By JANIE SOITO
It is no coincidence that the nonprofit organizations Mr. Becker mentions (Pajaronian, Aug. 31-Sept. 6) support the rail trail. Some of them are contractors who fulfill contracts that the RTC funds for special projects. Others groups, like the Land Trust and Santa Cruz County Friends of Rail & Trail (FORT), are major supporters that provide the local funding match for RTC lead projects including trail funding in Watsonville and the North Coast. The Highway 17 wildlife undercrossing is a massive, multi-agency project, the first in the state, to provide a safe wildlife crossing under a California highway. Mr. Becker ignores or doesn’t know that there are major Greenway supporters who are partners with or who support the Land Trust.
The frequent, specious comments that Mr. Becker makes regarding storage of empty tankers is astounding. He was at the RTC meeting on June 14 when the RTC accepted an amendment of the Progressive Rail (PGR) contract that excludes tanker storage. The PGR representative was in agreement with that amendment. Nobody wants tanker storage on the Santa Cruz Branch Line. PGR has stated that they are in the business of increasing commerce, not storing rail cars. The empty tankers are beginning to leave, track repairs are being made, signal inspection and maintenance is underway, and new customers are coming on line as proof of their commitment to the community.
The 501(c)(3) organizations that Mr. Becker lists as conspirators in some big plan to defraud the public of money all file reports with the Franchise Tax Board regarding their donations and their expenditures. All contracts with the RTC are public. Even political action committees are required to have more transparency than Greenway.
501(c)(4) “mutual benefit” groups, like Greenway, are under no such obligation. Their financial dealings are obscured from the public and their claims of being a “non-taxable” organization are meant to deceive the public into thinking that they are a nonprofit. Their use of litigation as a means of manipulating the public into believing that the sky is falling and that one should make a donation to Greenway’s legal fund is appalling. Meanwhile, the taxpayer is on the hook for defending those specious claims.
Could the Koch Brothers and Americans for Prosperity have done better? Who cares? Greenway certainly can do better. Instead of impeding the process, they could be at the table and using their big money to contribute instead of attempting to destroy vital transportation infrastructure.
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Janie Soito is a resident of Royal Oaks. Her opinions are her own and not necessarily those of the Pajaronian.
