Increasingly tense labor negotiations with firefighters hovers over the campaign and candidates forum in the race for Santa Maria mayor, for which four names appear on the ballot.

Incumbent Alice Patino has been challenged by Diana Perez, who formerly served on the board of the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District and works at Allan Hancock College, and Andrew “Andy” Foster, a political newcomer who served in the Army and later worked as a smog check technician. 

The trio participated in a candidates forum Friday night at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church that included topics such as traffic, budgets and housing. The League of Women Voters of North Santa Barbara County organized the event, with a separate event held last week for the candidates seeking the two other seats up for grabs Nov. 5.

The fourth candidate, William Smith, a former teacher whose credential was revoked and who later served a contentious term on the Santa Maria-Bonita School District board, did not participate in the forum.

The event occurred under the shadow of the increasingly tense labor dispute involving city firefighters along with ways to close a large budget deficit in a race seemingly involving the two women.

“Currently, our firefighters don’t have a contract. They’ve been underpaid, undervalued by our City Council,” said Perez, who has been endorsed by the firefighters union.

While Santa Maria firefighters have claimed that the City Council “defunded the department,” Patino disputed that, reading a prepared statement and noting that the agency’s funding has climbed from $20.1 million in 2020-21 to $25.7 million in 2024.

The city offered firefighters the same two-year contract proposal accepted by the Service Employees International Union workers, the mayor said.  That included 5% the first year and 5% the second year. 

“It was rejected,” Patino said. 

For their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic, all city employees also received $10,000 one-time payments, she noted.

As Patino read the city’s statement, firefighter union representatives smirked and smiled.

Regarding the city’s budget deficit, Perez said the city needs to look for new revenue.

“Our nearby cities are generating $4 billion in tourism, and Santa Maria’s not providing that kind tourism,” she said.

Those familiar with tourism efforts on the Central Coast expressed skepticism at the number Perez provided. 

Patino said the council isn’t happy with the huge gap, adding that’s why they intend to look at options to increase revenue in addition to cuts.

“Let me tell you something — salaries, benefits, pensions are all part of this package that have gone up,” she said. 

She disputed Perez’s claim that the city hired 150 workers it could not afford, saying the city added six slots with most taking other positions in the city once the COVID-19 funding ran out. 

“I don’t know where this other figure came up,” Patino said. 

City budget numbers show that in June 2020, budget documents noted 648 positions, including full-time and part-time employees. During the showdown, 93 limited-service employees faced furloughs.

In June 2020, Santa Maria had 696 positions. This year, the number remains at 691. City staff said nine employees were filled with the COVID-19 recovery funds. 

Foster spoke often about traffic concerns, citing specific changes he believes should be implemented.

He said a city with a population of 150,000 would need 50,000 people for effective law enforcement traffic control.

“We happen to have that many people here. In the Constitution, it puts law enforcement in the people’s hand, not the government. So we need to get the people back on track to doing that law enforcement, to executing the laws,” Foster said.

“We need to educate the people that it’s their job. Once we get the people on track with the Constitution, everything will fall in line,” he said. “It’s just that they don’t know any better. Television teaches them how to drive.

“We need to get them educated in law enforcement and the Constitution.”

He maintained that the Constitution mentions safety only three times.

“Safety is not guaranteed. Your health is not guaranteed. That’s your personal responsibility. But security is everyone’s responsibility. We need to learn that,” he added. 

He also questioned whether the state can “force us to overpopulate” by allowing accessory dwelling units or granny units on single-family residential property.

“If the state is making laws and they’re unconstitutional, we don’t have to follow them,” he said. “They can’t force us to build a place and then there’s no parking for it.”

However, the state can and does require cities to follow certain laws or risk state funding along with the likelihood of a legal challenge.

While the city has switched to district-based elections, the job of mayor remains an at-large position, so voters from throughout the city will make the selection. 

Beyond wielding the gavel at meetings, the role of mayor is mostly ceremonial since Santa Maria operates under a city manager-strong form of government. The mayor makes up one of five votes for council actions.

The top vote-getter in the Nov. 5 election will win a four-year term, which begins in December.

The full forum can be watched on YouTube by clicking here.