd prefer to drive a vehicle that offers more sport than utility. [The Press Enterprise Editorial, 2/25/09] Press Enterprise Editorial Said Car Purchases Were Especially Galling with the Recession. In February 2009, the Press-Enterprise published an editorial. They wrote, Buying fancy cars in 2008 was especially galling. County finances were deteriorating throughout the year. And supervisors in November adopted a recommendation to slash county spending by 25 percent over the next four years. Even in boom times, the buying of luxury cars raises questions about how supervisors spend public money and whether they are making sensible choices on behalf of taxpayers. The board might restore some lost credibility by tightening its car policy and modeling better choices - including an acknowledgment that in this economic climate, some sacrifice should start at the top. [The Press Enterprise Editorial, 2/25/09]

Major Fundraiser for George W. Bush

Tavaglione Brought in Over $200,000 as a Bundler for George W. Bush, Making him a Ranger in the Bush Campaign. According to Press Enterprise, Postmus and Tavaglione, both aggressive fund-raisers for the president, got to attend several special inauguration events this week. Tavaglione is known as a Ranger in the Bush campaign because he helped bring in more than $ 200,000 in small donations. Postmus is a Maverick. Hes part of a group of under-40 backers who each raised more than $ 50,000. Postmus will attend a luncheon today with 70 other Mavericks to listen to Ken Mehlman, the Bush campaign chairman and incoming head of the Republican National Committee. Tavaglione attended a candlelight dinner with other donors and special guests Wednesday night. Bush and Cheney spoke, and Tavaglione sat at a table with Seacrest, the host of the TV show American Idol. [Press Enterprise, 1/21/05]

Tavaglione: Its Quite an Honor to be Involved in This. According to Press Enterprise, John Tavaglione says hes always up for a challenge. So when the politically connected Riverside County supervisor was tapped to find as many people as he could to pay $ 1,000 to attend a fund-raiser last fall with President Bush, Tavaglione jumped at the opportunity. Tavaglione and three other Inland Republicans, Mission Inn owner Duane Roberts, state Sen. Jim Brulte and San Bernardino County Supervisor Bill Postmus, are part of a network of aggressive fund-raisers nationwide who have become the main components of the Bush campaign-finance strategy. Theyre known in political circles as bundlers. Its quite an honor to be involved in this, said Tavaglione, one of Bushs elite Rangers, the name the campaign has given bundlers who have raised at least $ 200,000 by collecting checks of no more than $ 2,000 each - because of federal limits - from their friends, family and business associates. [Press Enterprise, 6/4/04] Tavaglione: I Feel Strongly About this President and Want to See him Prevail in the Next Election. According to Press Enterprise, Others, such as Tavaglione and Postmus, said they are fund-raisers because they enjoy it. Theyre loyal Republicans and want to help Bush. I feel strongly about this president and want to see him prevail in the next election, Tavaglione said. I think what hes done is very good under the most extreme time any of us have seen since World War II. [Press Enterprise, 6/4/04]