The San Gabriel Valley Tribune announced their editorial endorsement for Steve Tye in the 55th State Assembly contest.

The newspaper endorsement of Diamond Bar Councilman Steve Tye for State Assembly took me aback about few inaccurate facts of the editorial and requires me to set the record straight about Mr. Tye who has been my councilman for 9 long years.

Mr. Tye does not have a slight lead in the fundraising part of the campaign.  According to Mr. Tye’s campaign finance reports he has raised an anemic $130,497, which includes the $100,000 he loaned to his campaign.  It is critical to note that he only has raised $30,000, which is a far cry from the $250,000 to get past through the June Primary.

Yorba Linda Councilman Craig Young did flirt a run for State Assembly last year, but withdrew from the contest to focus the embattled efforts of a recall campaign against him that is underway pending verification of signatures from the Orange County Registrar of Voters.  Mr. Young name is not on the ballot as a candidate for State Assembly.

Mr. Tye was notably absent during the 2006 Measure L known as Library Parcel Tax that would have raised $34 Million from Diamond Bar Taxpayers until the last days of the campaign that he came out against the proposal.  Mr. Tye forgets in May of 2006 he made the motion to instruct staff to draft language to place the Library Parcel Tax on the ballot that cost taxpayers $50,000.

Mr. Tye lacks ability to comprehend that fees are taxes, because in September of 2010 as a Councilman he voted to raised fees across the board tied with cost of living for the next three years.  Mr. Tye was adamant that the fee increase proposal was according to city minutes “not a tax but a user fee”, “was a proponent for adding a fee for licensing a cat”, “it is appropriate if it costs $100 to issue a permit to have a water heater installed in his home that he should pay the $100” and “likes the idea of someone plans to add to his home he pays the fees for it.”

Mr. Tye claims he was mad about junkets, but never curtailed the $1,150 monthly defined benefits that he and his colleagues on the council enjoy that gives them the privilege of medical benefits and ability to participate in a generous CalPERS pension plan.

The editorial says that Mr. Tye was not sure what kind of legislation he would propose specifically.  Frankly, I have seen his actions up front, because his rhetoric along the campaign trail doesn’t match his record.  Mr. Tye love for fees, waste of taxpayers funds and grandiose defined benefits is a recipe for bigger government that Sacramento politicians has long been accustomed to.

Therefore, Mr. Tye doesn’t deserve to be promoted to Sacramento as the next Assemblyman from the 55th AD.