Revised Measure E funding plan delayed
Excerpts from the Yolo Sun article "Pivotal Measure E fund reallocation delayed:"
Recent estimates of total revenue generated by 2006 Woodland Municipal Measure E (twelve year, half-cent sales tax increment, for a variety of capital improvements) have been revised dramatically downward — and a major set of reallocations was due to be on the City Council agenda for March 16.
However, City Manager Mark Deven explained that this item was pulled due to, yet, insufficient staff time being available to properly prepare it. He indicates that it will indeed appear on an upcoming agenda.
Measure E formally specified that one recipient of its funds would have utter and complete (advisory) priority over all the others: Road building and maintenance.
All other recipients, the community’s library, parks & recreation, the Opera House, city hall, even a new community / senior center, were only informally provided allocations (although, the opera house was recently provided a specific amount to complete its — now also delayed — expansion project)..
Road building and maintenance, however, was explicitly assigned a 45% share or $30,200,000, whichever is greater.
This formal language in Measure E thus operates to effectively guarantee that: Whatever future economic conditions ensue — a full 45% of 2006 revenue projections is firmly locked up for roads at the very outset.
What this means in practical terms, as Deven agree, is that the allocation rate for roads is now no longer just 45% — but rather is fast approaching 70%.
Read the entire article at YoloSun.wordpress.com.
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29 comments:
whats new. If people arent buying any thing you dont get tax money.If none of the lower working people arent working and leave it up to admin. you wont have anything done. good luck fools
Leave it up to "admin?" What does that mean?
That admin, does nothing but sit pick theyre noses and hires consultants to do their work.You must be one of those admin. person.
Define admin.
any upper management
3:02
Okay, I wasn't convinced you weren't mixing this topic up with the school district issues.
As for Measure E... voters approved it and council approves the expenditures. Using most of that money on the roads and the community center at the expense of something that can help stimulate retail sales downtown - the Opera House expansion - was a big mistake. It is these kinds of decisions that will make it difficult to pass a sales tax measure.
But voters did it before, so who knows?
I think it's pragmatic of the City Manager/Council to reassess and re-assign. With Measure "L" (admittedly passed and administered during different economic times) the Council did not wait until one prioritized project was completed to start another. In fact, the City's cash-flow was so impacted that it was necessary to float an emergency bond to cover all the costs (bond was paid back as the revenues materialized).
When the Measures are proposed - they are matched with voter preferences - Roads was #1 on both measures. I feel the current City Manager is following the highest voter priotities rather than throwing a little bit here and there. The Opera House expansion was pretty far down the list of voter recommendations, as I remember it.
7:16
Measure "L" failed. Measures "H" and "E" passed.
Council has the final say on the distribution of funds regardless of what the vote was. As I recall there were only a few advisory votes accompanying Measure E... roads, library, community center and Opera House. There was no stipulation or legal requirement of attributing percentages of allocations to the number of votes. Any way you cut it, false logic does not justify misspending.
Sorry, Dino - I meant Measure "H". (where did "L" come from? - hadn't had my coffee yet).
Actually there were (as I recall) several "voter" advisories and the percentage priority went to Roads, then the C/S thing, then I believe the Sports whatever, Library, Civic Center and then the Opera House. Allotments were directed by the votes for each (over 12 years) and as such -roads remained the big winner. I agree that councils certainly can change the direction. The "measures" were GENERAL taxes and could only be "advised" where to be allotted by state law.
I sense your disappointment and pretty much agree. My disappointment is putting the library on back burner - but am holding my breath as to its ultimate survival right now any way, let alone structural improvements.
I'm just glad this council didn't start every project that was proposed as soon as they got the chance - like Measure "H". It was a nightmare for those of us involved with cash-flow for the City.
I think we are at the tipping point on the tax rate. If it is increased I think more people will go to Natomas to do their big ticket shopping to save money.
Why don't we lower the sales tax and advertise that fact. You can come to Woodland and make your car, appliance and furniture purcases and save hundreds of dollars.
Sell more, make more profit for local business and increase the tax revenue by selling more.
I was told that 50% of the sales tax revenue comes from outside the city of Woodland. Lets take advantage of this if it is true.
My mom used to say this when money was tight "You can't get blood from a turnip". I don't know exactly what that means but it sounds appropriate in this case.
