Council to vote on whether to put 1-cent sales tax increase on Nov. 4 ballot
Benicia City Council will decide Monday whether to amend the Nov. 4 election ballot should give local voters the chance to increase their sales tax by a penny and whether the city treasurer should be an appointed position.
Originally, the only Benicia issues in the election were two Council seats currently held by Mark Hughes and Alan Schwartzman, whose terms expire this year.
Both have indicated they’re interested in seeking re-election.
However, the Council has since taken steps to add two more decisions to the ballot, City Attorney Heather McLaughlin wrote in her report written Wednesday.
The Council decided July 15 to give voters another chance to say whether the treasurer’s position should be appointed.
Currently, it’s an elected position, but since the 2011 election won by Robert Langston, the Council has had to appoint two treasurers.
H.R. Autz was appointed in 2012 after Langston died in office; Kenneth Paulk was appointed earlier this year after Autz, too, died in office. Before Langston’s election, administrative assistant Teri Davena was appointed to complete the term of Margaret “Teddie” Bidou, who also died in office.
Other considerations are that many cities assign the treasurer’s position to such appointed staff members as the finance director or city manager.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the Council also voted to add another measure to the ballot, to increase the city’s sales tax by a penny on the dollar.
To do that, the Council must adopt an ordinance Monday that would enact a general purpose once-cent transaction and use tax if the measure is approved by a majority of voters.
City Manager Brad Kilger wrote Wednesday that the money would be used to “improve or maintain essential city services,” including public safety, emergency response times, neighborhood police patrols, crime prevention, youth programs, pothole repair “and other quality of life services.” The city also maintains 31 parks and 94 miles of streets and roads.
A survey by the Lew Edwards Group with assistance from Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz and Associates, both of Oakland, indicated most residents were willing to pay another penny in sales tax rather than to have city services cut.
A simple majority — 50 percent plus one — would need to favor the measure for it to pass. Should voters approve, the additional tax would become effective April 1, 2015.
The tax is expected to generate about $3.7 million in revenue.
Kilger wrote that the city has taken multiple approaches to address the impact of the recession, discretely trimming some services, addressing the structural deficit in the General Fund and various enterprise fund budgets, reducing the city’s full-time staff by 12 percent and encouraging the rest to accept a 10 percent compensation cut.
Kilger wrote that Benicia has postponed addressing internal service needs and capital improvement projects; increased lease income by 275 percent and added park user fees.
Those increases have added more than $65,000 a month. But the city has more than $100 million in unfunded capital needs, including more than $50 million in streets and transportation, $20 million in storm drain improvements and more than $30 million in parks, library, swimming pool and other needs.
He wrote that “the effect of the Great Recession was more than a temporary period of economic contraction, but an event that reshaped Benicia’s fiscal landscape.”
The city has seen drops in the money it receives from the state. In addition, Benicia Industrial Park, the city’s “most prominent source of sales tax,” has reduced its vacancies, but it has “stagnant growth,’ Kilger wrote.
Along with these revenue drops, Benicia has seen increases in operating costs that are not within the city’s control, Kilger wrote. Those increases are outpacing the returning growth in revenue, he wrote.
Without new revenue, he wrote, the General Fund budget will have greater deficits, about $1.5 million during the next 10 years, he wrote.
At least four members of the Council must approve putting the measure on the ballot. In addition, Kilger recommended the appointment of a Council subcommittee to draft an argument for the measure, and decide whether a rebuttal argument would be allowed.
Tom says
Will additional taxes increase retail sales or decrease them? Perhaps we should disband the Economic Development Council and not pursue this 1% sales tax.
Bob livesay says
The 1% sales tax increase is needed. Infra-structure, services and other things that the city residents do not want to give up. That is what makes this city special. You could even say it is pay back time to non-residents who pay as much as 2% more in their own city. Guess what they would rather live in Benicia than say Vallejo. This is a winning situation. We as a city are very indpendent and want to stay that way. This will not fund bike paths or any non-essential items. Just what is needed to maintain our fine city and still be the envy of Solano County.
John says
No, no way, no how!