Kevin Rice, San Luis Obispo Council Member - KCOY Santa Maria, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo - News

Party/Affiliation: Non-Partisan

Current Job: Firefighter

Top 3 Priorities if Elected:

1. Cut petty spending/ fiscal integrity.

San Luis Obispo has spent on numerous petty projects at the same time it is facing skyrocketing pension obligations. Our 1/2-cent sales tax was supposed to provide for extras, but instead SLO had deferred maintenance of infrastructure, leaving promises unfulfilled. Cutting petty projects will allow us to fulfill promises and compensate for pension costs. Spending on such projects has been a slap on the face to employees whose salaries have been reduced.

2. Resolve homeless issues and wasted litigation.  

We are waiting on a $9 million homeless center to be built years in the future. Meanwhile the city has provided a measly five overnight parking spaces for hundreds of homeless and passed two unconstitutional ordinances criminalizing or ticketing citizens who need a place to lay their head at night. These ordinances brought on litigation which may ultimately cost us $1/2 million--- that is money which could have provided much to the homeless, but instead we have provided nothing.

3. Cut top salaries.

Our city manager makes far more than the governor of the state, and had never lived in San Luis Obispo prior to being hired. We need a local city manager who loves, understands, and it invested in our community, and lives here for the same reasons we do--- not the money.