Victory For San Fernando Valley

The Los Angeles Daily News issued its opinion on the major victory the San Fernando Valley won when it was ruled that the county's Local Agency Formation Commission would be given the authority to decide a number of secession issues, including water rights and the dividing of city assets. If it had had its way, L.A. City Hall would have given secessionists only one chance at defining the terms of secession. After Monday's decision, the LAFCO can propose a number of different scenarios, greatly improving the chances of the secession issue appearing on the ballot in 2002.