SLO County supervisor candidates debate policing, vacation rentals, cannabis and more

From regulating cannabis to setting campaign contribution limits — the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors is responsible for crafting a wide range of public policy.

Atascadero Mayor Heather Moreno and Mayor Pro Tem Susan Funk are competing to represent District 5 on the board.

One of them will replace Supervisor Debbie Arnold, who announced plans to retire when her term ends in January.

On Wednesday, the League of Women Voters of SLO County and the Latino Outreach Council hosted a debate for Moreno and Funk to share their policy differences.

The two candidates answered the community’s questions about policing, small businesses and cannabis at the Pavilion on the Lake in Atascadero.

Here’s where the two candidates stand on seven key issues facing the county.

Supporting small businesses

Both Moreno and Funk own businesses locally and wish to create an environment where small businesses can thrive, they said at the debate.

“Small-business owners are the backbone of our economy,” Moreno said.

Moreno suggested that the county offer microloans, which are small loans with low interest rates, to local entrepreneurs.

According to Moreno, microloans provide people with the funding they need to “use their own ingenuity and creativity” to bring their ideas to life.

Funk agreed that the county should offer financing to entrepreneurs, especially those from marginalized communities who had less of an opportunity to develop generational wealth.

The county could also create a mentorship program to make entrepreneurship more accessible, she said. The county should target its outreach in non-city communities like Nipomo and Oceano “where economic opportunity will be particularly valuable,” Funk said.

“Supporting small businesses is the core of what makes our community vibrant,” Funk said.

How to improve policing in diverse communities

Early during the debate, one audience member asked the candidates how law enforcement could improve their relationship with the Latino community.

Moreno said law enforcement should continue to host outreach events to build relationships with the public.

“Everybody has to feel safe, and when they feel unsafe they need to be able to call the police and be able to depend on them,” Moreno said. “I am fully committed to making sure that we do have that dialogue.”

Funk said the county should view tension between law enforcement and marginalized communities as a “cultural issue” in policing.

“There can be a culture that develops in policing that becomes a ‘we/they’ that is oppositional in nature and that is scary for people who feel more vulnerable in society,” Funk said.

To build trust with the public, Funk advised that police host and attend community events that are not related to policing.

Meanwhile, law enforcement officers must confront their own biases and how it impacts their policing, she said, adding that police agencies could recruit more Latinos and offer Spanish and Mixteco translation services, too.

Finally, Funk advocated for providing law enforcement with resources to make these changes.

“We need to support our police in this work so that they can feel comfortable and develop relationships over time in the community — in all parts of the community — that make them effective,” Funk said.

How would candidates support marginalized communities?

In June, the board ultimately voted to declare June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month in the county — but not without division.

Three supervisors supported the resolution, while two did not.

Funk told The Tribune on Thursday that she would have voted to support the resolution.

“I consider these kinds of ceremonial things part of creating a culture where everyone in our community feels safe and welcome,” Funk said. “We can be proactive leaders of this.”

Funk spearheaded a similar Atascadero City Council declaration recognizing LGBTQ+ citizens.

“I think that this is part of public safety — creating a community where everyone feels safe in their own skin,” Funk said during the debate.

Moreno said she wants county government to be accessible to all community members.

“My philosophy is we treat everybody with dignity and respect,” she said.

However, she told The Tribune that she would need to review the county’s resolution declaring Pride Month before deciding whether or not she would support it.

“Inclusivity is not about a proclamation, it is about how we treat each other,” Moreno told The Tribune after the debate.

Should the county allow short-term rentals?

When it comes to regulating vacation rentals, the county must balance the property rights of home owners with neighborhood impacts, Moreno said.

Tourism brings important revenue to the county, she said, but communities should avoid allowing a strip of “party houses” on one street.

The county could consider requiring owner-occupied vacation rentals, she said. For example, a homeowner lives in the main house while renting their ADU. This could help the homeowner make an income or pay for their mortgage while preventing negative neighborhood impacts, Moreno said.

Funk advised the county to craft short-term rental policies specific to each community, as agricultural areas, urbanized areas and coastal areas have different needs.

Property owners should be allowed to rent their homes when they are away, but the county should discourage large corporations from buying numerous properties and converting them into Airbnbs — as these can be “destructive” to the community life of neighborhoods, Funk said.

The county must also prioritize housing that addresses community needs, according to Funk. A few vacation rentals are acceptable, but the county also needs workforce and affordable housing for permanent residents, she said.

Improving county transportation

The county must make transportation improvements that suit the unique needs of each community, Funk said.

According to Funk, the county must fund improvements to rural roads while also pursuing projects that connect communities to each other. This includes the Bob Jones Trail expansion project that would connect Avila Beach to San Luis Obispo and a protected bicycle route from Templeton to Atascadero, she said.

Funk also pushed for the expansion of electric vehicle infrastructure countywide, along with projects that enhance traffic safety.

Moreno agreed, noting that “each community is different.”

Some residents are asking the county to repair potholes, while others are asking for bike paths. The county must strategically allocate its funding to the projects that need it most, she said.

She served on the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, which is considering proposing a sales tax measure to fund transportation projects. Moreno did not share her position on the measure, but shared that some people are concerned the measure would compete with city sales taxes.

Should the county set campaign donation limits?

In April, the board voted to lower the cap on how much money an individual can donate to campaigns for county offices from $25,000 to the state’s $5,500 limit.

Moreno was “somewhat indifferent” to the change, she said. However, limiting campaign donations advantages incumbents — as newcomers often must spend more money than incumbents to reach voters on the campaign trail, Moreno said.

While Moreno accepts the current donation limit, she wouldn’t lower it, she said.

Funk, however, supports the new donation cap.

“We don’t need that kind of big money influence in our local politics. We need to keep this closer to the people,” Funk said.

Funk said higher donation limits advantage incumbents, as they have the connections to win large donations.

Lower campaign limits force candidates to collect a larger amount of smaller donations from their constituents.

“That helps us stay closer to the community,” Funk said.

How to regulate cannabis

Funk and Moreno largely agree on how to regulate cannabis.

Funk said cannabis crops are often “smelly” and use a significant amount of water. Policy regulating cannabis agriculture should “be mindful of those effects,” she said.

Moreno said that the cost of permitting and monitoring agricultural cannabis stifled the industry — so the county spends more money regulating the industry than it makes in taxes and fees.

The county could consider creating a more efficient permitting and regulation process to recover that revenue, she said.

“We certainly don’t want to subsidize the industry,” Moreno said.

Funk and Moreno agreed that individual communities should craft policies around retail cannabis that suit their area. Some communities may want brick-and-mortar shops, while others will stick with delivery services.

“Each community can get what it needs,” Funk said.

To read about the candidates’ positions on housing, homelessness, election integrity, water policy and more, check out The Tribune’s article on the previous debate at bit.ly/499ksWH.