Carson to Dupuis: Let the kids vote

Oakland coal trial nears; Hayward wants to be the "Education City." What's the deal with pro football players and Tri-Valley officials?

COUNTY NEWS

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

—TIGHETENING OVERSIGHT—Although Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson has largely avoided any direct criticism of Alameda County Registrar Tim Dupuis, there’s a sense he’s beginning to apply accountability to the embattled department head.

—Two weeks ago there was an intent, led by Carson, to create an Alameda County Election Commission in the wake of problems at the registrar's office.

—Now, Carson is directing Dupuis to fully implement voter-approved ballot measures in Berkeley and Oakland that allow teens to vote in local school board elections, according to a memo sent by Carson on May 15.

—Supporters of both measures and youth advocates have been clamoring for the right to vote earned at the ballot box. Berkeley voters approved 2016’s Measure Y1 allowing 16- and 17-years-old the right to vote in school board elections. In 2020, Oakland voters did the same with Measure QQ.

—In early April, when pressed by the Board of Supervisors, Dupuis blamed the delays on problems with integrating underage voters into the county’s existing voting system, which is provided by Dominion. He added the issue can be resolved before next year’s school board races in November 2024. But also made no promises.

—The registrar’s office has been criticized for a lack of transparency for several election cycles. The uproar heightened after Dupuis certified an Oakland school board race that was later found to be incorrect because of an setting in the county’s ranked choice voting algorithm.

—That error led to the creation of a county election commission that is scheduled to be approved by the Board of Supervisors on June 6. The body is the brainchild of Carson, who two weeks ago told Dupuis the commission’s role is to provide oversight of his office and future elections.

—Essentially, going forward, everything Dupuis does will be filtered through the commission to the full board, or, at least, that’s the hope.

CITY NEWS

OAKLAND

—OAKLAND COAL REVISITED—With a trial looming on the future of coal shipments through Oakland this July, opponents of the long-stalled project are worried the Oakland City Council may be leaning toward a settlement with the Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal (OBOT).

—After several years in litigation, an agreement was near that would have ensured no coal shipments from Utah would travel through Oakland to processing plants in Asia. But the deal fell through last year after the operator alleged the city was acting in bad faith. A similar charge was made by the city against OBOT.

—At last week’s council meeting, several speakers from the Sierra Club and Oakland youths spoke out against coal.

—Oakland residents are clearly opposed to coal in their city, but Oakland officials have not enjoyed much success in the courts. A lawsuit in Oakland’s favor was thrown out by an appeals court, leading to a resumption of legal matters.

—Over in Utah, the state is keeping a watchful eye on the proceedings. A ban on coal shipments to Oakland could be the death knell of its coal industry, possibly leading to the closure of several mines.

—CALL ME, MAYBE—When the A’s announced the first of two “binding agreements” to build a ballpark in Las Vegas, it was Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao that may have made the biggest gamble by abruptly ending negotiations with the team for a ballpark at Howard Terminal.

—Did Thao call the A’s bluff? Did she make it a little more difficult for the A’s to leverage a site in Las Vegas? We don’t yet know. But Thao told ABC7 on Thursday that she would welcome the A’s back to the negotiating table.

--She again floated the possibility of A’s owner John Fisher selling the team. In that case, she would also be willing to negotiate with the new owner, although Fisher has never indicated the team is for sale. “If that happens, we are very close to a deal,” Thao said.

—Fact check: Thao also told ABC7 that Howard Terminal is fully entitled. That’s not true. That process still has a long way to go, but if an ironclad agreement was made by the A’s to build on the Oakland waterfront, full entitlement still wouldn’t be a slam dunk, but highly likely.

—Aside from entitlements, one big unresolved portion of the proposed negotiations is the Alameda County Board of Supervisors formally approving a plan that would steer future county tax receipts from the ballpark district into the ballpark’s infrastructure.

HAYWARD

—EDUCATION CITY—For quite some time Hayward has tried to fancy itself as the “Education City.” It’s been a vision bandied about Mayor Mark Salinas during many of his campaigns. He’s probably a good vehicle for such an idea since he works at the city’s most well-known institutions of learning—Cal State East Bay and Chabot College.

—The problem though is the “Education City” moniker has only been just that. There’s never been any meat on the bone. Is it a marketing slogan? A specific policy?

—During a city council retreat two weeks ago, the “Education City” idea was discussed, but without a consensus. However, they appeared on board with using an “Education City lens” to filter future policies and possibly create a “cradle to career” suite of services.

—The weak link in such an expansive approach is it would probably require coordination with the chronically underperforming Hayward Unified School District. Hayward school officials may also not appreciate the city encroaching on their turf.

CONGRESS

—UNNECESSARY ROUGHNESS—Former San Francisco 49ers fullback Bruce Miller was accused by Rep. Eric Swalwell of issuing a death threat in a private message on Twitter last week.

—“Almost time!!! Would you rather Guantanamo or just execution fucking traitor,” said the tweet reportedly written by Miller.

—In a subsequent tweet, Miller, who played for the Niners from 2011-2015, denied making the threat. Nevertheless, Swalwell reported the message to  U.S. Capitol Police and the media.

—There something about Tri-Valley elected officials and Bay Area football players that tends to ends up in combustible situations.

—The most famous clash was between former Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty and former Oakland Raiders tight end Jeremy Brigham. The pair coached together on a Tri-Valley youth football team.

—As the story goes, Haggerty thought he knew more about X’s and O’s than an actual professional football player. Haggerty was then removed from the coaching staff after Brigham accused Haggerty of providing the team’s playbook to its opponent.

—So, Brigham allegedly roughed him up. When Haggerty began showing up at board meetings with a neck brace the story became public and an instant classic.

PROGRAM NOTE: The newsletter will be published through Thursday, May 25, and return on Wednesday, May 31, in observation of the Memorial Day holiday.