EDITORIAL TRICKY, TRICKY THE VOTERS WERE DUPED ON L.A.'S PHONY PHONE TAX.

MEASURE S, the troubling communications tax on Tuesday's Los Angeles ballot, passed not because of its merits, but because of the dishonesty behind it. It's likely many of the people who stamped the "yes" button thought that this was a simple 10 percent tax reduction, as the ballot language led the cursory reader to believe.

Maybe it even made them feel good about the city leaders. Or perhaps voters were simply swayed by the mailers featuring Police Chief William Bratton saying Measure S was all about public safety.

Unfortunately for the city's naive voters, neither is true.

They were duped by the city's elected officials who have so badly managed the city's money that the prospect of the current phone tax being ruled illegal as it works its way through court prompted them to resort to trickery to find a new source.

In essence, they just voted us a tax increase cannily worded to seem the opposite.

The result might be a reduction in the rate of taxation, but it actually increases what can be taxed to all sorts of services including text messages and Internet access. So users will pay a slightly lower percentage, but on a lot more.

Nor is this money for public safety. The campaign consultants just figured voters would be moved to say "yes" if scared by the thought of criminals running unchecked through Los Angeles.

Indeed, you can bet a dollar to a doughnut that, like all other increases in city revenue, the bulk will go to pay the same interests that always drain city coffers: developers, contractors and public employees.

Measure S was born in dishonesty when the City Council declared it an emergency to get it on the Feb. 5 primary ballot, where consultants expected a better shot at approval.

And the voters will have to live with this trickery for a long time to come.