Home › News › County News
County panel set to vote on plan for van pool
The program would provide farmworker transportation
Download this story as a podcast!
If you go
What: Ventura County Transportation Commission meeting.
When: 10 a.m. today.
Where: Camarillo City Hall, 601 Carmen Drive, Camarillo.
Information: http://www.goventura.org.
STORY TOOLS 
More from County NewsFarmworkers who don't have cars or driver's licenses could soon catch rides to work in vans owned by the Ventura County Transportation Commission.
The commission will vote today on a van pool program that would carry up to 450 farmworkers a day from their homes to their jobs in the county's fields and packinghouses.
County transportation officials hope to get a $3 million state grant to launch the program. Farmworkers would pay $4 per day, round trip, to fund the ongoing operations.
The program is modeled after one that's been running for about five years in Kings County. If the project is approved and the state funding comes through, the Ventura County van pool would start running in about July 2008, said Ginger Gherardi, the Transportation Commission's executive director.
The commission would buy 30 vans, each with room for 15 people. They would be driven by volunteer farmworkers who have valid driver's licenses and have undergone background checks and medical examinations. In exchange for driving, the volunteers could ride for free and use the vans for personal use as long as they don't drive outside of the county.
The average Ventura County farmworker works about seven miles from home, according to a Transportation Commission survey of 790 workers at 35 agricultural businesses. Those who don't own cars have no easy way to get to work, since buses don't usually stop near the fields.
"The most common way that problem is solved is to pay somebody else working at the same site to drive them," said Ellen Brokaw, a co-owner of a nursery in Saticoy and an orchard near Santa Paula. "Sometimes those payments are excessive, and sometimes the vehicle might not be in very good shape."
Then there's the licensing issue. Many farmworkers are illegal immigrants, so they can't get driver's licenses. Some of them drive anyway.
Not every immigrant without a driver's license is here illegally, but "they are highly correlated," said Bob Dane, the press secretary for the Federation for American Immigration Reform. The group supports tighter controls on both legal and illegal immigration.
Dane said the van pool program is "a terrible idea" and using public funds makes it even worse.
"It's against the law to hire illegal workers in the U.S., and facilitating any part of the transaction between an employer and an illegal worker, including transportation, is aiding and abetting that illegal transaction," he said.
It's true that some of the riders will probably be illegal immigrants, but providing a van pool is no different from letting them ride the bus, Gherardi said.
In fact, the van pool will rely less on public funds, she said. After the three-year start-up phase, it would pay for itself.
"We provide public transportation, and this is public transportation," Gherardi said. "We're not going to get involved in who's being provided transportation."
Brokaw, who wrote a letter to the Transportation Commission supporting the proposal, said she might split the cost with her workers. Employers can save on payroll taxes for providing transportation, and the benefit is tax-free for the workers.
"I certainly understand the argument (against the program), but in realistic, practical terms it's against the interest of the community to have these unlicensed drivers on the road," she said.
Posted by Nosmo_King on September 14, 2007 at 8:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This is pure lunacy
Posted by sunnbear on September 14, 2007 at 9:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)
"Many farmworkers are illegal immigrants, so they can't get driver's licenses. Some of them drive anyway."
The van's should drive non-stop straight to the border. Hey...this thing could actually work!
Posted by sokol_kiev on September 14, 2007 at 10:12 a.m. (Suggest removal)
If you're as outraged as I am over the Ventura County Transportation Commission even considering offering this program for illegal aliens, then I strongly encourage you to immediately take a few minutes to call, fax and/or email every single Commissioner who serves on the VCTC and express your opposition and let them know as a taxpaying voting American citizen that you will hold them accountable if they vote in support of this horrific program!
