He’s at it again. After ramming through the deeply flawed AB 918 last year, Assemblymember Garcia’s missteps have only multiplied. Now, with the legislative session nearing its end this week, Garcia was hoping he could quietly push through a “clean up” bill, SB 1070, as a last-minute attempt to rectify some of the critical flaws in AB 918. This narrow, hurried measure was only amended last Friday in the 11th hour of the legislative session without any substantive discussion or review. Unsurprisingly, it is STILL an inadequate fix for the significant issues that have ignited local opposition and legal action.
This moves comes after Garcia wrote in an August 7th letter to the Imperial Valley Healthcare District that the language in AB 918 wasn’t a “mandatory requirement” but rather a suggested timeline. Really? That’s a new excuse. If SHALL in a law now means “if you want” than that would apply to every SHALL in AB 918—and there are quite a few.
These types of games undermine voter confidence and only further highlight AB 918’s flaws which are now the subject of widespread dissent (and a lawsuit). In fact, thousands of local citizens have signed petitions demanding a public vote on the dissolution of the Pioneers Memorial Healthcare District (PMHD). The right to vote on such matters is enshrined in the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of 2000. This is not just a bureaucratic detail but a fundamental right for local communities to decide their healthcare future. Garcia’s AB 918 takes that away.
The attempt to push out the deadline for voter input on funding mechanisms, as in SB 1070, only underscores the hastiness and, frankly, the disingenuous nature of the language and process of AB 918. If deadlines can be extended by two years, it becomes clear that the urgency initially claimed for AB 918 was overstated. Even so, this extension—if expanded to other key aspects of AB 918—could have offered a crucial opportunity to slow down the process, restore voter power, and ensure that the future of the PMHD is determined with proper community input. But Garcia wouldn’t even entertain discussion…again.
Once he realized, the situation wasn’t urgent, Garcia could have and should have embraced an amendment affirming voters’ rights, in line with existing state laws, requiring a public referendum on district dissolution no earlier than 2026 or until a funding mechanism is approved by Imperial County voters. Such an amendment would have shown respect for the democratic process and ensure that any significant changes to our local healthcare system have broad-based community support. Garcia decided he knew better, and that listening to voters was inconvenient.
The community’s concern for the preservation of our foundational hospital is palpable. It is evident that the Imperial Valley Healthcare District (IVHD) is not yet prepared to manage an entirely new countywide district effectively and cost efficiently. The community’s desire to exercise its voting rights is both clear and justified. The gutting of SB 1070 to address a flaw in AB 918 highlights a troubling trend in politics, where expedience trumps transparency and public trust.
As we move forward, we hope that county leaders—and especially the person elected to fill Garcia’s soon-to-be vacated seat—will recognize the importance of restoring Imperial Valley’s enfranchisement and respect the voters’ rights to decide the future of our healthcare system. Our health and our democracy depend on it.