MCKEON'S TACTIC UNABLE TO STOP MINE RIDER KILLED IN COMMITTEE.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - U.S. Rep. Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon recently failed to kill plans for a sand and gravel mine in Soledad Canyon, using an unorthodox legislative technique.

Last month, McKeon attempted to amend a bill authorizing funds for the Department of Defense with a provision that would have prevented Azusa-based Transit Mixed Concrete from quarrying 56.1 million tons of aggregate from the hillside south of the Antelope Valley Freeway, between Soledad Canyon and Agua Dulce Canyon roads.

``It's one of the tricks of the trade,'' said Scott Wilk, a spokesman for the Republican congressman who is up for re-election in the March 5 primary.

McKeon's rider bill, ``Guaranteeing Access to Edwards Air Force Base and Air Force Plant 42,'' contended that the mine would imperil national security by preventing military personnel from reaching the plant and base by clogging state Route 14 with hundreds of tractor-trailer trucks traveling to and from the gravel pit.

``The 14 is the main artery from Los Angeles to Edwards and is vitally important to our national security,'' Wilk said.

While the authorization bill was ultimately approved by both houses of Congress and signed by President George W. Bush, McKeon's amendment was stricken in the conference committee made up of members of the House and Senate.

TMC's parent company, Louisiana-based Cemex Inc., cited McKeon's action as an example of its opponents' strategy to scuttle the company's plans through federal legislation in a lawsuit filed last week against Los Angeles County.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court, says county officials have precluded the company's plans through a series of delays and unreasonable requirements engineered by the city of Santa Clarita and 5th District Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, the project's main opponents.

Wilk said Wednesday that McKeon had not discussed his tactics with officials from either the county or Santa Clarita.

``We wanted to keep it quiet, and not broadcast our strategy,'' Wilk said.

Several years ago, McKeon used a similar strategy to kill plans for a 190-million-ton landfill in Elsmere Canyon by amending an unrelated bill.

While the mine's opponents said they believe that the mine will destroy the environment of the Santa Clarita Valley, TMC officials said most residents won't even know it is operating.

Wilk said the congressman was frustrated by the perception among some Santa Clarita city officials that he was not striving to defeat the mine.

``We've been working hard behind the scenes,'' Wilk said. ``We've always believed that this is the most important issue facing the Santa Clarita Valley.''

In November, McKeon, the city's first mayor, declined a request from Councilwoman Laurene Weste and Councilman Bob Kellar to sponsor legislation that would have forced TMC to scale back the mine and would have reimbursed the company for the costs incurred during its decadelong attempt to secure permits.

McKeon said at the time that Santa Clarita residents wanted to see the mine killed, not downsized, as the council members proposed.