One of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system’s leading critics, State Sen. Steve Glazer, announced his resignation from a special committee handling Bay Area transit on Monday, signaling a heated budget battle ahead as the region’s bus and rail agencies lobby for billions of dollars to stave off looming service cuts.
Glazer, an Orinda Democrat, stepped down from the Senate Select Committee on Bay Area Public Transit, which was formed just last week, saying lawmakers and transit leaders are not heeding his call to bolster fiscal oversight at BART, specifically by backing a strengthened inspector general’s office.
In an interview, he called the committee, headed by State Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco, a “showpiece for boosters of more transit funding.”
“They get the same folks in the community to say ‘woe is BART,’” said Glazer. “My view is they are enablers . . . they are enablers for letting this open sore continue on.”
Glazer’s criticism comes amid a contentious battle to fund public transit in Sacramento as pandemic-era ridership losses devastate the Bay Area’s transit system. Agencies like BART need to cobble a coalition of lawmakers to back their funding ask despite a projected $22.5 billion state budget shortfall.
Without a new local or state funding source BART says it could face “doomsday” service cuts in 2025, including the closure of multiple stations.
Glazer led the establishment of the inspector general’s office as part of an agreement to win his support for Regional Measure 3 in 2018, which raised Bay Area bridge tolls to fund transit projects. Since then Glazer said the agency has left a “trail of broken promises” and an Alameda County civil grand jury report from last year found the inspector general faced a “pattern of obstruction” from BART and its major unions.
Recently, the inspector general investigated an employee who secured $2.2 million in contracts from the agency shortly after leaving his job, allegations of wage theft, and $350,000 spent on a homeless outreach program that resulted in just one confirmed unsheltered person receiving its services.
Last year, the senator introduced a bill to strengthen the inspector general’s powers, which passed both the Assembly and Senate before being vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom at the request of the BART board. Glazer has introduced another bill that grants the inspector general the same powers offered to the inspector general’s office at Caltrans.
Janice Li, BART’s board president, did not return a request for comment on Glazer’s resignation.
In a statement, Wiener said he is “disappointed” by Glazer’s decision. Wiener said he backs the Orinda senator’s calls for accountability and voted for his previous legislation on BART’s inspector general, which was ultimately vetoed.
“Our select committee will be a prime opportunity for Legislators to get answers and hold our systems accountable for doing the best job possible for our region,” he said. “I have enormous respect for Senator Glazer, and he will have an open door to return to the committee if he chooses to do so.”
Source: www.mercurynews.com