AgdaPkt 2003-07-14 - Laserfiche WebLink

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A-7 FLIP - FLOP from page 8 . .. ... .... ... .. .. ... .... ... . ... . .. . ... ... . . .. . suggest the plan would hold cities and counties harmless from any financial impact if property tax revenues do not keep up with the growth of sales tax revenues. Veteran lobbyists and experience suggest the legislature could do the swap without any compensation. While it is difficult to react to such a concep- tual proposal without any details, the League's concerns about the idea are based on the follow- ing: The Trust Issue. Past experience with the state gives city officials every reason to be dubious and concerned. In another so-called "temporary" shift in the early 1990s known as the ERAF "shift", state officials began the process of "borrowing" funds that have never been paid back. Cities have lost over $6 billion in property tax funds since the raid started. Each year cities contribute over $800 million to this account —and it grows every year. It will total about $6.9 billion at the end of FY 2003 -04. It's More Complicated Than They Think. The League's opposition to a similar idea this session in AB 1221 (Steinberg - Campbell) was based on the absence of a constitutional amend- ment protecting local revenues and the long list of unintended consequences from the bill that needed careful study. The work of the League's technical study committee on this bill over the last month underscores further just how difficult properly drafting such a measure would be if it is jammed in at the last minute as part of a budget deal. Serious mistakes could be made in the process, putting future city revenues at risk. Constitutional Protection Essential. This measure underscores the importance of constitutional protection of local revenues. natural inclination will be to reject any plan that uses local revenues to finance state government operations. The state has never faced tougher fiscal times, however, and legislators need to know they are doing a good job representing community interests when they fight to keep local tax funds local. ACTION: Thank your legislators for their strong support of cities in the past, and tell them you are seriously concerned about this type of proposal because of past experience with ERAF. Cities have put their budgets to bed and each dollar is critical to paying for local services. SB 440 from page 3 ............ • .. . ment on economic issues with city or county negotiators. SB 402 required that the arbitrator's decision would be binding on the local govern- ment. The Supreme Court said that this require- ment was unconstitutional, because it delegated decisions about a city's finances to a private parry and interfered with counties' (and, by implication, charter cities') plenary authority over employee compensation. SB 440 attempts to address these flaws by making the arbitrators' award subject to reversal by a unanimous vote of the governing body. There is a narrow exception for charter cities and coun- ties with contrary language "with respect to rejec- tion of an arbitration award." City officials should vigorously oppose this bill as yet one more outrageous effort by the state to undermine the fiscal independence of California cities and counties. The state's sluggish economy means that most California cities are struggling now to maintain public safety and other essential services. The governor's and several legislative budget proposals would slash funding for local programs, and raid local revenues to balance the state's budget. Contact Your Legislatorsl We urge city officials to contact their state legislators with these messages and express similar concerns. Many state legislators have roots in city or county governments, and their No legislator who professes to care about protection of public safety and other local services should vote for this bill. Urge a NO vote on this bill. (Visit the League's Advocacy Center at www.cacities.ora /advocacvicenter for talking points that you can use in a letter or in a discussion with your legislator.) PAGE 10 /PRIORITY FOCUS Visit the League's Official Web Site -- www.cacities.org