SLO County Supervisor Adam Hill is a hypocrite

February 4, 2020

OPINION by T. KEITH GURNEE

On the first of this month, San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Adam Hill sent out a vicious email blast from his personal computer excoriating his opponent Stacy Korsgaden. Then, after attacking her, he closed by saying “we will not… align with any attacks on my opponent.” What a hypocrite!

As the most troubled and troublesome politician we’ve had in this county in recent memory, Adam Hill is a human hand grenade whose obnoxious behavior has outlived his welcome.

While he attributed a number of false allegations in his latest email blast to Stacy Korsgaden, it’s time to enumerate some of the many truths about Adam Hill:

Hill has historically accepted thousands of dollars from the county’s biggest developers, marijuana moguls, and the wine billionaires trying to privatize the North County groundwater basin at public expense.

Hill once impersonated an opponent in his 2012 race for supervisor in a phone call to a person who wrote a letter to the editor, leaving a scathing message that he attributed to his opponent at that time.

Hill has welcomed the marijuana industry to San Luis Obispo County, advocating against regulating that industry and the corruption that has come with it.

Hill has been investigated by the District Attorney’s Office for sending vulgar and threatening emails to one of his critics, an investigation that concluded that the emails came directly from Hill’s own computer.

Hill has used pay-to-play schemes to extract campaign contributions by telling potential contributors that if they didn’t contribute to his campaigns, he would deny them access to his office.

Hill is a misogynist who regularly disrespects and verbally abuses the women serving as County Supervisors during the board’s public meetings.

Hill continues to advocate for higher county fees on housing that only increase the cost of housing in the middle of a statewide housing crisis.

Hill, who touts himself as a champion of the homeless, strenuously fought against Supervisor Debbie Arnold’s successful program called “50 Now” to house 50 of the most vulnerable and chronically homeless, only to turn around and take credit for its success.

Hill ignored the voter’s decision in 2016 who voted by nearly 80 percent to have the county manage its local groundwater basins.

Hill violated the will of those voters in his attempt to invite the state to take over management of our local groundwater supplies.

Hill has attempted to close down the great investigative reporting of Cal Coast News by threatening its advertisers with reprisals that would economically damage them.

Hill has used county funds to retain expensive out-of-town lawyers to defend him from litigation that his actions have spurred.

Hill wants to take away funding for maintaining and improving key infrastructure including county roads in order to throw more public funding towards homelessness.

Hill attempted a coverup to block the well-justified investigation into the corruption and financial mismanagement of the IWMA– the Integrated Waste Management Board.

Hill has used the county’s email system to send obscene, sexually perverse, and slanderous emails to intimidate those who disagree with him.

Hill, when publicly called on the carpet for those vulgar emails, had to take a leave of absence from the Board of Supervisors claiming he was suffering from mental illness and depression, only to later resume his bad email habits.

Hill has used anti-gay slurs against people who are critical of him.

Hill took credit for trying to establish a desalinization plant at Diablo Canyon when he knew full well that it couldn’t happen based on his inside knowledge of the imminent closure of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant.

If these aren’t enough reasons for voters to forcibly retire Adam Hill from the Board of Supervisors, I don’t know what else there is. After all, if we are to get rid of corruption in this county, we need to get Adam Hill out of politics. It’s time we sent this Jersey boy back to Jersey!