The City Council seems determined not to put an end date on its newly proposed parcel tax.
It seems the Council wants to make this parcel tax permanent, without actually calling for it to be permanent. Our members are too scared to ask voters to approve it, as such. That should tell the Council something right there. Don’t try and verbally trick the voters into making it practically permanent.
Unless the measure states that the parcel tax is going to be permanent, there is a 35-year, state limit on parcel taxes.
A Right We Already Have
Instead of giving voters a specific end date, the Council has decided to make voters take the initiative to end this tax. This is a right we, as citizens of California, already have. Meaning, to stop this tax, citizens would have to collect enough signatures, have them verified by the county, and once qualified, pay to have it put on the ballot.
Or, better yet, our Council could do the right thing and just add a sunset clause to its parcel tax measure before putting it on the ballot.
It just makes fiscal sense!
Why not give taxpayers an ending date? This is not a rhetorical question.
Taking Their Due
This Council seems determined to get its $50 due from our fixed and low-income senior homeowners.
Measured Comparisons
Measure EE, the CCUSD’s $96, limited 5-year parcel tax had about 800 exemptions granted. That suggests we’re only talking about $40,000, a 2 percent reduction in revenues. The city has already said that this $2,064,000 in revenue is not enough even to cover the maintenance when the project is finished.
Is $40,000 going to have that much of an impact on the project? Is the Council saying that it is absolutely necessary for the project to be successful?
Scrooge!
The Council should be ashamed for demanding fixed-income home owners come up with another $50 in taxes, instead of offering them the traditional full exemption.
Members are going to look like Scrooges. All over $40,000. Yet I still see they are asking for it.
If the Council wants this $99 permanent parcel tax, it should ask voters to make it a permanent tax.
I urge the Council to give the low- and fixed-income taxpayers their much needed full exemption and to decide on an ending date for this parcel tax.
Mr. Laase may be contacted at GMLaase@aol.com