When I read this stuff it cracks me up. It reminds me of the movie Titanic when the ship is sinking and the band keeps playing. California is the ship and we (Woodland) are the band. I could put California back on it's feet and lower taxes it a matter of months. All they (Legislature and Terminator) have to do is sell off the UC education system to the highest bidders creating a substantial rainy day fund and saving tax payers 17 billion in taxes annually. The deficet is 19 Billion. Frankly, Im tired of hearing about those cry baby kids protesting tuition fee hikes...maybe they should get a job like everyone else or go to a different school. They (Legislature) could lower everyones taxes and get out of the red by selling off the UC system. Why do we need to fund education, private sector can do it cheaper and better through competition. We are our own worst enemies. Government can't be everything to everybody..we need to set priorities as a state. People are taxed enough. This savings will trickle down to the counties & cities, getting us out of the problem the state has created.
Dino: Its sound like you should run for school board.I tried to explain that administration is way too top heavy.How many fire chiefs do we have? How many capitains? How many lieutenants? so on and so on.The police is the same. The city the same way.The school is way worst.Until we stand up and vote no for this junk they wont understand. We need some drastic change.At all level.
10:52
You honestly tried to explain it?
Here's what you wrote:
"If none of the lower working people arent working and leave it up to admin. you wont have anything done."
"admin, does nothing but sit pick theyre noses"
"Its sound like you should run for school board."
You did little in the way of explaining yourself... and sliding your elbow across your keyboard doesn't count.
well then einstein answer my last comment then
First explain yourself in English.
should I talk slower?????
Dino - while I don't disagree with your thinking that if the sales tax was lowered businesses could advertise to "come shop in Woodland" and with the out-of-townshoppers hovering at 50% of business - it would seem win-win. Unfortunately, the current sales tax rate is set by the state - all except the "Measure E" increment. If that was suspended, then the City wouldn't even have those dollars to put towards the special projects.
It's probably a good argument, however, to not put another percentage on the current tax.
Dino
You say that the Opera House Expansion was at the bottom of the list. Why not use some of these funds to expand the Opera House and also revitalize the downtown. Bring in music, popular plays, venues that bring people in from other cities and counties. I believe that this could help stimulate the downtown at the very least.
BS I only voted to tax myself for the senior center / opera house not for the general fun - I mean fund!
We should SUE!!!!!
The jurisdiction that receives sales tax revenue when a car is sold in Woodland is not necessarily the City of Woodland, it is the jurisdiction (city or county) where the car gets registered by the person who bought it in Woodland. So someone from Natomas who buys a car in Woodland will end up having the sales tax go to the City of Sacramento, not the City of Woodland. Same with folks who come to Woodland from Vacaville, or Williams, or Colusa, or Arbuckle...just so you know. That's why having more farm land paved over for Paul Petrovich's next attempt at an auto mall is so ridiculous ... it won't raise any sales tax revenue for Woodland from car sales (except those cars sold to folks who live here and who register their cars here), whether we raise our sales tax rate or not.
What would be really refreshing in considering whether to raise our sales tax rate by 1/4 cent for only four years (the equivalent of $2.74 more on a $1,000 refrigerator bought at Costco or Pearson's or Sears) is this: why do so many of us not seem to understand the truth in the old saying, "You get what you pay for?" If you're not willing to pay to keep your library open, then it won't be there for you, or your kids, or your neighbor's kids. If you're not willing to pay that extra one penny (One Penny!) on your $4.00 Starbucks drink to have the sports fields in town, and at the Community and Senior Center maintained, then those sports fields won't be available for you and your kids and your grandkids to use, but will just be fenced off, locked up, and left to become overgrown and useless to the community. And with the growing gang violence in Woodland, do you really want to lose more sworn police officer positions? And with our rapidly aging population here, do you really want to lose more professional firefighter positions?
Are you willing to pay for what you think you might need or want over the next four years? Put on your thinking caps ...
5:11
I can't hear you. I suggest you write better.
5:12
I never said those things.
7:21
I never said the Opera House was at the bottom of the list, but I agree that Measure E funds should have been prioritized to do just as you suggest.
I would pay to bring back the OLD WEST GET YOUR GUNS OILED AND CLEANED LETS SHOOTEM UP!!!!!!!!!!
8:47
How much would you pay? A 1/4 cent sales tax?
5 cent a bullet dummy
12:44
You're an idiot.
why it would stop alot of gang bangers!!!Its working in others states!!
9:00
Name the states and how they employ "Old West" approaches to gang control. If you are able to do that, then relate your asinine comments to Measure E funding.
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