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Voters Say Yes To Tax Proposals On Central And South Coasts; School Bond Measures Don't Fare As Well

Voters approved some new tax proposals on the Central and South Coasts, but unofficial results from Tuesday's election don't appear to be as positive for some school bond measures.

In Ojai, voters said yes to a proposal to increase the city's hotel tax from 10% to 15%, to generate an estimated $1.3 million dollars annual for projects like city street repairs.  Lompoc voters approved a proposed 1% sales tax increase to fund everything from public safety to city infrastructure improvements.

But, returns show that bond measures in the Las Virgenes and Moorpark School Districts failed to get the 55% yes vote they needed to pass.  A $47 million dollar bond proposal in Santa Barbara County's Hope Elementary School District is still too close to call, with a 55.27% yes vote as of 11 p.m. Tuesday.

Voters gave a thumbs up to proposed government reforms in Oxnard, including a ban on elected officials accepting gifts from lobbyists and contractors.   It also created City Council term limits.  And, in Santa Paula voters approved switching the City Clerk and Treasurer's posts from elected to appointed positions.  

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.