This was sent to me by a reader.

I don't have the resources to research the background of the proposed C7, but hopefully the citizens of Ventura are getting the straight information and not being lied to like the citizens of LA.

Ted Hetherington

Oxnard

The people of Ventura need to be cautious about C7!!!!! The City of LA is scrambling to what seems to be the same action as Ventura. Falsely market a vote on a tax that is illegal! A lawsuit was filed that the city of LA, wrongly invoked a communications tax in violation of proposition 218. It is expected that the judge will rule in favor of the plaintiff. So if the citizens of Ventura vote for C7 they will effectively be voting for a tax that will very likely be ruled against by the court. You can do a search on the LA Daily News for the column title "City Hall deceptions abound on phony phone tax". I've pasted the article below; "City Hall deceptions abound on phony phone tax Article Last Updated: 10/17/2007 08:50:07 PM PDT THE phone tax that will appear before Los Angeles voters in February is a fraud - a lie wrapped within a lie, which is exactly how city leaders have planned it. The first lie is that the levy is actually a "tax cut." Because the 9 percent tax would replace an older 10 percent tax, city officials are trying to pass it off as a "reduction." But really it is no such thing. That's because the existing 10 percent tax is illegal. It violates Proposition 218, as changes made to the tax over the years were never approved by the voters as the law requires. City leaders know this, and they know that as soon as ongoing litigation is finished the old tax hike will be kicked to the ash heap. That's why they're trying to enact a new tax in its place. The current 10 percent tax will become a 0 percent tax as soon as the courts throw it out. So if city voters decide to take on a new 9 percent tax, they won't be lowering their tax toll by one point - they'll be increasing it by nine. And in terms of real dollars and cents, the toll might even be worse than that. That brings us to the second lie. Even though the new tax might have a lower rate than the old one, it will apply to more services. The old tax covered just land lines and cell phones. The new one covers all sorts of newer technologies, starting but certainly not ending with Voice over Internet Protocol. Of course, city leaders are doing their best to downplay the expansive nature of their new tax. They offer no estimates of how much the tax's wider applications will bring in, i.e., how much it will cost us. Sure, the new tax might be a lie wrapped within a lie, but that wasn't going to stop them from fraudulently declaring it an "emergency" measure - meaning it will need only 50 percent of the public's approval, and not the usual two-thirds. They need this money to perpetuate the system that's served them and their special interests so well. And if they have to lie to get it, so be it. So be forewarned: If you vote for this "tax cut," it's going to cost you a pretty penny."

VOTE NO ON C7 -------- VOTE NO ON INCUMBENTS

Rellis Smith

res@venturastuff.com