Don Knabe. Working for you.

Good Government Accomplishments

2009

Reaching Contract Agreement with All Union Partners

Supervisor Don Knabe, Chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, announced a major agreement regarding several months of negotiations with the labor unions that represent County employees. Under the agreement, every single County union and bargaining unit has agreed to a two-year, no change extension of their current contracts. The extensions include no cost-of-living increases or salary increases. The County’s union partners represent nearly 90-percent of the approximately 101,000 County employees.

Increasing Use of Hybrid Vehicles
Supervisor Don Knabe, Chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, lauded a recent report that shows a dramatic increase in the County’s use of hybrid vehicles. The report shows that hybrids now make up over 20-percent of the County’s entire passenger car fleet. The County currently has a total of 268 hybrids, which is an increase of over 1,400-percent since the Board of Supervisors made acquiring hybrids a priority four years ago. In November 2005, the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to modify the County Clean Fuels Policy to ensure that hybrid vehicles become the standard for new non-emergency passenger vehicles acquired for routine County business.
 

Preparing Businesses for Shovel Ready Projects

Supervisor Don Knabe has joined with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works to announce that six free outreach events will be held this month to advise interested business owners about available contract opportunities in the following areas: roads, bridges, buildings, airports, flood controls, energy and consulting. The Department of Public Works will also be providing an update on the Economic Stimulus Package Funding.
 

Reaching Contract Agreement with Union Partners
Supervisor Don Knabe, Chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, announced a major agreement regarding recent negotiations with the public safety unions representing over 17,000 County employees. Under the agreement, all six of the County’s public safety bargaining units, plus two other justice-related unions, have agreed to a one-year, no change extension of their current contracts. The extensions include no cost-of-living increases or salary increases for the next year.

2008

Advocating for Infrastructure Funding
Supervisor Don Knabe, Chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with legislative leaders about local infrastructure improvements as part of the federal stimulus debate for a nationwide, multibillion dollar investment in public works projects. Included in the Supervisor's schedule were meetings with the Army Corps of Engineers, the offices of Senator Dianne Feinstein and Senator Barbara Boxer, and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. In addition to discussing County infrastructure projects, Knabe was also advocating for projects that would benefit Metro and the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
 

Looking at Permanent Rainy Day Fund
Supervisors Don Knabe and Zev Yaroslavsky began the process of creating a permanent Rainy Day Fund to combat potential financial shortfalls the County may face in the future. Their motion directed the County’s Chief Executive Officer to examine how a Rainy Day Fund would be structured, including transferring three-percent of the County’s annual fund balance into the Rainy Day Fund, how these new reserve funds would be spent, and the maximum size the fund would have to reach before any excesses could be spent for one-time purposes.
 

Supporting Governor's Budget Priority Plan

Supervisor Knabe announced his support for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's decision to make the budget the State's highest priority. Not having a budget more than a month into the new fiscal year is a tremendous disservice to the people of our State. Even though the Los Angeles County budget is currently balanced, the State’s uncertain fiscal condition could have a dramatic impact on the County. The longer the Legislature waits to take action, the worse shape the County could be in when a budget is finally passed.

Opposing a Sales Tax Increase
Supervisor Knabe announced his opposition to a proposed half-cent sales tax increase to pay for transit projects across Los Angeles County. Now is not the time to burden the residents of Los Angeles County with yet another tax increase. Taxpayers in our County already pay the second-highest tax rate in California, behind only Alameda County. Metro’s proposed increase would unfairly push our local tax rate even higher.
 

Calling for Conservation Efforts
Supervisor Knabe responded to rising gas prices and the statewide drought by directing County leaders to begin reducing commuting times for County employees and reducing water usage in County facilities. In his first motion, he called for creative solutions to rising gas prices by updating County polices on telecommuting, offering flexible schedule options, and offering incentives to employees to use public transportation. A second motion was introduced in response to Governor Schwarzenegger’s proclamation of a statewide drought, and asks for recommendations on how to immediately reduce water usage in hundreds of County-owned facilities.
 

