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9A Page 14 In the coming weeks, dozens more cities are expected to reject the Governor's budget proposal to raid $2 billion in local property taxes to bail the state out of its fiscal mess and pass similar resolutions of severe fiscal hardship. They are sending the message that cities cannot afford to bail the state out of its chronic budget problem. A sample resolution can be found on the League's Web site. htto://w.NW.cacities.orq/resource files/28002.SAMPLERESOLUTl ON FIN 0 I NGASEVEREFI SeAL HARDSHIPMav8.odf Plan to Attend Budget Action Day on Wednesday, June 3 The League is holding a special event in Sacramento on June 3 to bring city officials to lobby their legislators and administration officials on the implications of the May 19 special election. The timing of this session is designed to allow many city officials to come in just for the day. With California's fiscal crisis, budget negotiations and testimonies are going to be extremely important. The May Revise has set the tone for the coming weeks of budget negotiations and this is an important time to meet with your legislature to protect local funding. California cities need to join forces to respond to the May Revise proposals to ensure cities' needs are heard and understood in the Capitol. Schedule of Events 10 -11:15 a.m., May Revise Budget Briefing Citizen Hotel, Metropolitan Terrace, Sacramento, CA 11 :15 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Time for Scheduling Lunch and Lobbying Appointments with Legislators Please contact Meghan McKelvey at mmckelvev@cacities.orQ or (916) 658-8253 if you would like to attend. District Budget Meetings City officials who are unable to make the trip to Sacramento on June 3 are encouraged to contact their League public affairs manager to schedule a district meeting with their legislator. Local Voters Say "Yes" to Some New Taxes In addition to the statewide propositions on the ballot on May 19, there were a dozen local measures. including eight affecting local taxes. Half of the tax measures passed. The only school measure on the ballot. Measure D in the Mount Diablo School District (Contra Costa County) received 59 percent yes votes, but fell short of achieving the two-thirds voter approval needed for its $99 per parcel tax for schools. Two communities considered increases in their hotel tax or Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT). Voters in Palmdale approved an increase in their TOT from 7 percent to 10 percent by a 64 percent yes vote. But voters in Madera County rejected a TOT increase from 9 percent to 11 percent with just 24 percent yes. Both measures needed majority approval. Voters rejected proposed add-on sales taxes (Transactions and Use Tax) in two cities. Pacifica's majority vote 1 cent sales tax received 38.3 percent yes. Calexico's half cent sales tax increase dedicated to police and fire services garnered only 46.9 percent of the vote. It needed two-thirds approval. Two of the three local measures concerning local utility user taxes (UUT) passed. In Hayward, 53 percent of voters approved a new 5.5 percent UUT on gas, electricity, video and