Critical votes set for MTA tax

With as much as $40 billion at stake for Los Angeles County transit projects, local leaders on Monday urged state legislators to help them get a controversial half-percent sales-tax increase on the November ballot. Daily News.

While some have decried the plan as shortchanging the San Fernando Valley - only giving it $1 billion for the notoriously clogged Sepulveda Pass - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said the funds sought by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority are desperately needed across the county.

"Today, the residents and commuters of Los Angeles County are at a crossroads between the past and the future," said Villaraigosa, who chairs the MTA and was joined by county officials, labor leaders and members of the business community.