Some of those pushing Measure A are eager to distance it from the management debacle in Point Reyes National Seashore. MALT board member Andrew Giacomini told the Point Reyes Light “… some people say whatever’s happening in the park has to do with Measure A, which isn’t true, because Measure A dollars aren’t spent in the park.”[1]
Technically this is true, since Measure A is an entirely separate mechanism by which taxpayer money is sluiced to people with certain last names. Since 1986, the Point Reyes leaseholders’ families have received more than $30 million from MALT, whose board is stocked from those same families and people whose businesses buy from those ranches. Since 2012, MALT has purchased 15 easements for $32 million; more than half the transactions involving past or sitting board members.[2]
Add the easement pay-outs to the ongoing subsidies in the Seashore, the up-to 75% property tax relief enjoyed under the Williamson Act,[3] and the original multi-million dollar buy-outs to form the park originally,[4] and you begin to get the full picture of the custodial obligations of the taxpayer to the Marin County status quo.
MALT’s piece of the pie was at risk under Measure A, amid scandals there and before a dubious survey surfaced from the self-described “results oriented” Godbe Research group, alleging public support for including money for farmland.[5] At the time, Mr. Giacomini said “MALT is not going to spend $350,000 on a Measure A that has no money in it for MALT.”[6] Paying only that amount to receive yet millions more is, of course, good business. Implying that only cattle can cost-effectively mitigate fire danger (while ignoring their documented, serious exacerbation of climate change) is also savvy. But I already hold my nose in our national park, so I’m not going to do it in the voting booth.
[1] The Point Reyes Light. “MALT goes on defensive over Measure A.” December 8, 2021.https://www.ptreyeslight.com/news/malt-goes-on-defensive-over-measure-a/
[2] The Pacific Sun. “MALT Board of Directors’ Conflicts of Interest Exposed as Legal Battle Unfolds.”
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williamson_Act
[4] Managing a Land in Motion: An Administrative History of Point Reyes National Seashore. https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/pore/admin.pdf
[5] https://marinpost.org/blog/2022/5/7/grotesque-dishonesty-measure-a-malt-and-the-godbe-research-survey
[6] The Point Reyes Light. “MALT goes on defensive over Measure A.” December 8, 2021.https://www.ptreyeslight.com/news/malt-goes-on-defensive-over-measure-a/