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Mayor Goes Back on Pledge to Protect Prop K

The ink was not yet dry on the transfer of authority over the taxi industry from the Taxi Commission to the Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA) when Mayor Gavin Newsom told the San Francisco Chronicle that he wanted to auction off taxi medallions to cab drivers in order to raise money for the city. Selling medallions at auction would be contrary to Proposition K of 1978, which provides for medallions to be issued to taxi drivers for the price of an application fee.

In proposing the auction system, the mayor went back on his word. In October 2007, as a campaign was in progress over Proposition A on that November's ballot, Newsom jointly signed a letter with then-Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, stating: "We are not supportive of an effort to merge the Taxi industry unless proper guarantees are made to protect Proposition K."

Proposition A was put forward to provide increased revenues and promote greater efficiency for Muni operations. In the fine print of its many pages was a provision allowing the MTA to override previously passed taxi ordinances. That presumably includes Prop K, a voter-passed law.

Prop K has been in place for over 30 years. More than 1,000 cab drivers have benefited from its provisions, and the public has shown its support by upholding it time and again against heavily-funded attempts to repeal or amend it.

On account of the threat to K, UTW opposed Prop A. But upon receiving the mayor's and Peskin's assurances that K would remain intact, we discontinued active opposition to the measure.

The mayor is seeking new revenue sources to fill a big hole in the city's budget. That's understood. But he shouldn't be looking to taxi drivers as cash cows for that purpose — especially since he gave his word on the subject.

As a politician with designs on higher office, Mayor Newsom should be aware that electoral success often comes down to a question of trust. Unfortunately, he's lost ours.