Long Beach Briefs: City Council To Consider Ballot Measures; POLB Has Its Busiest July

LB City Council to Consider Four Ballot Measures for November

The Long Beach City Council Aug. 9, will consider placing four potential city charter amendments on the Nov. 8, 2022 ballot for consideration by Long Beach voters. 

The four proposed charter amendments relate to the consolidation of the city’s existing water, sewer and gas utilities into a single publicly-owned utility; establishment of a Police Oversight Commission; realignment of city election dates with the state; and realignment of Long Beach Board of Education election dates with the state. After the city charter amendments are selected for ballot placement Aug. 9, the city will call for argument writers interested in writing arguments both for or against the approved measures. 

Proposed language for the charter amendments may be found on the July 19, 2022, agenda for the joint meeting between the charter amendment committee and the city council. The official list of charter amendments and ballot measures to be placed on the Nov. 8 ballot. Additional information will follow.

The Port of Long Beach Had Its Busiest July On Record

LONG BEACH — Dockworkers and terminal operators moved 785,843 twenty-foot equivalent units in July, a slim 0.13% increase from the previous record set in July 2021. Imports declined 1.8% to 376,175 TEUs, while exports were down 0.5% to 109,411 TEUs. Empty containers moved through the port were up 2.8% to 300,257 TEUs.

The economy is not necessarily in a recession, but weaker domestic demand confirms it is rapidly downshifting amid high inflation and tightening by the Federal Reserve. Consumer spending rose a modest 1% nationally, attributed to an increase in spending on services that offset a decline in purchasing goods.

With the July result, the Port of Long Beach has broken monthly records in six out of the last seven months. The port has moved 5,793,621 TEUs during the first seven months of 2022, up 4.6% from the same period last year.