Responding to Clinic Closure Plan

Supervisor Knabe was deeply concerned by the County’s Chief Executive Officer’s recommendation to close and/or reduce clinic services throughout the County, as a means to balance the Department of Health Services Fiscal Year 2008-09 Budget. The proposal failed to address the effect that closing clinics would have on the already overworked emergency rooms throughout the County. The emergency care system at both private and County hospitals is already in a fragile state, and further increasing the workload of our emergency rooms would create a time-bomb waiting to explode. Supervisor Knabe introduced a motion that asked the CEO to come up with a comprehensive list of all possible options to balance the Health Department’s budget.

2007

Reforming the Sewage Spill Reporting Process

Supervisor Knabe unveiled a number of reforms to immediately address and reform the sewage spill reporting process, as well as the impact of the public health and health of the environment these inactions may have caused.  An investigation revealed that since January 2002, over 11.6 million gallons of raw sewage have been spilled from wastewater treatment systems throughout the Santa Monica Bay Watershed in 208 separate sewage spills.  Of those spills, over 90-percent were never properly recorded by health officials, nor were records kept as to what was done to protect the safety and health of the public impacted by the spills.

Going Green in Los Angeles County

Los Angeles County has adopted new building standards that will require all new County buildings over 10,000 square feet to meet strict sustainability guidelines set by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Among the sustainability rules adopted by the Board are requirements that buildings commissioned by the County include drought-resistant landscaping, water use efficiencies, natural indoor lighting and recycled construction materials. The new County Data Center in Downey was designed to meet the new standards and will be the County’s first Green Building.

Closing Down the Marijuana Dispensary in Hacienda Heights

The Hacienda Heights dispensary, which was the first medical marijuana dispensary in the unincorporated area of Los Angeles County, agreed to close.  Supervisor Knabe led the effort to make sure that these dispensaries would be adequately regulated in order to keep neighborhoods safe, and the Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance that regulated marijuana dispensaries in the County.

Tracking Down Child Support Payment Evaders
Seeking to crackdown on the County’s most heinous child support payment evaders, Supervisor Knabe worked to create a partnership between the Los Angeles County Child Support Services Department and the Office of the District Attorney.  The primary goal of this program would be to increase enforcement against parents who are the most delinquent in their child support payments.

Protecting Senior Citizens from Fraud
Supervisor Knabe and the Department of Consumer Affairs presented the free "Smarter Seniors Forum" to assist seniors and their families learn how to protect themselves against elder financial frauds.

Taking Steps to Replace Long Beach Courthouse
Los Angeles County officially transferred the title and ownership of the Long Beach Superior Courthouse to the State of California, completing a critical step in the planned replacement of the building with a new Courthouse nearby.  By expediting the title transfer of the Long Beach Courthouse, it accelerates the State’s ability to use construction funding to replace the building or to enter into a public/private partnership with a developer to build a new courthouse and lease it back to the State.  In addition, Supervisor Knabe has worked with Judge Bradford Andrews and other state and local leaders over the course of several years to lobby for funds to construct a new courthouse in Long Beach.

Overhauling Education in the County Juvenile Justice System
Schools designed to teach children incarcerated in the Los Angeles County juvenile justice system may be seriously underserving students, according to a report by the Children’s Planning Council.  As a result, Supervisor Knabe called for a top-to-bottom reform of the education system in the County’s juvenile halls and probation camps, including the possible use of charter schools.

Reforming Child Welfare System
The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), the largest child welfare agency in the country, has begun a historic child welfare reform plan that will focus on preventative services to help families and keep children out of the foster care system.  The plan will also broaden the search for more permanent homes for children already in the system and build on the Department’s core mandate of ensuring all children can grow up in safe, loving and permanent families.

Speeding Up Catalina Island Fire Recovery
Supervisor Knabe called for County agencies to expedite permits needed to begin repairs to critical infrastructure that was damaged or destroyed during the wildfire on Catalina Island.  The fire destroyed several miles of fencing, nearly 100 utility poles, and caused extensive damage to roads used to access the unincorporated interior of the Island.  Additionally, the fire left significant ecologic damage to the island habitat that could lead to flooding, mudslides and erosion.

2006

Developing Job Opportunities for Veterans

The County of Los Angeles plans to assist local military veterans with employment opportunities under a plan developed by Supervisors Don Knabe and Michael D. Antonovich.  The program, approved by the Board of Supervisors, directs County departments to begin internship programs for Veterans including employment outreach, new hiring protocols and education opportunities.