Here is the commissioners' contact info:
Councilmember Joe DeVito, Chair
Tel: 805-654-5581
Fax: 805-646-1980
Email: ojaicity@ci.ojai.ca.us
Councilmember Dean Maulhardt, Vice Chair
Tel: 805-385-7430
Fax: 805-385-7595
Email: Deancity@yahoo.com
Supervisor Steve Bennett
Phone: 805-654-2703
Fax: 805-654-2226
Email: steve.bennett@ventura.org
Supervisor Kathy Long
Tel: 805-654-2276
Fax: 805-654-2226
Email: kathy.long@ventura.org
Supervisor John Flynn, Chair
Tel: 805-487-6331
Fax: 805-487-7692
Email: john.flynn@ventura.org
Supervisor Peter Foy
Tel: 805-582-8010
Fax: 805-582-8055
Email: peter.foy@ventura.org
Supervisor Linda Parks
Tel: 805-373-2564
Fax: 805-373-8396
Email: linda.parks@ventura.org
Councilmember Cecelia Cuevas
City of Fillmore
Tel: 805-524-3701
Fax: 805-524-5707
Email: cc4fcc@aol.com
Councilmember William Fulton
City of San Buenaventura
Tel: 805-654-7800
Fax: 805-652-0865
Email: bfulton@solimar.org
Councilmember Dennis Gillette
City of Thousand Oaks
Tel: 805-449-2105
Fax: 805-449-2125
Email: dgillette@toaks.org
Councilmember Keith Millhouse
Tel: 805-517-6222
Fax: 805-529-8270
Email: kmillhouse@mlglaw.net
Councilmember Kevin Kildee
City of Camarillo
Tel: 805-388-5307
Fax: 805-388-5387
Email: kkildee@ci.camarillo.ca.us
Councilmember John Procter, Chair
City of Santa Paula
Tel: 805-933-4478
Fax: 805-525-6278
Email: john.t.procter@verizon.net
Councilmember Barbra Williamson
City of Simi Valley
Tel: 805-583-6701
Fax: 805-526-2489
Email: bwilliamson@ci.simi-valley.ca.us
Councilmember Toni Young
City of Port Hueneme
Tel: 805-986-6500
Fax: 805-986-6511
Email: toni.young@verizon.net
Brian Humphrey, Citizen Representative, Cities
Email: brian.vctc@prodigy.net
Keith Turner, Citizen Representative, County
Email: kturner0@aol.com
Douglas Failing, Ex-Officio Member
Caltrans District 7
Tel: 213- 897-0362
Fax: 213-897-0360
Posted by socalcandyman on September 14, 2007 at 10:28 a.m. (Suggest removal)
sokol-kiev,
Thank you for posting the contact information.
Posted by FedUp on September 14, 2007 at 10:56 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I think I just threw up a little.
we already have public transportation. it is called the BUS!!
thanks for the info Sokol.
Posted by Ventura22 on September 14, 2007 at 11:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)
?? What the hell is this? Shouldn't the employer(farmer) be responsible for providing their own shuttle bus transportation if they knowingly hire workers who can't drive(illegals)? Why are the taxpayers footing the bill to pay for their worker's transportation? This is disgusting!
Posted by sokol_kiev on September 14, 2007 at 11:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
You're most welcome. Here's the text of my letter I just emailed to the VCTC Commissioners:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Dear Commissioners of the Ventura County Transportation Commission,
After reading this article in today's Ventura County Star newspaper (http://www.venturacountystar.com/news...), I am outraged and shocked that you are considering offering a van pool program for "farmworkers" (who we all know are primarily illegal aliens) without cars or driver's licenses! What are you thinking?
Let me remind you that as an American citizen and as an elected official, it is your obligation to uphold our city, county, state and federal laws. As I'm sure you're aware, federal immigration laws make it illegal to "encourage or induce an alien to come to, enter, or reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, or residence is or will be in violation of law." 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv). Federal immigration laws also make it unlawful to aid or abet the commission of such acts. 8 U.S.C § 1324(a)(1)(A)(v)(II). And your proposed van pool program most certainly can be deemed facilitating the illegal employment of undocumented aliens, as well as encouraging or inducing an alien to come to, enter, or reside in the United States, or at a minimum, aiding and abetting such conduct.
Please note that as a taxpaying voting American citizen that I will hold you each accountable if you vote in support of this horrific and illegal program!
Unable to comprehend your actions,"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I also cc'd the Department of ICE, The White House, State Senator Tom McClintock, Assembleywoman Audra Strickland, Judicial Watch, The John & Ken Show of KFI 640AM, and Fox News Network's The O'Reilly Factor and Hannity & Colmes shows. Here's their emails if you're interested:
senator.mcclintock@sen.ca.gov, assemblymember.strickland@assembly.ca..., ice.publicaffairs@dhs.gov, president@whitehouse.gov, comments@whitehouse.gov, info@judicialwatch.org, johnandken@johnandkenshow.com, oreilly@foxnews.com, hannity@foxnews.com, colmes@foxnews.com
Separately, I sent the article link to The Drudge Report hoping to get it linked on his homepage and to Lou Dobbs of CNN to create national public awareness and embarassment to the VCTC.
I simply cannot believe they will be irresponsible enough to approve this program! We'll have to wait and see the outcome of this morning's 10:00 a.m. meeting & vote.
Posted by RelaxPeople on September 14, 2007 at 11:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)
its just public transportation, lord knows we need it and lord knows we need our crops picked. farm labor is decreasing every year and the result is million and milions of dollars worth of agriculture going unpicked. plus, when is the last time i saw a scat bus parked on the side of pleasant valley? you cant assume that every person that picks crops is an illegal alien, if you do then perhaps YOU need to be deported (via time-travel) to communist russia. public funds are in place to support the public. if a person goes to work its the duty of their employer to check for resident status, not the governemnt. what's next, setting up road blocks to check people of their status?
this is not an immigration matter!
Posted by Nosmo_King on September 14, 2007 at 7:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
http://www.goventura.org/docs/item_10... wow.... what a read ...oh well
(Requires free registration.)
Article discussions on this site are to support community debates of issues related to our stories and editorials.
Discussions should not stray from the subject of the story or editorial.
We do not allow the following:
We reserve the right to delete threads and/or ban users for these or other reasons we deem necessary.
Opinions are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.