Ahead of the March primary, The Orange County Register compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates who wish to represent you. You can find the full questionnaire below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar, length and, in some instances, to remove hate speech and offensive language.
MORE: Read all the candidate responses in our Voter Guide
Name: Don Wagner
Current Job Title: Orange County Supervisor
Political Party Affiliation: Nonpartisan
Incumbent: Yes
Other political positions held: Mayor of Irvine, State Assemblymember, South Orange County Community College District Trustee
City where you reside: North Tustin
Campaign website or social media: Website: www.Wagnerforsupervisor.com; Social media: @donwagnerca
What experiences and priorities do you bring to the table? What have you learned in prior leadership roles that make you the person for this job?
My top priorities are public safety and continuing to improve our quality of life. I have been doing the job for five years, with much progress under my leadership. Many Third District cities now rank among California’s 10 safest. I created “safe zones” for e-commerce and child custody transfers. The county is reducing fentanyl poisonings and veteran suicides. My public safety record earned Sheriff Don Barnes’s endorsement.
I directed Orange County through COVID-19 with fewer hospitalizations, ICU visits and deaths per capita than neighboring counties. I secured millions for hospitals, businesses, nursing homes, nonprofits and restaurants, easing COVID’s burdens on everyone, protecting our children and county. Yet, I resisted state overreach Gov. Gavin Newsom even admits was mistaken.
I have bipartisan experience making government responsive. We’ll have a veterans cemetery beneath the majestic flag I raised in Gypsum Canyon. I’ve reduced wildfire risks, opposed tax increases, balanced every budget and re-opened Irvine Lake.
Where in the county are we effectively putting money toward solutions to tackle homelessness? Where are the gaps in care when it comes to the homelessness issue? Are all communities being served or doing their fair share?
The county’s homeless point-in-time count has decreased significantly over the last few years of my service on the Board of Supervisors and as chairman of the county’s Commission to End Homelessness. We have not solved the problem but have made real progress. We have started the revolutionary Be Well program (originally in my district) and are expanding to a second site, also in my district. The county has worked hard to increase the number of beds, and I worked directly with the governor’s office and the local courts to start CARE courts in Orange County to help the most severely mentally ill on our streets.
Unfortunately, gaps in care and in enforcement tools remain that frustrate our ability to continue progress. I am working with the county to undo the misguided court decision in the Boise case that unwisely limits our ability to enforce anti-camping and anti-vagrancy laws. I also am working with South County cities in my district to further efforts to help address homelessness, especially with short-term inclement weather facilities. As the mayor of Irvine, I identified an available homeless care site away from population centers, but progress on that stopped under Irvine’s current leadership.
We must continue our efforts to help the least fortunate among us, without putting our neighborhoods at risk. Homelessness should not be a right, and “compassion” does not mean letting homeless addicts or the mentally ill suffer under bridges, in doorways or on our streets.
Looking at the county’s yearly budget, is there a department or project that has not received the attention it needs? How would you make sure those needs are addressed?
I’ve approached every budget cycle with two goals: 1) The budget must balance as I believe government should live within its means, and 2) The money must be spent where needed the most and can do the most good. Every dollar of your tax money must count. I’ve balanced every budget under my control.
I prioritize public safety. Law enforcement and fire protection must be appropriately funded so personnel have the tools to protect us and protect themselves. The “defund the police” mentality has sympathies on the current board. I will resist it wholeheartedly.
Government also has a role in providing quality of life improvements. I prioritize our Health Care Agency to keep us healthy, emphasizing spending on at-risk populations. I have also emphasized getting resources to our at-risk canyon communities and making available more public spaces, like Irvine Lake and regional hiking trails.
The public expects full transparency from public leaders. How can this be achieved? How can the county do better in this area?
Complete transparency is not only the law, but essential to public confidence in and the legitimacy of policymakers. The Brown Act requires all public governing boards to do business in public. While many agencies and city councils have been accused of Brown Act violations, no board on which I served, during my service, has ever been found to have violated the Brown Act.
I also support more disclosure, rather than less, even when the law technically permits withholding. My responses to Public Record Act requests have never been found to be deficient. My personal disclosures, reflected in Form 700 filings, have also never been challenged.
I support being as transparent as possible. I encourage strict adherence to disclosure rules, disputes as to the scope of disclosure should be resolved in favor of transparency and support the adoption of best practices from around the state.
The county oversees unincorporated territories where it can encourage housing, how else can it stimulate the development of affordable rent/housing in Orange County?
The county recently revised its housing plan and submitted it to the state for approval. The plan identifies across the county where new housing would be permissible and encouraged. We also recently approved a project for the conversion of county property that included a housing component. Unfortunately, the developer backed out because of problems from excessive state regulations and threats of lawsuits. We need fixes to these state rules that cripple housing. Governments do not build houses. It just makes land available through appropriate zoning; builders must actually build. Too often, builders are thwarted in this state, contributing to the housing problem.
I have long advocated responsible development, always considering the character of our neighborhoods, but realizing that a stagnant community will ultimately wither. That advocacy on behalf of reasonable, affordable housing is why the Building Industry Association in November gave me its “Decade of Public Service” award.
