Recap: Twentynine Palms residents will vote on 1% sales tax increase this November

The Twentynine Palms City Council met for their regularly scheduled biweekly meeting on Tuesday (July 14), where they recognized local advocates for crime victims, went over technology changes, and passed two resolutions that will put the much-discussed 1% sales tax increase on the November ballot.

Victims of Crimes Act funding

First up – the Victims of Crimes Act (VOCA) is a federal bipartisan source of revenue created in 1984 to help survivors of crimes with costs such as medical bills and lost wages. The fund is created primarily out of federal criminal fines, bonds, penalties and special assessments paid by people or corporations convicted of federal crimes. The California State Budget for 2026-2027 didn’t initially include any of that funding in earlier drafts, leaving non-profits and advocacy organizations to come together to help secure some funding from the state.

Councilmember April Ramirez led off last night’s meeting with recognition of some of those advocates that fought for funding here in the hi-desert, telling the City Council that “through relentless advocacy, bipartisan collaboration, and unwavering commitment to survivors, what began as a proposal for a 43% cut turned into a $25 million one-time investment… and ultimately, we finalized at a $50 million investment in the California State budget signed by the Governor’s Office, preserving critical services for victims and their families across our state. This remarkable achievement is a testament to the power of partnership and the belief that every victim deserves access to justice, healing, and hope.”

Ramirez thanked and recognized Gena Pliss and Sarah Shook from Partners Against Violence, Senator Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh and Senator Suzette Martinez Valladares, Youth Leader Addison Bradshaw, County Third District Representative Dawn Rowe’s office, and Morongo Basin Unity Home.

Councilmembers announce re-election campaigns

During Councilmember Comments, Councilmember MacArthur Wright, Mayor Pro-Tem Octavious Scott and Mayor Daniel Mintz all announced their intentions to run for re-election to the City Council.

The room at Twentynine Palms City Hall looked a little different, with a new technology desk and large tv monitors near the middle of the room between the City Council dais and the audience. City Manager Kevin Cole outlined Senate Bill 707 which was related to some changes to the Brown Act and how the public can remotely access and participate in municipal meetings. The Twentynine Palms City Council and Planning Commission meetings will now be livestreamed through Webex – which also allows for attendees to remotely comment using the system. The link to join the Webex platform will be in each included at the top of each agenda, and Z107.7 News will include the link with our agenda stories as well.

Meetings will continue to be livestreamed via their Youtube channel without a remote participation option.

During public comments residents Kimberly Zzyzx and Cindy Bernard both spoke to the importance of keeping community discourse open in municipal meetings, and shared concerns about the time limit policy on public comments. City Manager Kevin Cole said he appreciated the comments, and that while they are still working on the technology aspect of the remote participation option, “dialing in the policy around it I think is important, so we’ll definitely take a look at that.”

Cole clarified further, saying “I did want to note that our current policy is if you’re here in the room and you want to come up and you speak, we give you three minutes. While we haven’t had a lot of meetings that exceed the numbers that we’re looking at here, we have had some where we’ve had to limit. So really that’s only the case where we have a large meeting, and as the public stated, you know, usually that’s really the only intent is to keep a reasonable time length for the meeting. So we’ll take a look at that and see if we can make some adjustments.”

Sales tax increase in hands of voters this November

The two resolutions regarding the proposed 1% sales tax increase in Twentynine Palms was also up for discussion. One resolution puts the matter onto November’s Ballot, with the second resolution directing City Manager Kevin Cole to provide an impartial analysis of the measure, along with Mayor Daniel Mintz to write an argument in favor of the measure.

Resident Kimberly Zzyzx spoke in support of the proposed increase and says she’s seen first-hand how much the city does with a “limited staff and limited budget,” saying “our city employees have always made time for the ways in which I contribute to our community, and I believe that this ballot measure is both reasonable and overdue and is just ready for voters to decide.”

Resident Mary Alice Ansler was still seeking clarification on the language of the measure, something she brought up at the last City Council meeting. City Manager Kevin Cole read the expanded language of the measure, which is estimated to bring in an additional 2 million dollars annually to the City’s general fund. That funding would go to support maintaining 911 and emergency response times, police officers and patrols, street and sidewalk repair, natural disaster response, park maintenance and upgrading the City’s Animal Shelter.

Mayor Mintz also reiterated that the money gained from the possible increase would be spent transparently. “This is not just a blank check for the City Council or staff just to start writing, just start spending money. I just want to be clear that you, the public, will definitely have input on how this money is spent.”

Both resolutions were passed meaning that Twentynine Palms residents will see the proposed sales tax increase on ballots on November 3rd.

Future Agenda Items: Data Center Moratorium, Opportunity Zone discussion

In future agenda items, Mayor Pro-Tem Octavious Scott said he’s like to see a discussion on a moratorium on data centers in the city of Twentynine Palms — a statement that received some audible surprised reactions from those in attendance.

Councilmember April Ramirez stated she’d like to discuss the City pursuing a designation as an “opportunity zone,” along with a reallocation of funds that were set aside for a shade structure outside City Hall that she says has been sitting in limbo.

Public Comments: Flock, Mining, Code of Conduct

Beth Sheffield thanked Councilmember Octavious Scott for hosting the community roundtable discussion on Flock, an event that Scott himself said was “contentious at times, but was fruitful.” Sheffield said it was good to come together as a community to talk about the issue, and she shared research she had done on Flock’s heatmap or “pattern of life” feature. Sheffield says that the surveillance company promotes the feature on their website, but Flock representatives say that the technology doesn’t include that capability.

She was also the first to mention that the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has recently paused their Flock contract over privacy concerns.

Catherine Powell requested that the City Council schedule an “actual discussion” at an official city meeting to get feedback on the record before their contract with Flock is renewed. She also mentioned the recent LAPD contract pause, saying “this illustrates there are grave concerns by law enforcement as well as the general public.”

Audrey Philpot expressed concern of the rumblings over the Music Valley Mine, saying that it could “substantially change the character of our city.” She requested that it is placed on a future City Council Agenda.

Cindy Bernard discussed a solar farm planned for a lot just outside the Twentynine Palms city border, but within the city’s “sphere of influence.” Bernard characterized the development as an “illegal build,” as the Twentynine Palms Water District was never notified. She suggested that the county “knows they screwed up” and says that they could compensate residents by opening the Lear Fire Station or providing the City with a Sheriff’s service officer.

Lynette Ramirez wrapped up public comments by mentioning the code of conduct that members of the public are expected to stick to during City Council meetings, saying “we are reminded that there will be no personal attacks and that members of the public are expected the maintain professional and courteous decorum.”

Without getting into specifics, Ramirez referenced a recent raid on homeless encampments along with a video that she says disrespected individuals and their belongings, “labeling them as trash and blight.” She said that “we’ve got to show some respect when we go out and make contact, where they want a house or not.”

We reached out to Ms. Ramirez for further details.