Fresno mayor vetoes $1 million for Planned Parenthood. Will City Council override it?

Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias said he’ll try to engineer an override of Mayor Jerry Dyer’s veto of last week’s council approval of serving as a pass-through conduit for $9.5 million in state money for local organizations – including $1 million for Planned Parenthood.

“Yesterday (Thursday) Mayor Dyer vetoed the $9.5 million in state funding for Arte Americas, Neighborhood Industries, and Planned Parenthood,” Arias posted on Twitter on Friday.

“This morning I filed an override veto bill with the City Clerk. The City Council will consider overriding the veto on September 1, 2022.”

In his veto messages to the City Council, Dyer said his administration “was not aware of, or involved in, the process” of the city’s potential pass-through role for the Planned Parenthood grant. “Had my office been involved, we would have been in a position to suggest a more appropriate local health-related administrator in serving as a pass-through … or request that the funding go directly to Planned Parenthood.”

The dispute stems from the council’s Aug. 18 vote to accept the nonprofit grants from the state of California on behalf of the three organizations – of which Planned Parenthood Mar Monte served as a lightning rod for objections from Councilmember Garry Bredefeld and a host of pro-life activists and support from pro-choice advocates.

On a 5-1 vote, with Councilmember Mike Karbassi absent and Bredefeld casting the lone “no” vote, the council approved the measure. Even before the vote, however, Dyer had signaled his intent to veto the resolution.

The five “yes” votes however, represents a supermajority capable of overriding Dyer’s veto, unless one of those members – Arias, Luis Chavez, Nelson Esparza, Tyler Maxwell or Esmeralda Soria – changes their mind.

In a statement Friday, Arias said he prioritizes healthcare access for women.

“It is disappointing that the mayor chose to place his religious views above our city’s public health interests,” Arias said. “This council has worked hard through the pandemic and invested more than $30 million to strengthen our city’s healthcare infrastructure. …”

“The last thing we need to do is backslide on that commitment,” he added.

In his letter to the council, Dyer included a copy of the budget request from Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula, who secured the grant. That request states that “Planned Parenthood Mar Monte health center needs a complete redesign for improved efficiency so access to sexual and reproductive health services can be maintained while they expand abortion access in the Post-Roe World.”

Dyer noted that while the city charter grants him the authority to exercise veto power on council actions, in this instance “I am unable to veto only a portion (line item) of the resolution.”

“I have raised meaningful concerns about the City of Fresno’s role as local administrator for public health-related funds for Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, …” he added. “I remain hopeful that the Council will reconsider accepting funds on behalf of Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, and instead work to see that a health-related agency is identified as the local administrator of state funds.”

The other two grants that find themselves tied up in the controversy are $7 million for Arte Americas, a Latino cultural and arts organization, and $1.5 million for Neighborhood Industries, which operates a thrift store that provides job training to disadvantaged residents in southeast Fresno.

“Unfortunately, by vetoing (the resolution), two agencies which have my full support may be temporarily affected,” Dyer wrote. “My Administration remains committed to administering funds for both Arte Americas and Neighborhood Industries. …”

Fresno City Councilmember Luis Chavez, a frequent swing vote on the council and self-described “extreme moderate,” said he plans to support Arias’ effort to override Dyer’s veto. “Our disadvantaged neighborhoods need access to health care,” Chavez said Friday afternoon. “Planned Parenthood does great with women’s health including mammograms and cancer screenings.”

While abortions are at the center of the controversy, representatives of Planned Parenthood Mar Monte said they plan to use the money for renovations and expansions at its Fulton Street location, enabling the clinic to offer healthcare services to more women. The funding would also pay for ultrasound scopes used in cancer screenings, the representative said.